The inevitability of criticism within moral judgment

[sesquipedality]

Another thought on ethical stances and judgment. In order to not be singling out the Jews, let's pick another example. Some evangelical Christians believe that it is wrong to marry someone who is not themselves a Christian. ("Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can

Comments

[naath]

With marriage it might just be a practical thing; for instance if you have wildly different ideas of "what is acceptable food" then it might be really hard to eat together, and eating together is a huge party of how we are social.

And some choices aren't really about being "right" at all, but just being about "what I like doing". I spent my weekend climbing Welsh mountains, which I think is fun *for me* but it's not fun for everyone. I think it's hard to tell when someone has made a choice because they think it is the One True Way and when it is because they think it is the Fun Way For Them.

[sesquipedality]

But mountain climbing isn't an ethical choice. There are some ethical positions that aren't applicable to others, I suspect, but in general where a person does diverting because they think it is eight, that necessarily implies that other choices are less right.

[naath]

I just think it's hard to tell whether a person is doing something because they think it is the One Right Thing or because they enjoy it. Yesterday I sat in a cafe wearing my sensible shoes, long-ish skirt, and no makeup, eating a vegetarian meal, and reading a book. I *could* have been secretly judging people who wear heels, trousers, makeup, short skirts... I *could* have been secretly judging people who eat meat or who don't like reading novels... But actually I was just wearing what I felt like wearing that morning, eating the food that looked tasty, and entertaining myself in a way I enjoy

[damerell]