Conduct

Conduct is the core of morality. Its raw materials are thought and action, but not every kind of thought or action falls under this heading. Presumably, it took tremendous thought for Einstein to invent the theory of relativity and considerable exertions to persuade the scientific community of its validity; but that, in itself, is not what one would have in mind when biographically considering his conduct. Two conditions must be satisfied: first, the actions should be such as to manifest a settled disposition or character; and, second, they should have a bearing on some canons of good behavior, signifying morality in the strict sense or the mores of the given society, or both. In this sense, Mbiti (1969), in an otherwise extremely problematic chapter on African “Concepts of Evil, Ethics and Justice,” remarks that African morality “is morality of ‘conduct’ rather than a morality of ‘being’.” Given a careful interpretation of the distinction between the “being” and “conduct” of a...