Morality: Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times

by Jonathan Sacks

Overview

A distinguished religious leader's stirring case for reconstructing a shared framework of virtues and values.

With liberal democracy embattled, public discourse grown toxic, family life breaking down, and drug abuse and depression on the rise, many fear what the future holds.

In Morality, respected faith leader and public intellectual Jonathan Sacks traces today's crisis to our loss of a strong, shared moral code and our elevation of self-interest over the common good. We have outsourced morality to the market and the state, but neither is capable of showing us how to live. Sacks leads readers from ancient Greece to the Enlightenment to the present day to show that there is no liberty without morality and no freedom without responsibility, arguing that we all must play our part in rebuilding a common moral foundation.

A major work of moral philosophy, Morality is an inspiring vision of a world in which we can all find our place and face the future without fear.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781541675322
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	09/01/2020
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	216,881
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (1948–2020) was an international religious leader, philosopher, award-winning author, and respected moral voice. The chief rabbi of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth of Nations from 1991 to 2013 and the recipient of the 2016 Templeton Prize, he was the author of over thirty books.

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments ix

Introduction Cultural Climate Change 1

Part 1 The Solitary Self

1 Loneliness 23

2 The Limits of Self-Help 36

3 Unsocial Media 47

4 The Fragile Family 60

Part 2 Consequences: The Market and the State

5 From "We" to "I" 75

6 Markets Without Morals 85

7 Consuming Happiness 100

8 Democracy in Danger 116

9 Identity Politics 127

10 Time and Consequence 141

Part 3 Can We Still Reason Together?

11 Post-Truth 159

12 Safe Space 169

13 Two Ways of Arguing 183

14 Victimhood 195

15 The Return of Public Shaming 206

16 The Death of Civility 213

Part 4 Being Human

17 Human Dignity 227

18 Meaning 240

19 Why Morality? 252

20 Which Morality? 263

21 Religion 276

Part 5 The Way Forward

22 Morality Matters 295

23 From "I" to "We" 308

Epilogue 323

Further Reading 329

Notes 335

Index 351

Editorial Reviews

"I highly recommended people check out [the new book]...I can think of nothing more important right now in embracing this and shifting from 'I' to 'We.'"—The Tim Ferriss Show

“Sacks’s command of the historical sweep of intellectual thought is breathtaking…One can only wish that Sacks’s brilliant, urgent ‘ethical will’ can transcend his grandchildren and inspire all who fervently hope to emerge from this difficult time with an enhanced sense of human solidarity, responsibility, morality and love.”—The Washington Post

“Rabbi Jonathan Sacks was among the most morally serious, intellectually honest, and insightful public intellectuals of our time. He will be greatly missed by believers and non- believers alike. We should be thankful he left this book with us. May his memory be for a blessing.”—Claremont Review of Books

"Morality is not an argument or a compilation of thoughts — it is a wake-up call to a world that has become self-obsessed, self-centered and lonely, and whose moral standards have withered as a result."—Jerusalem Post

"This major work in moral philosophy and theology should engage all readers, but particularly scholars, undergraduates, and graduate students."
—Library Journal

"An impressive tour d'horizon of the state of the western world — the US and the UK in particular — at the end of the second decade of the 21st century."
—Times of Israel

"If you are looking for a book to read during these strange and stressful days, look no further than Jonathan Sacks' magnificent Morality."—Evening Standard

"In his new book, Morality, the former chief rabbi, Jonathan Sacks, makes a very basic and crucial point about the nature of morality: it is based on 'we' and not 'I.'"—Daily Telegraph

“’Morality’ has the potential to become a decade‑defining book… [it] holds up a bracing revelatory mirror to this moment in human history. In his poignant, poetic and prophetic way, Sacks reminds us that a free society is not only a political achievement, nor is it just an economic achievement — a free society is ultimately a moral achievement.”—Deseret News

"Jonathan Sacks is one of the great moral thinkers of our time. His latest book, Morality, applies his powerful approach to the unprecedented challenges of our time —social, political, economic, and above all, cultural. May his words be heeded throughout the land."—Robert D. Putnam, author of Bowling Alone and The Upswing

"Jonathan Sacks has produced a work of extraordinary depth, beauty, urgency, and erudition. If the prophets of the Hebrew Bible came back to guide liberal democracies and anxious citizens through this difficult time, but first they studied modern history and social science, this is the book they would write for us."—Jonathan Haidt, author of The Righteous Mind and coauthor of The Coddling of the American Mind

From the Publisher

07/01/2020

How might a renowned religious leader and philosopher address the contemporary crises facing America? Sacks (Not in God's Name) first examines the historical background that has led to a lack of shared morality, values, and virtues. He associates these factors as being largely responsible for problems such as the overemphasis on individualism, the increased divisiveness both in political and in cultural realms, the breakdown in public discourse, and the loss of a shared commitment to the common good. Sacks views the current cultural landscape as developing from philosophical, political, and social changes, as well as a shift away from Judeo-Christian values. His book is a call for a renewed sense of trust and civility, both in society and in individuals. He sees the way forward as being through the development of a covenantal approach in political, economic, and cultural areas, in which the focus is on "we" and not on "I." While Sacks does not discuss effective ways to bring about this transition to covenant theology, he offers steps readers can take to begin engaging in altruism. VERDICT This major work in moral philosophy and theology should engage all readers, but particularly scholars, undergraduates, and graduate students.—John Jaeger, Johnson Univ., Knoxville, TN

Library Journal