Curran, Hauerwas and civil law: Rival approaches to social responsibility

This thesis develops the idea that Christian moral ethics provide a more appropriate model for social responsibility than the civil legal system. Although social behavior is regulated by the legal system, that system does not provide adequate guidelines for ethical behavior. Christian moral ethics provide a level of social responsibility which encourages acting for the good of others, rather than the proscription against harm which is the basis of the legal system. After an explanation of civil law, models of social responsibility from Charles Curran and Stanley Hauerwas are examined. A collaborative model based upon the Curran and Hauerwas models is proposed since neither model fully resolves the dilemma of social ethics for the individual. The model accents the community foundation from Hauerwas and the coalescence of Christian and human values from Curran. This model offers an opportunity for personal and social growth beyond the minimal requirements of civil law.