The purpose of this paper is to discuss morality in religion from the Catholic and the Protestant perspectives. As noted by Lewis (1943), Catholic and Protestant views of morality do differ, mostly in relation to doctrinal differences; however, they also have much in common because of their common beliefs about Christ. The truth of this claim can perhaps best be seen in a study conducted of the moral values and beliefs of Catholics, Mainline Protestants and Mormons conducted by Johnson and Mullins (1992). The study found that although the three groups often held to religious views that were very different from one another as well as other Christian groups, they tended to have a relatively strong commonality in their moral values--that is in their view of right and wrong.
The question that can be asked here is: What are the differences and similarities between Catholic and Protestant perspectives of morality in religion. Quay (1993) has noted that one major difference between the Catholic perspective of morality and the Protestant perspective concerns the source from which morals are to be derived. In this regard, Quay points out that the Protestant view holds that Christian moral rules and norms must be derived solely from the bible, most especially the gospel.
On the other hand, while the Roman Catholic view is bible-based in many instances, it also views moral norms as being rooted in human nature. Specifically, Quay (1993) reports that in the life of Christ, He transcended the law without violating it. Catholics, therefore, hold that we, in Christ, can and must do the same, especially in those instances where the spirit underlying scripture is being violated by strict adherence to the letter of the law. In other words, not all moral rules must be directly traceable to the scriptures; rather, human beings can develop some moral strictures that, while not literally present in the gospel, are nonetheless in accord with ...