Finite and Infinite Goods  (English, Hardcover, Adams Robert M.)

Can the nature of the good and the right be understood in terms of an ethical reality prior to human feelings, desires, and opinions? Is there a transcendent standard of value and obligation to which we may appeal from any merely human judgement? Is there an ideal of love for the Good that can integrate a full appreciation of the very diverse types of value that are available to human choice? Finite and Infinite Goods proposes an affirmative answer to all of these questions in the context of a theistic framework for ethics. The framework is one that begins with the good rather than the right, and with excellence rather than well-being or usefulness. Loving the excellent (of which adoring God is clearly an instance) is presented as the most fundamental and comprehensive aspect of a life well lived. Doing one's duty is also important (indeed, imperative), but has a more specialized, essentially social place in ethics. These views are developed in detail, and defended against various objections.It is argued that concepts drawn from religious ethics, such as the sacred, graced, devotion, idolatry, martyrdom, worship, vocation, revelation, and faith, deserve more attention in moral philosophy than they have commonly received there.