SELF-INTEREST AND MORAL MOTIVATIONS OF BELIEVERS
Text topic: Studies
Key words:
Text author: Александар Прњат
In this paper, I consider an important objection to moral motivation of believers. It is the objection that their acts are motivated by self-interest, i.e. their personal salvation. Such motivation is sometimes identified as selfish. Therefore, I demonstrate the distinction between self-interest and selfishness. I would like to remind the reader that the critique of self-interest as moral motivation of believers appears within the very traditions of the major world religions. Then, I argue that some contemporary forms of secular ethics, even at the highest levels, still refer to a certain form of self-interest.
