Engaging with key moral issues relevant to contemporary Christians, this work by Kevin L. Flannery explores the intersection of ethics and church teaching. It introduces action theory to examine human actions through the lenses of Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas. Key topics include sexual morality, reproduction, the ethics of killing and preserving life, complicity in wrongdoing, and the role of conscience, making complex philosophical concepts accessible to non-specialists.
Contemporary society very often asks of individuals and/or corporate entities that they perform actions connected in some way with the immoral actions of other individuals or entities. Typically, in the attempt to determine what would be unacceptable cooperation with such immoral actions, Christian scholars and authorities refer to the distinction, which appears in the writings of Alphonsus Liguori, between material and formal cooperation, the latter being connected in some way with the cooperator's intention in so acting. While expressing agreement with most of Alphonsus's determinations in these regards, Cooperation with Evil also argues that the philosophical background to these determinations often lacks coherence, especially when compared to related passages in the writings of Thomas Aquinas.Having compared the philosophical approaches of these two great moralists, Cooperation with Evil then describes a number of ideas in Thomas's writings that might serve as more effective tools for the analysis of cases of possible immoral cooperation. The book also includes, as appendixes, translations of relevant passages in both Alphonsus and Thomas.
Exploring human behavior, Aristotle applies his logical insights to understand moral character. Fr. Flannery highlights how Aristotle analyzes different types of human actions and their combinations, revealing their influence on the logical framework of morality. This examination underscores the complexity of human conduct and its implications for ethical reasoning.
