Christian Virtue
Few philosophies have been quite as influential as that of Jesus of Nazareth. His ethical outlook was very different for that culture and area at that time, and hence is significant regardless of one’s religious beliefs. Although Christianity often emphasizes our duty to uphold the 10 commandments, Jesus himself was less worried about following specific duties, or about the consequences of an action, than with creating and exhibiting good character. He himself has served as a powerful role model for many people throughout the ages, which is why his perspective falls most naturally within the Virtue framework. In this brief essay, the teachings of Jesus are interpreted from a philosophical and ethical point of view.
The Beatitudes
The basic virtues that Jesus taught are known as the Beatitudes: “Blessed are the poor in spirit… Blessed are the meek… Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness… Blessed are the merciful… Blessed are the pure of heart….Blessed are the peacemakers… Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake” (Matt 5.3-10). The virtues of Jesus are (generally) humbleness, a forgiving attitude, a merciful attitude, and justice.
Some may see a conflict between forgiveness and justice. How can we forgive someone if we also ought to punish them? However, Jesus would probably say part of forgiveness is ensuring that the person accepts responsibility for his or her actions, which brings about justice. Meanwhile, through Jesus’ teachings the list of traditional Christian virtues has been expanded to include what are called the Seven Heavenly Virtues; Faith, Hope, Charity, Courage, Justice, Temperance, Prudence
Jesus justifies these virtues in a way that is similar to Plato’s approach. Plato claims that his virtues bring the soul into harmony with itself, ensuring that each aspect of one’s psyche contributes to the goodness of one’s character. In the book of Matthew Jesus says “The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness” (Matt 6.22-23). The metaphor of the eye has the same role that reason plays with Plato. If our reason/eye is correct we will see which of the other virtues are the ones we need to cultivate. From there, we will know the right action because we will have the right character. Where Plato emphasized the power of reason to gain knowledge about the good, however, Jesus emphasized the ability of a compassionate eye to see what is good in both us and other people.
The Rewards of Virtue
Like all virtue ethicists, Jesus would claim that developing each of the virtues is good in itself. However, Jesus takes a further step and claims that “…whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5.19). By encouraging people to follow his teachings, Jesus hoped to bring the Kingdom of God to earth; put in more secular terminology, the ultimate goal of his philosophy is to create the perfect society.
It should be noted, however, that although people who follow these virtues will be considered “great” according to the Christian perspective, this does not necessarily mean that they will be “better” than those who do not. With his constant exhortations to love our neighbors as ourselves, part of Jesus’ point was to remind us that all human beings have value, regardless of their mistakes.
The Holy Bible. New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1999.