Justified Lies?

Often, in our own desire to control an outcome, we see fit to adjust morality to our own liking. It can be very easy to slip into this. We see a good, and think it will be alright to commit what we might consider a small evil in order to attain that greater good. The most extreme and common example that I've heard is the following: You're in Europe during WWII, you're sheltering a Jewish family in order to protect them, German soldiers stop by your home and ask you, "Are there any Jews in your home?"

Without really thinking about it, many of us might see the good of defending life and decide that a lie, such as, "no, there are no Jews in my home" would be justified. This mindset is frequently referred to as moral relativism, and follows a mindset of 'for the greater good'. However, it is contrary to Catholic morality, as one should never commit an evil even if there may be 'good' outcomes.

"Though it is true that sometimes it is lawful to tolerate a lesser moral evil in order to avoid a greater evil or in order to promote a greater good," it is never lawful, even for the gravest reasons, to do evil that good may come of it—in other words, to intend directly something which of its very nature contradicts the moral order, and which must therefore be judged unworthy of man, even though the intention is to protect or promote the welfare of an individual, of a family or of society in general" (Pope Saint Paul VI, Humanae Vitae, 14.3).

For the longest time I also considered the decision to lie in this scenario as the right decision. After years of on and off consideration, debate with others, and research on the subject, I realized that my conclusion was based on my emotions rather than conscience and reason. I wanted the easy choice to be what was right.

There are many attempted justifications I've heard for this scenario, but they all come down to this: what is a lie? If a lie were a falsehood told in order to deceive someone who has the right to the truth, then the scenario I presented would be morally justified. The mindset would follow as, "I will tell the German soldiers a falsehood because they don't have the right to the truth". However, the Church provides us with the definition of a lie for our moral consideration:

“A lie consists in speaking a falsehood with the intention of deceiving" (CCC 2482).

Nowhere in this definition is the 'right to the truth'. Some often try to work around the word 'deceive' and say "well, my intention was not to deceive, but rather, to protect life". To which I would say, "yes, but you did so by deception, which was done intentionally".

So what about telling the Germans that I don't have Jews in my house, because life is of the utmost importance? This still falls into a moral relativism that says "I know better than God".

At the end of the day, the only options that I can think of that would be morally justified would be to either tell the truth or to indirectly answer the question. In discussing the importance of truth, the Catechism states the following:

"The right to the communication of the truth is not unconditional. Everyone must conform his life to the Gospel precept of fraternal love. This requires us in concrete situations to judge whether or not it is appropriate to reveal the truth to someone who asks for it" (CCC 2488).

Notice that the Catechism states that I can withhold the revelation of a truth, but only in communication. Thus, it would not be immoral to withhold the truth from the German soldier either by not answering or by some kind of deflection such as "What is a Jew?" or "I have some tea brewing if you'd like some". However, we cannot communicate a falsehood. This is why the next paragraph of the Catechism follows up by saying:

"Charity and respect for the truth should dictate the response to every request for information or communication. The good and safety of others, respect for privacy, and the common good are sufficient reasons for being silent about what ought not be known or for making use of a discreet language" (CCC 2489).

So what do we do when faced with a difficult situation with the truth? What if telling the truth means that the Jews I've hidden in my attic will be discovered? We have a few options, but none of them are telling a falsehood. We can reject answering the question, or we can 'walk around' it with distraction, but we can never lie.

Praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever.