Books in the New Studies in Christian Ethics series

Jean Porter provides a highly sophisticated account of moral reasoning, developed out of the thought of Thomas Aquinas, which offers an alternative to modern moral theories, brings together rule-oriented and virtue-oriented approaches to moral judgement, and points towards a moral life founded on decency and justice.

This book describes how the theological virtue of hope contributes to happiness in this life and not just the next. Hope sustains from despair, provides transcendence to our lives and encourages us with the prospect of eternal beatitude. The book addresses students of Christian ethics and theology.

The marketplace is a remarkable social institution that has greatly extended our individual reach. In this book, Albino Barrera examines our own moral responsibilities for the distant harms of our market transactions, identifying how the market's division of labour makes us unwitting collaborators in others' wrongdoing and in collective ills.

This book provides a full treatment (philosophical and theological) of an issue which is particularly pressing: when the claims of the nearest (e.g. parents, children, spouses, friends) conflict with the claims of the neediest, as they constantly do, where should preference go?

In a wide-ranging discussion notable for its clarity, Stanley Rudman's 1997 book traces the development of modern concepts of person, a central issue in current ethical debates. Drawing on early Christian thought, he proposes an ethic which understands personhood in relation to other people, to the environment, and to God.

This book is concerned with the communication of Christian ethics in the public forum of liberal, secular societies. It considers one of the fundamental problems of liberal societies: reconciling individual autonomy and community, and proposes a theological vision of community.

Academic perspectives on addictive behaviour usually come from clinical and scientific standpoints, rejecting the 'moral model'. Cook reassesses the nature of addiction and considers the ethical challenges presented by alcohol use and misuse to both individuals and society, arguing that theology should not be excluded from serious discourse about addiction.

What does it mean to forgive? Using topical examples Anthony Bash explores practical questions such as how and when it is right to forgive. The conclusions he reaches are surprising and will promote debate on and discussion about this important and complex subject.

Stephen Pope argues that our growing knowledge of human evolution is compatible with Christian faith and morality, provided that the former is not interpreted reductionistically and the latter is not understood in fundamentalist ways.

How can audiences interact creatively, wisely and peaceably with the many different forms of violence found throughout today's media? Mitchell argues that practices such as hospitality, friendship, witness and worship provide resources for viewers to remember and to reframe both spectacular and hidden violence in ways that can promote peace.

Markets can often be harsh in compelling people to make unpalatable economic choices any reasonable person would not take under normal conditions. In this book Albino Barrera argues that Christian thought on economic security offers an effective framework within which to address the consequences of economic compulsion.

How can Christian ethics contribute significantly to health care ethics in today's Western, pluralistic society? Gill explores the healing stories in the Synoptic Gospels, identifying four core virtues present within them - compassion, care, faith and humility - that might bring greater depth to a purely secular interpretation of health care ethics.

Justice and Christian Ethics is a study in the meaning and foundations of justice in modern society. Written from a theological perspective, its focus is upon the interaction of religion and law in their common pursuit of justice.

The first substantial study in Christian Ethics to explore the problem of religion, plurality and ethics. Ian Markham argues that plurality is better safeguarded by a theistic, rather than a secularist, foundation, and shows that the religious affirmation of diversity offers genuine political possibilities in our post-modern world.

Separated from its anchorage in religion, ethics has followed the social sciences in seeing human beings as fundamentally characterised by self-interest, so that altruism is either naively idealistic or arrogantly self-sufficient. Colin Grant contends that, as a modern secular concept, altruism is a parody on the self-giving love of Christianity, so that its dismissal represents a social levelling that loses the depths that theology makes intelligible and religion makes possible. The Christian affirmation is that God is characterised by self-giving love (agape), then expected of Christians. Lacking this theological background, the focus on self-interest in sociobiology and economics, and on human realism in the political focus of John Rawls or the feminist sociability of Carol Gilligan, finds altruism naive or a dangerous distraction from real possibilities of mutual support. This book argues that to dispense with altruism is to dispense with God and with the divine transformation of human possibilities.

This book is for students of theology, Christian ethics, and religious and gender studies; and everyone longing for the full acceptance of women and LGBTIQ people in the churches and beyond. It exposes the roots of prejudice against women and sexual minorities, and offers constructive proposals for gender justice.

Current ethics is confronted by the drastic extension of human power through technological development. This radical extension of power demands a new paradigm of responsibility in ethics. By developing a coherent theory of responsibility, Schweiker shows the unique contribution of Christian faith to ethics in our time.

This stimulating and wide-ranging book mounts a profound enquiry into some of the most pressing questions of our age, by examining the relationship between biological science and Christianity. The history of biological discovery is explored from the point of view of a leading philosopher and ethicist.

In the immediate future we are likely to witness significant developments in human genetic science. It is therefore of critical importance that Christian ethics engages with the genetics debate, since it affects not just the way we perceive ourselves and the natural world, but also has wider implications for our society. This book considers ethical issues arising out of specific practices in human genetics, including genetic screening, gene patenting, gene therapy, genetic counselling as well as feminist concerns. Genetics and Christian Ethics argues for a particular theo-ethical approach that derives from a modified version of virtue ethics, drawing particularly on a Thomistic understanding of the virtues, especially prudence or practical wisdom and justice. The book demonstrates that a theological voice is highly relevant to contested ethical debates about genetics.

Does the Bible have a central place, or any place, in Christian ethics today? Should it have? If it does have, what implications does this have for biblical interpretation, as well as for Christian ethics? These are some of the questions addressed in this book, which is the first comprehensive treatment of such concerns.

Peter Sedgwick explores the relation of a theology of justice to that of human identity in the context of the market economy, and engages with critics of capitalism and the market. He recommends that the Churches remain part of the debate in reforming and humanizing the market economy.

Living Together and Christian Ethics is the first positive, in-depth study of cohabitation outside marriage from a mainstream Christian theological perspective. The book retrieves the traditions of betrothal from the Bible and church history, and shows how these can transform Christian attitudes to living together before marriage.

Parsons describes the diversity of moral thinking within contemporary feminism, giving an overview and analysis of the major themes of feminist ethics. This book will serve as guide for the non-feminist reader, and be of interest to Christian ethicists and moral philosophers as well as feminist scholars.

This book is about the extent, origins and causes of the environmental crisis. Dr Northcott argues that Christianity has lost the biblical awareness of the inter-connectedness of all life. He shows how Christian theologians and believers might recover a more ecologically friendly belief system and life style.

This 1999 book examines evidence about church communities, showing that churchgoers are distinctive in their attitudes, beliefs and behaviour. However, these are shared by many non-churchgoers as well. The distinctiveness of church communities in the modern world is thus real but relative, and is central to Christian ethics.

The Common Good and Christian Ethics rethinks the ancient tradition of the common good in a way that addresses contemporary social divisions, both urban and global. David Hollenbach draws on social analysis, moral philosophy, and theological ethics to chart new directions in both urban life and global society.

This book is an examination of issues in the related fields of moral philosophy and Christian theology. It raises the question of whether and to what extent Christian moral presuppositions are distinctive or are held in common with other persons and communities.

This book defends the controversial 'absolute view' that lying is always wrong. Whereas most people believe that lying for a good cause is morally acceptable, Tollefsen argues that Christians should support the absolute view, invoking Augustine and Aquinas to illustrate that lying violates the goods of integrity, sociality, religion, and truth.

Kieran Cronin helps philosophers and theologians to understand each other's perspectives on rights, making this book a significant contribution to Christian ethics and moral philosophy.