SITUATIONAL ETHICS

Thesis Statement #6
“Joseph Fletcher’s situationism teaches that act’s
moral justifiability depends upon a given
situation. Under his ethical theory, one must act
in the light of agapeic love in contrast to erotic
and filial love. Under this view, only agapeic love
is intrinsically good. As such, an evil means does
not always nullify a good end.”
 SITUATIONAL ETHICS

UNIVERSAL
LAW LAW OF
LOVE
 LOVE
BIBLE
GREEK WORD

AGAPE
• Concern about others
• Unconditional love
LAWS
LOVE
RULES

PRINCIPLES

IDEALS AND NORMS

 SITUATIONAL ETHICS
• Consequentialism
• Utilitarianism
• Love thy neighbor
(Jesus Christ taught in the Gospels of the New Testament)
 4 WORKING PRINCIPLES
• PRAGMATISM
-an action someone makes should be judged according to the
love influenced in it.
• RELATIVISM
-approaching every situation with a relative mindset and thus
opposing legalistic approaches.
• POSITIVISM
-the most important choice of all in the teachings in 1 John 4:
7- 12
• PERSONALISM
-whereas the legalist thinks people should work to laws, the
situational ethicist believes that laws are for the benefit of
the people.
 6 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES
FIRST PROPOSITION
- Only one thing is intrinsically good; namely love.
SECOND PROPOSITION
- The ruling norm of Christian decision is love.
THIRD PROPOSITION
- Love and Justice are the same.
FOURTH PROPOSITION
- Love will the neighbors good.
FIFTH PROPOSITION
- Only the end justifies the means.
SIXTH PROPOSITION
- Love’s decisions are made situationaly, not
prescriptively.