Topics which most of us rarely think about, yet this morning they became quite clear to me. I have of course looked them up before and been schooled on the subjects over my lifetime, both by book and by life. My sharing today will not be in depth, because how deep you go with this is up to you. The level of importance you place on it is again your choice. To me this topic adds value to life and makes it worth living. So, Here we go.
Stated as simply as I can, Morality is Social and Ethics is personal. Maturity is the level at which an individual embraces the two. Maturity demonstrates all around us constantly. Do you see it? Take trees for instance. They grow from seeds, change with the seasons, and eventually spread seeds of their own. The cycle repeats. Maturity is the point at which the plant sows seeds and yet there are levels to maturity. All plants sow seeds, so perhaps the point at which a tree stops sowing seeds and trusts in all it has sown that the tree becomes mature. For us, maturity then is the point at which we share our wisdom and make our mark, so to speak. Having made our mark, we then focus on helping others make theirs. To me, this is maturity. In human terms this would be at the grandparent stage or if like me you have no children, it is the point of retirement, more or less.
Morality comes into play every day, though not through learning, but by intuition. Everyone knows what is right and ethics is their demonstration of it, thus Morality. The Ten Commandments are morality and our individual expression of them is ethics. So one could say, Morality is intuitive while ethics is a personal choice. It doesn’t have to be the commandments one follows, it can be the 4 Noble Truths, or The Constitution, etc.. The point is morality comes naturally, some call it common sense, and it applies to us all. Ethics on the other hand is how one chooses to follow, or not, what we know is right.
Ethics comes into play constantly in life, yet how often do you consider it? I would say a lot more than you realize. Ethics is our level of compromise with Morality. “Though shall not commit adultery”, just as an example. At what point do you rationalize your actions as being “Okay” to satisfy your inner urges? There is no end to the power of rationalization! Humans are masters at it. Or should I say the Ego is a master at it, for that is what the ego does. The ego can be characterized as the devil on your shoulder whispering in your ear. Which voice are you listening to? Morality or compromise?
Caution should be exercised here because our tendency is to judge things as good or bad. Our ethical choices are not to be judged, rather forgiven, when appropriate. Life is open for interpretation, so my advice is to take time to be still every day and listen to the small, quiet voice within and ignore the loud, insistent urgings of the ego. The choice is yours.
Sequoia Elisabeth
Oneness Ministry 