The Moral Foundations, The Bible, & Consumerism

As a quick review of Haidt's Moral Foundations theory, we've got:

1. Care/harm

2. Fairness/cheating

3. Loyalty/betrayal

4. Authority/subversion

5. Sanctity/degradation

(and, not directly in this book, but after writing it, he later adds)

6. Liberty/oppression

So, according to Haidt, all of our human actions are based off of these evolutionary response mechanisms.

But are these all we have?

I feel that if someone were to live with these moral foundations completely in-check, they may still not be living a moral life. And why is this? It seems that even if you addressed all of these moral foundations, you still could be living without humility, a virtue that's completely unaccounted for in Haidt's version of virtue ethics. 

The Bible's proposition of the virtue of humility shows that morality rests in something greater than simply an individual set of ethics but also one that addresses and prioritizes others. 

Thus, through Haidt's moral foundations, I can't find a way to deem the excessively consumerist culture we live in today "wrong," in my own sense of morality, it still certainly feels uniquely wrong, and Biblical ethics provide a more thorough explanation for this.

As the Bible calls us to defer to a higher power (that of God,) Haidt's "authority/subversion" fails to take into account any omnipotent being(s) but instead refers to more Confucian-type of subversive relationships. Even though humility can be present in Haidt's authoritative relationships, the Bible provides a more rich definition of humility by assuming that all people should humble themselves before a divine creator.

The consumerist mindset we see in America today certainly does not embody this Biblical perspective on the value of humility, and it could therefore have unforeseen negative implications in our society. 

Celebrity Instagrams are an interesting case study on this phenomena:

http://instagram.com/kendalljenner

http://instagram.com/taylorswift

http://instagram.com/caradelevingne

Though not every image is bad per se, taking the media message presented here as an aggregate and watching how Instagram has evolved over the past three years of having it has been a unique testament to the power these celebrities have in spurring "Instagram trends" and leading virtually every girl my age to copy them in their blatant promotion of an overly consumerist ideal.

I am not sure how exactly to tie this into my vocation, but I do think it's something important to take into consideration when deciding between employment in a public or private sector of the legal field. Although I find some parts of private law alluring and see public law as much less glamorous (especially because I work for the DA's office and see how underfunded the whole project truly is,) I think that there is something to be said for the quality of your drive to work hard for the public good on a much smaller salary than you could be making if you chose to do something less rewarding.

Regardless, humility is a deeply undervalued virtue in our society today, and the Bible provides a better explanation than the Moral Foundations theory for the immoral consequences of heavy-handed consumerism.