America was founded on Christian principles, but would you know it to look around? With the moral degradation in America, maybe it's time we took a look at our values. First, let's define morals: Moral applies to personal character and behavior, especially sexual conduct: “Our moral sense dictates a clearcut preference for these societies which share with us an abiding respect for individual human rights” (Jimmy Carter). Ethical stresses idealistic standards of right and wrong: “Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants” (Omar N. Bradley). Virtuous implies moral excellence and loftiness of character: “The life of the nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful, and virtuous” (Frederick Douglass). Righteous emphasizes moral uprightness; when it is applied to actions, reactions, or impulses, it often implies justifiable outrage: “He was... stirred by righteous wrath” (John Galsworthy).1 Values are the beliefs of a group of people shared as a whole, unlike morals which are individual to every person. Generally, an emotional investment coincides with the values. 1. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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