Morality — a moving target? Living by a code is never easy

The world is awash with stories of human frailty and apparent duplicity. Politicians have been the most visible, but moral lapses seep through all the layers of society, from the movie star to the piano mover. And as social morals change, it becomes more difficult to agree not only on sanctions for misdeeds but on what actually constitutes misbehavior.

This April, a beauty pageant contestant stood on a national stage and declared as a result of her Christian upbringing, she believed marriage should be between a man and a woman.

Later, that same contestant was found to have appeared in seminude photographs. The revelation stirred outcry that she was a moral hypocrite.

Was the contestant guilty of hypocrisy? Were her actions morally wrong?

From a religious perspective, there is no universal answer to that question. Conversations with clergy and researchers show the definition of morality varies greatly from faith to faith and is often dependant on individual interpretations.

There are even strong differences of opinion within religions themselves, said Brian D. Birch, director of the Religious Studies Program at Utah Valley University.

"Depending on their theology and how they are structured, religions differ as to how they address controversial social issues," he wrote in an e-mail interview. "These issues will often lurk just beneath the surface of polite discourse within a faith community and then flair up from time to time when it is forced out into the open."

For the Rabbi Tracee Rosen with Congregation Kol Ami in Salt Lake City, calling someone a hypocrite because of how they interpret a so-called moral issue is something she would have a tough time with.

Although some sects of Judaism are more strict in their interpretation of right and wrong, Rabbi Rosen's tradition believes individuals should be given a great deal of freedom when deciding how to respond to moral and social issues.

"We believe that God's directions to us are not necessarily clearly spelled out and it's up to each generation to look at the world and the situation as they understand it," she said. "There is an enormous amount of latitude to look at new understandings of the world, to look at science, to look at developments in the general culture and apply that to our reasoning."

That doesn't mean, however, that certain guidelines need not apply. Judaism draws the line at anything that is "patently destructive of human life" or that is destructive of the environment or draws a person away from their overriding values, Rabbi Rosen said.

"Certainly, there are fundamental things," she said. "For instance, not to murder. We believe human beings are created in God's image and therefore every life is sacred. The choices you make have to take that into account."