Transcript Moral_Life1 - Diocese of Joliet

Welcome!
Life in Christ: Christian Morality
Session 1: The Vocation of
the Human Person
Our Journey Through the Catechism…
God’s Self Revelation
& Our Faith Response
I. Profession of Faith
II. Celebration of the
Christian Mystery
IV. Christian Prayer
III. Moral Life in Christ
How do I respond to the call
to holiness in my daily life?
Session Schedule
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Opening Prayer
Paired Activity
Talk #1: Faith and Truth
Standing Activity
Talk #2: The Moral Act
Small Group Activity
Closing Prayer
Scriptural Meditation
• Encountering & Engaging the Word of God
• Using your imagination to enter into the scene
• Picturing yourself as one of the characters,
or as an eyewitness
• Meditating on Bl. John Paul II’s reflections
The Rich Young Man (Mt 19:16-22)
And someone came
to Him and said, “Teacher,
what good must I do to
gain eternal life?”
And He said to him,
“Why do you ask me about
the good? There is only
One who is good. If you
wish to enter into life, keep
the commandments.”
The Rich Young Man
He asked him,
“Which ones?”
And Jesus replied,
“You shall not kill; You
shall not commit
adultery; You shall not
steal; You shall not
bear false witness;
Honor your Father and
Mother; and You shall
love your neighbor as
yourself...”
The Rich Young Man…
The young man said to Him,
“All these I have observed.
What do I still lack?”
Jesus said to him, “If you
wish to be perfect, go, sell
what you have and give to
the poor, and you will have
treasure in heaven. Then
come, follow me.”
When the young man heard this statement, he went
away sad; for he had many possessions.
Paired Activity: Pair, Share, Compare
• What does the "call to holiness" mean in terms of
the Christian moral life?
• Who is one of your heroes in the faith, and how
does this person embody a life of holiness?
Talk #1:The Dignity of the Human Person
- The moral life begins in the act of
faith
- As in all acts of faith, a moral
conversion requires dying to one’s self
and entrusting oneself to Christ.
- Faith & Truth = foundation for
holiness
Image and Likeness of God
• For Christians, the truth is given in Christ
•To live in the truth (in Christ!) is to live a genuinely good life
• The Beatitudes depict this life of holiness to which all are called
++++++++++++++++++++++++
“The dignity of the human person is rooted in
his creation in the image and likeness of God;
it is fulfilled in his vocation to divine beatitude.”
(CCC, n. 1700)
Virtue: “an habitual and firm disposition
to do the good” (CCC, n. 1803)
Cardinal Virtues
Prudence: “Right reason in action” (CCC, n. 1806; St. Thomas Aquinas)
Justice: “Constant and firm will to give due to God and neighbor”
(CCC, n. 1807)
Fortitude: “Ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit
of the good” (CCC, n. 1808)
Temperance: “Moderates the attraction of pleasures
and provides balance in the use of
created goods” (CCC, n. 1809)
Theological
Virtues
Faith: “Believe in God and believe all that he has said and
revealed to us” (CCC, n. 1814)
Hope: “Desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our
happiness” (CCC, n. 1817)
Love: “Love God above all things for his own sake, and neighbor
as ourselves” (CCC, n. 1822)
Conscience:
“A Judgment of reason whereby the human
person recognizes the moral quality of a concrete act that he is
going to perform, is in the process of performing, or has
completed” (CCC, n. 1777).
Good News:
Uprightness of moral conscience
Prudent judgment
Assume responsibilities for one’s actions
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Bad News:
Malformation of Conscience
Erroneous judgment
Red Balloon
Beatitudes (Mt 5:3-12)
• The foundations upon which
our consciences need to be
properly formed
•The perfection of the moral life
•The sure guides to being able
"to do the Truth"
++++++++++++++++++++++
“The Beatitudes reveal the goal of
human existence, the ultimate end
of human acts: God calls us to his
own beatitude.” (CCC, n. 1718)
Standing Activity:
“Beatitude Stations”
Select a Beatitude that you like best,
most relate to, or find most
challenging….
Create a "Billboard" in miniature for your Beatitude:
– Use a sign or symbol to represent it
– Create a slogan or motto to get people’s attention
– Why is it counter-cultural? Who is a saint that lived it?
