A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ISLAMIC ETHICS AND WESTERN SOCIAL ETHICS: FOUNDATIONS, VALUES, AND CONTEMPORARY SOCIAL APPLICATIONS

Abstract

Ethics is a central foundation of human civilization because it provides moral guidance for individual conduct, social responsibility, justice, dignity, and the common good. This paper presents a comparative analysis of Islamic ethics and Western social ethics with special focus on their foundations, values, and contemporary social applications. Islamic ethics is primarily grounded in the Qur’an, Sunnah, divine accountability, justice, mercy, human dignity, moral character, and the higher objectives of Sharīʿah. Western social ethics, on the other hand, is a plural intellectual tradition shaped by Greek philosophy, Christian moral thought, Enlightenment rationalism, virtue ethics, deontology, consequentialism, liberalism, human rights discourse, and modern theories of justice. The study adopts a qualitative and conceptual research method based on comparative textual analysis. It argues that both Islamic and Western ethical traditions share major moral concerns, including justice, human dignity, social welfare, responsibility, moral character, and protection from harm. However, they differ in their sources of moral authority, concepts of accountability, and understanding of the relationship between religion, reason, law, society, and public life. Islamic ethics connects morality with divine command and spiritual responsibility, whereas modern Western social ethics often emphasizes rational autonomy, rights, utility, social contract, and democratic justice. The paper concludes that comparative ethical study can contribute to global moral discourse by identifying shared values while respecting theological, philosophical, and cultural differences.