Moral Foundations

We need more than 'Harm none'

While ethics is one of my favorite subjects, Pagans don’t have a set of ethics we all agree on. Some follow the Charge of the Star Goddess, or the Three-fold Law, and some work to cultivate virtues as opposed to following laws. But if we’re all working to be good people, why can’t we mange to get along a little better? In his TED talk, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt, says that if you’ve ever been confused about why people just can’t get along, he might have an answer for you.

Haidt researches human morals and started by asking the question of why do human morals around the world have more to do with just how people treat each other? The norm in all cultures but Western, is that morals have to do with all sort of things that we often mock. For example, what you can and cannot do during menstruation, what you eat and with whom, and what you wear. For most Americans – let alone the small subset that is our religion – such questions are weird and alien. That’s because we live in a WEIRD culture. The term WEIRD stands for Western, educated, industrialized, rich, and democratic, and was created by psychology researchers Joe Henrich, Steve Heine, and Ara Norenzayan. As Pagans in an industrialized culture, we can’t escape the reality that we live in a place quite different from the rest of the world. It occurs to me now that our little subset of culture couldn’t exist without the openness and wealth created by Western values.

The reason I am excited about Haidt’s work is because he’s interested in the biological basis for our moral behavior. I have believed for some time that we need to be aware of and respect the biological basis of our behaviors. Tied to the Earth as we are, biology is a sacred ground of being. It seems there are evolutionary arguments to be made that much of our moral preference is, in Haidt’s words, "organized in advance of experience." We’re predisposed by our genes to pay attention to these six aspects of how other humans interact with eachother. Such information tells us if the person in front of us is worth our precious time.

1) Care/harm: This foundation is related to our long evolution as mammals with attachment systems and an ability to feel (and dislike) the pain of others. It underlies virtues of kindness, gentleness, and nurturance.

2) Fairness/cheating: This foundation is related to the evolutionary process of reciprocal altruism. It generates ideas of justice, rights, and autonomy.

3) Loyalty/betrayal: This foundation is related to our long history as tribal creatures able to form shifting coalitions. It underlies virtues of patriotism and self-sacrifice for the group. It is active anytime people feel that it's "one for all, and all for one."

4) Authority/subversion: This foundation was shaped by our long primate history of hierarchical social interactions. It underlies virtues of leadership and followership, including deference to legitimate authority and respect for traditions.

5) Sanctity/degradation: This foundation was shaped by the psychology of disgust and contamination. It underlies religious notions of striving to live in an elevated, less carnal, more noble way. It underlies the widespread idea that the body is a temple which can be desecrated by immoral activities and contaminants. What Haidt doesn't address in his book or any of his writing, are the brain structures in humans that allow us to feel at one with the world. We’re built to experience the divine.

6) Liberty/oppression: This foundation is about the feelings of reactance and resentment people feel toward those who dominate them and restrict their liberty. Its intuitions are often in tension with those of the authority foundation. The hatred of bullies and dominators motivates people to come together, in solidarity, to oppose or take down the oppressor.

I’m not asking for paid subscribers but if you like this then perhaps you could…

Or have a look at the books I write under pen name Sabrina Rosen [On Amazon] or subscribe to my fiction blog.

In my own experience that not all of these foundations are meaningful to all of my Pagan friends. Some Pagans tend to favor the first two, while some find all of them important. We really need to be looking at all of them. They’re part of us and if we don’t focus them in a balanced way, they stop serving the purpose for which we evolved and go sideways.

Lack of loyalty to the team in professions like fire fighting, soldiering, and police work means that people die. But loyalty is no less important in a family. When spouses express any level of contempt for a partner, the relationship is done. In my experience, when one is feeling uncared for, loyalty will hold a marriage together until the storm is weathered.

Failure to engage with legitmate authority means that big projects don’t happen. When building a temple, someone has to be in charge and those doing the directed labor need to be willing to sacrifice some time and independence to a greater goal.

The inability to recognize oppression creates a fine environment for people who love control.

Haidt is best known for The Righteous Mind. I’ve found his breakdown of the moral foundations of behaviour incredibly useful.

If you’re curious about Paganism/Heathenism/Wicca/Druidry, please feel free to message me and I’ll be happy to answer questions.

Selina Rifkin, M.S. [Nutrition], LMT, has been Pagan since she was 14 [which was a long time ago] and been to Hades in a handbasket. More than once. This has given her some opinions. She has direct communication with her gods and they’ve always given her answers when she asks. [One does have to ask.] Like most of her generation [X] she’s okay with snark. Most days she tries for good writing. But the snark, and side comments creep in. Be warned.

Pagan Organizations

Cherry Hill Seminary

Sacred Well Congregation