Basic questions of ethics

Today ethics have to be formulated for pluralistic societies that encompass a variety of religions and worldviews including the “secular option”. Whereas former secularization theories included the assumption that in modern societies only secular forms of ethics are of general importance, according to a pluralistic theory of society religious ethics have to be included as contributors to the ethical debate in society. At the same time there is a growing interest in practical challenges for ethical reflection – may these challenges originate in the progress of life sciences, in the process of economic globalization or in other developments. It is therefore time to bridge anew the gap between metaethics and applied ethics. For that purpose the human life cycle shall be used as starting point for the selection of ethical issues that will be discussed. The plan for this book is understood as a contribution to the STIAS-project on “Faith and Fabric”.