Ethics and Culture

This four-year philosophy program equips students with the principles needed to understand the dignity of the human person, and follow the ethical path to lasting happiness.  They will be able to think and articulate clearly the moral value of the medical and ethical questions now and those to be invented.  They will build up the culture of life by applying ethical principles to current moral issues in the society in which they live.

The following three concepts are the recurring themes of the entire Ethics & Culture curriculum:  

1. The exalted dignity of every human person because of his God-given powers of intellect and free will

2. The objective nature of ethical norms as laws which are derived from human nature

3. The relation of moral norms to genuine human fulfillment 

The Goals of the Ethics and Culture Department are to enable students to:

• see the inherent dignity bestowed on each human person; 

• acquire logical habits of thinking in accord with right reason so as to discern what will bring true fulfillment to our human nature; 

• understand the complementary relationship between faith and reason;  

• understand the role of culture in forming and shaping the way we see ourselves, others, the world, and God. 

The Ethics and Culture program, a four-year philosophical and cross-curricular study, teaches students to understand their own unique dignity as human persons in their freshman year, and teaches the elements of a moral act that lead to lasting happiness during the sophomore year. With this ethical foundation, John Paul II students as juniors learn how to make wise personal decisions for themselves. They also learn how to promote and defend ethical policies and practices through the lens of bioethics.  Students will end their senior study with an Ethics and Culture focus that seeks to understand avenues which transform society and inspire them to be agents of change in their community.  

Ethics Department

Book List

Texts; Recommended Literature; Pope John Paul II's Writings

9th The Human Person

The Human Person: Dignity beyond Compare, Auer

10th Principles of Ethics

Called to Happiness: Principles of Ethics, Auer

11th Bioethics

Biomedicine and Beatitude: An Introduction to Catholic Bioethics, Austriaco

The Birthmark by Hawthorne

Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI

Selections from

Biomedicine and Beatitude: An Introduction to Catholic Bioethics, Austriaco

Catholic Health Care Ethics: A Manual for Practitioners, ed. Furton

Pope John Paul’s writings

12th Ethics & Culture Leadership Seminar

The Pope and the CEO, Widmer