Part 2 of a Discussion of Mark O’Keefe’s Virtue Abounding Chapter 6 “The Christian Life of Virtue”
In the last blog, we discussed the theological, or infused, virtues to complete St. Thomas Aquinas’s vision of developing the seven virtues: prudence, temperance, courage, justice, faith, hope, and love.
I think a society where each person was bent towards living in a virtuous manner would lessen many of the ills we face today.
A world filled with people focused on developing personal virtue would need fewer laws managing each person’s behaviors since it would be less about controlling people externally as they strive to control themselves.
Each person is living in a way that is about valuing and developing integrity.
Each person holds moral character in high esteem and desires to be good, in the sense of virtuous.
It is the opposite of people doing bad things because they think they can away with it.
There is no getting away with anything when you are striving to be virtuous because you are the sum of your actions. Giving into vices moves you away from being virtuous.
…[W]e have been considering those dispositions and attitudes that made us better human beings and that allow us to live a life that is more truly worthy of the human person…The choices and actions that flow from, these dispositions are good — good for those impacted by our actions and good for ourselves as their agents. (p. 90)
Further, O’Keefe points out that virtuous people’s actions result in good relationships and healthy communities that then result in support for the formation of more people of virtue. (p. 90)
Let’s Agree Society Should Esteem the Virtues
How do we go about as a society adopting this vision of moral virtues, which includes the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, when not everyone is Christian?
St. Thomas Aquinas was Catholic, so much of his advice for developing theological virtues does not match Christians of other denominations, much less those of other faiths or, of course, the agnostics and atheists.
The base of the idea of developing virtuous behavior is actually pagan, not Christian. Aquinas transformed the pagan work of Aristotle and others into a Christian system.
While Christians would see Aquinas’ vision as the only way to truly achieve full human fulfillment, society as a whole would be better off if we at least developed the natural virtues.
In its foundation, his understanding of virtue is rooted in ancient Greek philosophy, which sought to promote a good human society comprised of people of virtues. Even if Christian faith suggests that the vision of pagan philosophers was necessarily incomplete, we cannot deny their fundamental human genius. Our goal may be the transformation of the world in and for Christ, but agreement on the dispositions that should mark good human persons and healthy human interactions would be no small human achievement in line with that more transcendent goal. (p. 103)
Thus, we could agree as a society to value prudence, justice, courage and temperance even if we do not agree on the source of the power to develop them. Christians would teach that it is only possible to live them out to their fullest with the gift of the infused virtues of faith, hope, and love.
Those of another faith could teach another ultimate source for the power to live out these virtues. And secular humanists could teach that it is simply a good idea for people and society to adopt these virtues so we can all live together more harmoniously.
We may not all agree what justice is in each situation, but we would be better off if we all agreed it is better to be just than unjust.
We may not all agree what the prudent decision is, but we would all be better off if the debate was about what is the prudent decision.
If we could all agree that we should strive for the related virtues like trustworthiness, honor, balance, wisdom, then we create a society of people who do want to be the best they can be and treat others as if they matter as much as they do themselves.
That alone would be a large step forward in a better society and move us beyond the us versus them thinking that seems to dominate today.
Reference: O’Keefe, Mark, 2014. “The Christian Life of Virtue,” Chapter 6 of Virtues Abounding, Cascade Books.
