Ethics Moral Acts

This article is part of an Ethical theory.

Moral acts are those which maximises the Virtues and Moral behaviour in the world around the agent. If he is skilled at commanding, and has a strong and goodly vision, then it is most moral that he become a leader of men. If he is a skilled educator then morally, he should help shape the next generation by inculcating values and habituating them to virtues at an early age. If he is a rock of strength, his best action may be to allow others to lean on him to replenish their own will. If he is a man of action, he does best by acting, leading by example, and if he is not, he should write and preach to others, that they may act where he can not.

Thus, there are many types of moral acts and ways of life that are virtuous, depending on a man's innate and relative strengths of character and position. However, all these behaviours have certain values underlying them, with differing emphasis depending on the life path he chooses to tread.

An act is moral if and only if it embodies the values of the agent and his society better than all feasible alternatives, no matter how good or bad it may be in isolation.

Values

The values that the Argentum belive represent the best elements of the Baronies and the various Churches serving the Archangels are:

Integrity

Integrity is Honesty of Self. Knowing oneself, one can address one's weaknesses, and work to one's strengths, avoid situations where one will cause harm, and maximise one's own contribution to Good. Some situations will break a man, if he betrays a principle dear to him, or goes against his own nature. The stronger one's values, the greater the risk of violating one's Integrity, as the strictures serve as a tighter constraint. It is said that Pride goeth before a fall, but it is Arrogance that begets such a tumble, while rightful pride in owns' accomplishments gives one strength to carry on.

Secondary Virtues under this category may include Honesty, Pride, Honour, and Self-knowledge.

Love of Kith & Kin

Justice says that all should be held equal in judgement, but a father who betrays his son to defend another man, or a wife who betray her husband, is called many things, but never Just. Love of family and friends means that one must place them above others when making decisions, not because they are better people, or better known, but because they are one's own to defend and protect, as they defend and protect in return.

While one cannot choose one's family, one can choose to care and protect them, and aid them to reach their potential. One also doesn't choose one's friends, except through mutual acceptance and acknowledgment, giving rise to the saying that a man may best be judged by the quality of his friends. There are times when one must stand aside and let one's friends suffer for their mistakes, else one's Honesty and Integrity, and true Justice, cannot take effect - in these cases, one must choose the lesser of two evils, the true test of a moral agent.

Secondary Virtues under this category may include Love, Comradeship, and Loyalty between equals, which is the Bond of Men.

Loyalty

A worthy man always has a worthy leader. By pulling together under leadership, one can accomplish far greater things than acting alone, and by subsuming oneself into a greater whole, some of our weaknesses can be overcome. The hierarchy of service through feudalism and vassalic bonds is the fabric of society, preventing us from becoming a socio-anarchic commune, where each man does what is best for him alone, from the view furnished on the hillock where he stands. Civilisation is built by harnessing many co-operatively in service to a greater vision. Great men receive great loyalty, but great loyalty can make great men also.

Secondary Virtues under this category may include Obedience, Respect, and Disclipine.

Responsibility

While each man serves, so at times does he have those in his service, whether they are great lords, soldiers, servants, or apprentices. These people require leadership, vision, discipline, education, and moral inspiration. They need a figure to be loyal to and to respect, admire, and to fashion themselves upon. The responsibility to care for those in one's service is unfashionable, but mistreating the helpless, or even failing to help them to be all they can, is the sign of a petty, vindictive, short-sighted, self-loathing man.

Secondary Virtues under this category may include Justice, Charity, Leadership, Charm, and Education.

Freedom of Will

Everyone has a right to choose, and to make mistakes. A virtuous man will allow others to make small mistakes, offering advice but respecting their right to err. Without development of their Free Will and facing the consequences of their actions, they will never become a fully Moral Agent. This is most difficult with loved ones, who one does not want to suffer needlessly, and one's children most of all. A Good Man steps in only when the consequences far exceed their understanding, or if innocents will be hurt to a greater extent than the lesson learnt by the misjudgement.

This also applies when dealing with Evil Men - by which, I mean those who are working for demons or other evil incarnate, knowingly or otherwise. Each man can redeem himself by a simple choice of their own, and this can occur at any time. Deciding when an evil man has had enough second chances is not a simple matter of weighing up his likely future evil against the value of his soul - for each soul is beyond price. By removing the man's right to a moral choice, you are condemning him through your actions to eternal torment.

Secondary Virtues under this category may include Tolerance, Patience, Forgiveness, Empathy.

Action

A great man acts correctly at the right time; a good man acts, even if the act is mistimed or off-target. A man who does not act is not a man, but a contemplative mouse. A man of action conjures up an image of knightly panoply, charging impossible odds to win the day, but sometimes gentle courage in reshaping a vision, correcting others, or encouraging growth and fulfilment of a vision is as important, if unrecognised. Action is needed as much in shaping the next generation, or guiding people to the true path, as defeating those on the wrong path. By knowing yourself and those around you, you will know where action is required, and when.

Secondary Virtues under this category may include Courage, Vision, Wit, Imagination.

Non-Virtues

All the following goods are often sought after as virtues, and can be useful tools in achieving goals, but seeking them for themselves sets a man on a dangerous and vice-ridden path.

Money

The collection of money is not a virtue, nor is the skill at acquiring or dispensing it. Spendthrifts and misers, merchants and moneychangers, all are acting without a moral compass. The acts they take, when directed by the need to acquire or dispose of money, are inherently misguided, and increase the amount of suffering, decrease the choices and free will of people as a whole, and in general have no redeeming features. Money works against the Virtues of Free Will, Love and Loyalty.

Power

Having power is meaningless, without a great vision to propagate. The collection of power (whether it is wealth, magic, or lordly holdings) merely increases the moral weight of one's actions, while the gaining of power inevitably has habituated the agent to self-serving courses of actions. This is why heredity power is often best; if done well; as the agent is raised with the responsibility that great influence brings, so they are habituated to act well when wielding the power. However, corruption and perversion can occur in the first or fifteenth generation as easily, and in this case, the power needs be removed from the corrupt hands as swiftly and cleanly as possible. Old houses bear their corrupt too lightly, while new wealth lacks the wisdom of history to see their own short-comings. Power works against the Virtues of Free Will and Integrity.

Knowledge

Knowledge is a passive form of power. Like any power, it can corrupt. However, it also has the ability to stultify, and prevent the person from acting, as they seek to acquire knowledge for its own sake, rather than using the knowledge they have to act. Knowledge works against the Virtues of Action and Responsibility.