Lying, Cheating and Stealing for a Good Cause

Some of us question if lying, cheating or even stealing is always a bad thing. Well indeed, lying, cheating or stealing is morally wrong and people shouldn’t do this often but instead look for other alternatives even though there are certain times when lying is acceptable. We know that being faithful which involves not lying is very important but being non-maleficent is an even more important duty. What this means is that even though stealing, lying or cheating is bad because the virtue of honesty is violated, sometimes we have to go against a virtue in order to accomplish another one. An example of this can be the following: I have a very sick grandmother; any kind of bad news could give her a heart attack and kill her instantly. My aunt, her daughter, was recently killed in a car accident and my grandmother asked me if she was doing fine because she had a feeling she was in danger. I have two choices, I can either tell her the truth and probably kill her because her heart isn’t strong enough to receive that kind of news or I can lie and tell her she is on a business trip until her heart gets better and I can tell her the truth. In this case it is my duty to lie because this way I won’t kill my grandmother. We believe that to be a good person our actions should show correct reasoning and stealing, cheating and lying do not involve right reason unless the use of them is for a good cause and by using them they will lead us to becoming a better person. Using these for another purpose that isn’t a good one is bad indeed that’s why depending on the circumstance it becomes moral to make use of them.

(Virtue of ethics)- Helena Maria