Consider how you could get your audience to
(re)discover this concrete path to holiness.
Beatitude Attitude (Mt 5:3-12)
Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and
thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of
God.
Blessed are they who are
persecuted for the sake of
righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Talk #2: The Moral Act
and the Human Community
• The purpose or goal or “end” of human life
is holiness, beatitude, or sanctity
• This goal or “end” requires a conversion of
the whole self to Christ
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The Magisterium: The teaching authority of the Church
- Bears witness to the truth of human life
- Led by the Holy Spirit, and a sure guide
to authentic freedom
Freedom
“Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will,
to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform
deliberate actions on one's own responsibility.” (CCC, n. 1731)
“Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity
in truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when directed
toward God, our beatitude.” (CCC, n. 1731)
Components of a Moral Act
The constitutive elements of the morality of the human act are
the object, the intention and the circumstances.
•
“The object chosen is a good toward which the will
deliberately acts itself. It is the matter of a human
act.” (CCC, n. 1751)
•
“In contrast to the object, the intention resides in the
acting subject.” It is ordered to the end of the act.
(CCC, n. 1752)
•
“The circumstances, including the consequences, are
secondary elements of a moral act.” (CCC, n. 1754)
The Human Person and Society
Although the person is formed and aided by society, “the human
person . . . is and ought to be the principle, the subject and the
end of all social institutions.” (CCC, n. 1881)
HUNGRY FOR GOD
“…everyone should look upon his neighbor (without any
exception) as 'another self,’ above all bearing in mind his life and
the means necessary for living it with dignity.”
(CCC, n. 1931)
Foundation of Human Society
Common Good: “the sum total of social conditions which
allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach their
fulfillment more fully and more easily.” (CCC, n. 1906)
Subsidiarity: “a community of higher order should not interfere in
the internal life of the community of a lower order, depriving the
latter of its functions, but rather should support it in case of need
and help to co-ordinate its activity with the activities of the rest of
society, always with a view to the common good.” (CCC, n. 1893)
Small Group Activity:
Applied Principles of Catholic Morality
EITHER: Discuss a situation
actions: participating in youth sports;
using the three dimensions
checking facebook while at work;
sharing bad news of another person
of the Moral Act:
- Object or objective act
intentions: providing for one's family;
staying in touch with local, national
- (Subjective) Intention
and international news; protecting
- Circumstance/consequence
those who are poor and suffering
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OR: Discuss a contemporary social justice issue using principles of
Catholic social teachings - respect for the human person, solidarity,
the common good, and subsidiarity….
**Which of the social teachings apply, and why?
**Environmental protection; educational reform;
nuclear disarmament; globalized capitalism.
Review & Reflection:
How do I respond to the
call to holiness in my
daily life?
Follow-up Reflection and Resources
1) Session Evaluation & Feedback
2) Recommended follow-up:
US/CCA, Chapters 23-24:
“Life in Christ”
Catholicism, Episode II:
“The Teachings of Jesus”
3) For Catechists & Catholic School Teachers:
“Record of Formation,” including:
required reflection & documentation
Closing Prayer: “Blessed are they”
Blessed are they, the poor in spirit,
theirs is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are they, full of sorrow,
they shall be consoled.
Refrain:
Rejoice and be glad! Blessed are
you, holy are you,
Rejoice and be glad! Yours is the
kingdom of God!
Blessed are they , the lowly ones,
they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they, who hunger and thirst,
they shall have their fill. (Refrain)
Blessed are they…
Blessed are they, who show mercy,
mercy shall be theirs.
Blessed are they, the pure of heart,
they shall see God.
Refrain
Rejoice and be glad! Blessed are you, holy are you,
Rejoice and be glad! Yours is the kingdom of God!
Blessed are they, who seek peace,
they are the children of God.
Blessed are they who suffer in faith,
the Glory of God is theirs. (Refrain)
Blessed are they…
Blessed are you who suffer hate,
all because of me.
Rejoice and be glad, yours is the
kingdom, shine for all to see.
(Refrain)
Refrain:
Rejoice and be glad!
Blessed are you, holy are you,
Rejoice and be glad!
Yours is the kingdom of God!