I often ask my friends and family: What has shaped your sense of right and wrong?
What guides your inner moral compass? Where does your morality come from? Common answers from non-Christians include one’s upbringing, social norms, the law, and what passes the ‘pub test’. Christian friends often cite the Bible as the primary source of moral guidance, and emphasise the importance of counsel from mature Christians, a godly upbringing, and devotion to prayer.

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Given that I often ponder these questions, my brother recommended I read, The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion by social psychologist, Jonathan Haidt. Since I am a Christian, a public servant, and follow global politics closely, I thought, ‘Why not?’.

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The Righteous Mind explores the complex and often divisive nature of morality, and how people form ethical judgments. It delves into why people across the world often hold seemingly irreconcilable political and religious views, despite having good intentions. It combines social science research, personal insights, and historical context to explore the way in which moral beliefs shape, not just our identities, but our societies.

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The book is divided into three parts with three clear points:

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1. Morality is primarily driven by intuition, not reason. Haidt contends that we often ‘feel’ what is right or wrong first, and come up with reasons for those feelings afterwards. This is demonstrated when people feel strongly that something is wrong but struggle to point to a logical reason – a phenomenon known as moral dumbfounding. He uses the metaphor of an elephant (intuitive, emotional, automatic) being directed by a rider (logical, slower, deliberative): The rider may steer a little, but the elephant is in control. Haidt argues that people reason, not in search of truth, but in support of their emotional reactions.

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2. There’s more to morality than harm and fairness. Haidt outlines six morality foundations: care, fairness, loyalty, authority, sanctity, and liberty. Haidt argues that many liberals (in the US context) tend to focus on care and fairness, while many conservatives value a broader balance across all six. This helps explain the deep cultural and political divisions – not necessarily because one side is immoral, but because they prioritise different moral concerns. This divergence helps explain why the two sides often talk past each other in political debates, each thinking they have the ‘right’ answer to moral questions when they are simply approaching the issue from different moral perspectives.

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3. Morality binds and blinds. Haidt explores the way in which morals help to bind people together into cohesive groups. Morals help to manage cooperation, social order, and collective identity. But this same binding capacity also blinds people; it makes them less aware of the moral perspectives of those outside their group, and less able to empathise with dissenting views.

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As a Christian, I found the book both enlightening and challenging, particularly concerning the way in which we, as believers, should communicate truth in a divided world. While Haidt doesn’t offer a biblical solution, his insights help us to understand why people – often with sincere intentions – disagree so passionately over politics, religion, and morality. This realisation invites humility: We are all shaped by culture, upbringing, and instinct. However, we must be clear that the ultimate source of morality is not intuition or social norms but the unchanging moral standard rooted in God’s Word. Our moral instincts are not immune to bias. Even our most deeply held convictions must be examined in light of God’s Word.

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Teachings such as the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7) spotlight the central virtues of love, humility, and forgiveness; and the ‘Golden Rule’ teaches us to ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you’ (Matthew 7:12). The Bible provides the perfect example of righteous living in Jesus. And it alerts us to the vital role of the Holy Spirit in guiding our conscience, our very own inner sense of right and wrong.

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Ultimately, The Righteous Mind can serve as a valuable guide to having more meaningful and constructive discussions, but not as a moral compass. That role belongs to Christ alone – the one who is ‘the way, the truth, and the life’ (John 14:6).