Bioethics Conference

Finding the Public's Morality

Dr. Robert George often debates issues of public morality in the press and before hostile audiences. On March 27 the well-known McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University spoke to a more receptive audience.

His talk on "The Concept of Public Morality" examined the sometimes-deadly consequences of private party moral choices. He said that just as lawmakers uphold public health and safety by protecting society from the harmful effects of carcinogenic smoke, they should also protect society from pornography, prostitution, fornication, and other dangers known to cause widespread public harm.

George clarified that law and government play a secondary role in upholding public morality, since the primary role belongs to families, individuals, churches, and organizations. When families and individuals uphold moral teachings, they give the government the power to exercise justice over those matters, without usurping their power.

Those who push same-sex unions and other immoral behavior will appeal to the government to promote their moral views, so we are required to defend our moral position, understanding that there are objective moral laws. He urged Christians to reach across the religious aisle and work with other denominations who share their views.

The presentation was sponsored by the Franciscan University Institute of Bioethics.