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Crime and punishmentAbsolute and relative morality

Explore what the Church teaches about morality, ethics and decision-making. What are the causes of crime and the aims of punishment? Should the death penalty be permitted or not?

Part of Religious StudiesGood and evil - Unit 1

Absolute and relative morality

Absolute morality

If you believe in absolute morality you will have faith that there is a right course of action to take in a moral dilemma, which is true in all situations regardless of culture, religious tradition, time or age.

How would a follower of this sort of morality respond to the commandment Do not kill? They would try to make sure that they were not involved in any killing, which would affect their views on issues such as war and euthanasia. They would say that these actions are wrong in all circumstances.

Relative morality

If you believe in you would agree that different courses of action might be needed in different situations.

How would a follower of this sort of morality respond to the commandment Do not kill? They would agree that killing is wrong. However, they would look at a range of other issues as well and might say that killing is necessary in a particular situation.

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