MODULE 2: THE

MORAL AGENT
This module will tackle the following
topics:

• Lesson 1: Man as a Moral Agent

• Lesson 2: The Development of Moral Character of
the Moral Agent
• Lesson 3: The Stages of Moral Development
Module 2: lesson 1: Man as a Moral Agent

The Human Person as a Moral Agent

- “Moral” comes from the latin “mores” referring to society’s patterns, standards, rules of doing things.
“Agent” comes from latin “agere” to do, act. A morsl agent is one who performs an act in accordance
with moral standards. A moral agent is the moral actor, one who acts morally.

- a Moral Agent is “a being who is capable of those actions that have moral quality and which can be
properly denominated good or evil in a moral sense” (Edwards, 1754) Only a moral agent is capable of
human acts. That’s why “morality is for persons.” (Haring, 1971) As wii be disscussed later, human acts
are “those of which a man is master, which he has the power of doing or not doing as he please” or
“those acts which proceed from man as a rational being” (Edwards, 1754).
What is a sufficient condition for moral agency?
It will suffice if the agent has the capacity to conform to some of the external requirements of
morality. So it certai agents can obey moral laws such as ‘Murder is wrong’ or ‘Stealing is wrong’
then they are moral agents, even if they respond only to prudential reasons such as fear of
punishment and even if they are incapable of acting for the sake of moral considerations.
According to the strong version, the Kantian version, it is also essential thst the agents should
have the capacity to rise above their feelings and passions and act for the sake of the moral
law…. (Haksar, V., Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

Capacity to conform to moral standards, to act for the sake of moral considerations, that is, for
the sake of moral law, qualifies one to be a moral agent. The absence of tht capacity to conform
to moral standards, as in the case fo an insane person, excludes you from moral agent.

A dog is not, therefore, a moral agent because it doesn’t have the “capacity” to conform to mora,
standards. It cannot knowingly, freely and voluntarily act. It does not have a mind and freewill.
The same things apply to a robot that is why like the dog, it cannot be a moral agent.
The Purpose-driven Moral Agent

• A moral agent is a person who has the ability to discern right

from wrong and to be held accountable for his or her own
actions. Moral agents have a moral responsibility not to cause
unjustified harm. Traditionally, moral agency is assigned only
to those who can be held responsible for their actions.
The Fundamental Option
• Fundamental option a fundamental option is an act of human self-realization which is also a transcendental
human response to God's offer of grace. This act is "expressed" and constituted by our categorical actions.
God, according to the theory, is the intrinsic end of human self-realization.

• Fr. Emmanuel R. Fernandez (1988) explained clearly the theological concept of responding to the call of
God "by making a fundamental option for Him and ordering one's life accordingly.“

• The fundamental option is "the stance or position I decide to take vis-à-vis the Absolute Value (God) which
then influences ultimately all my other individual actions and decisions.

• (Fernandez 1988) Fernandez quotes Janssens (1966):

• We understand as a consequence the essential importance of the fundamental judgment of conscience; it

determines in our actual life the measure of knowledge that we attain concerning moral good, by pursuing,
that is, in the total meaning of existence, the ideal of me to be realized. At all events, if this judgment
conditions what we consider right to be the content of our fundamental choice, our first obligation is to form
it sincerely and to perfect it assiduously by trying to scrutinize in a better way the objective requirements of
our destiny. Considering, moreover, that it is impossible to realize the ideal of moral perfections only in the
light of this judgment, we are compelled to follow it faithfully
No Pre-fired Man for Man

According to some 20th century thinkers there are no pre-existing directions. There are no signs in
the heavens, “There are no pre-designed, pre-fixed design, plan, purposeof man’s being according
to some 20th century thinkers. For being existentialist, like Jean Paul Sartre, a human person is or
becomes what he/she makes of himself/herself by choice he/she is nothing, no “essence”, until
he/she starts his/her “existence by making choices. (Sartre, 2007) In other words, one who lives a
life of blindly following what others think, say, and do, is nothing zero; he/she lives a hallow, empty
or meaningless life. To the process philosophers like Teilhard de Chardin (1948) and Alfred North
Whitehead, (1996) whatever a human person is or will be a result of a creative process.

In other words, for all these thinkers, a human person to create his/her end, purpose, or directions.
He/she has to invent his/her destiny. Since there is no goal or end designed for him/her, he/she
would completely be the author of what he/she turns out to be.
“World to come “means” world to come out”

•The world to come, that is the heavenly world that every Christian desires to
direct their life to, can only come out or emerged from this world of flesh. A
person should direct his/her life toward this end, the making of the world to
come out of this world. What does it mean making the "world to come" out.
of this world"?
It means, instead of avoiding "this world" as a sinful world of flesh, we
involve ourselves in it, improving it, refining it, constructing and developing
it perfecting it to bring out the world to come.
Lesson 2: The
Development of Moral
Character of the Moral
Agent
Meaning of Defining Moments

• Defining moments A defining moment is a time in your life when you

are compelled to make a significant choice or when you go through
an event that forever alters you. These experiences not only shape
who we are, but they also change the way we see the world and
behave.
The Defining Moment of the Saints

