The Thomistic Institute has yet again produced another great lecture, this one by Dr. Michael Gorman on the topic of moral relativism. The talk is titled, "True for Me, but Not for You? Moral Relativism and Public Life." Listen to it here.
Dr. Gorman raises two good points about relativism. The first is that total relativism, the claim that all truth is relative to each person, is unworkable. As discussed in a previous post, total relativism is incoherent when applied to itself. Total relativism undermines objective truth claims while simultaneously making an objective truth claim.
The second point is about the illegitimate use of partial relativism. Partial relativism is a more modest claim. It states that only some truths are relative to each person, such as the truths of morality, whereas the truths of science are not. Unlike total relativism, partial relativism, does not (seemingly) undermine itself.
However, as Dr. Gorman rightly demonstrates, those that shout "All morality is relative!" in order to prevent the stoning of an adulterer, do not have a leg to stand on. Who are you to say that stoning an adulterer is wrong after all?
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