• As our Lord rose up from the waters, the Holy Spirit

descended on him and the voice of God was heard. This is a
defining moment for Jesus that connects him to the plan of
God the Father, marking the beginning of his public ministry .
Relationship between Moral Acts and Character

Moral character is formed by one's actions. The habits, actions, and

emotional responses of the person of good character all are united
and directed toward the moral and the good. Because human beings
are body/soul unities, actions of the body are actions of the self, that
is, human beings are self-possessing, self-governing, and self-
determining. In order to be of good character, one must know the
good, act in morally good ways, and be disposed and inclined toward
the good through the development of virtues
Lesson 3: The Stages
of Moral Development
 Moral development refers to the
process through which a human
person, gains his/her beliefs, skills
and dispositions that makes him/her
a morally mature person.” Kohlberg
Kohlberg’s (2013) describes the stages of moral
Stages of Moral development in 3 stages, namely:
Development level 1- Preconventional morality,
Level 2- conventional morality, and
Level 3 Post-Conventional morality.
Each level has two stages each so
that there are fix stages of moral
development.
Level 1: Pre- conventional Morcility
This is the lowest level of moral development in Kohlberg's theory. At the pre-
conventional level children don't have a personal code of morality Instead, their
moral code is controlled by the standards of adults and the consequences of
following or breaking adults' rules.
Stage 1. Obedience and Punishment Orientation

The child/individual does good in order to avoid being punished. If he/she is

punished, hel she must have done wrong Children obey because adults tell them
to obey. Moral decisions are based on fear of punishment. It is a matter of obey
or you get punished.
Stage 2: Instrumental Orientation
Right behavior is defined by whatever the individual believes to be in his/her
best interest. "What's in it for me?" In this stage there is limited interest in the
needs of others, only to the point where it might further the individual's own
interests. It is a matter of "you scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours" mentality.
Level 2: Conventional
Throughout the conventional level, a child's sense of morality is tied to
personal and societal relationships. Children continue to accept the rules of
authority figures, but this is now due to their belief that this is necessary to
ensure positive relationships and societal order Adherence to rules and
conventions is somewhat rigid during these stages and a rule's
appropriateness or faimess is seldom questioned.
Stage 3: “Good Boy, Nice Girl” Orientation
Children want the approval of others and act in ways to avoid disapproval
Emphasis is placed on good behavior and people “nice” to others. The individual is
good in order to be seen as being a good person by others. Therefore, answers
relate to the approval of others. The individual values caring and loyality to others
as a basis for moral judgements. E.g. if a politician os around in times of calamities
primarily because hewants to appear “good boy” or “good girl” to electorates, he
displays stage 3 morsl developmental stage.
Stage 4. Law and Order Orientation.
The child/individual becomes aware of the wider rules of society, so
judgements concern obeying the rules in order to uphold the law and to
avoid guilt. It is a matter of “ I have to do this because the law says so.” It
is still blind obedience to the law so morality still lacks internalization. “It
is the right things to do,” “school rules say so” as reasons for going to
school are in stage 4.
Level 3. Post- conventional morality
The third stage of moral development, known as postconventional morality, is
distinguished by a person's comprehension of overarching ethical precepts. They are ill-
defined and amorphous, but they might include things like the necessity of protecting
life at all costs and the value of human dignity. Moral reasoning is based on individual
rights and justice, while individual judgment is based on self-selected principles.
According to Kohlberg, most persons only reach this level of moral reasoning.
 Level 3. Post- conventional morality
The third stage of moral development, known as postconventional morality, is
distinguished by a person's comprehension of overarching ethical precepts. They are ill-
defined and amorphous, but they might include things like the necessity of protecting
life at all costs and the value of human dignity. Moral reasoning is based on individual
rights and justice, while individual judgment is based on self-selected principles.
According to Kohlberg, most persons only reach this level of moral reasoning.

Stage 5: Social contract orientation

At stage 5, people begin to ask, "What makes for a good society?" They begin to think
about society in a very theoretical way, stepping back from their own society and
considering the rights and values that a society ought to uphold.
Stage 6: Universal, ethical, principle orientation
Stage 6 (Universal Principles): Kohlberg's final level of moral reasoning is based on
universal ethical principles and abstract reasoning. At this stage, people follow these
internalized principles of justice, even if they conflict with laws and rules.
Development of conscience in moral decision
The moral conscience is a person's judgment about a given action's ordering to
man's ultimate end based on the person's knowledge of the action, its end, and
circumstances. Each person draws from various sources for this knowledge, such
as common sense, basic sci- ence, history, law, experience, and religion.

The information of science

“Information science is that discipline that investigates the properties and behavior of
information, the forces governing the flow of information, and the means of
processing information for optimum accessibility and usability. It is concerned with
the body of knowledge relating to the origination, collection, organization, storage,
retrieval, interpretation, transmission, and utilization of information.”
The information of science
“Information science is that discipline that investigates the properties and behavior of
information, the forces governing the flow of information, and the means of
processing information for optimum accessibility and usability. It is concerned with
the body of knowledge relating to the origination, collection, organization, storage,
retrieval, interpretation, transmission, and utilization of information.”
`Thank you!!!!♥