Transcript Regenerating the moral and spiritual values of our society

Regenerating the Moral and
Spiritual Values of our Society
Joseph Harris C.S.Sp.
30th. January 2009
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The Splendour of Truth
 “Following Christ is the essential and
primordial foundation of Christian
morality,” and following him involves
“holding fast to the very person of Jesus”
(no. 19). It means “becoming conformed
to him who became a servant even to
giving himself on the cross (cf. Phil. 2:58) (no. 21). (Veritatis Splendor )
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The Splendour of Truth
 Christ’s giving himself on the cross is in
fact the manifestation of the Father’s
love for us, a love which is meant to be
the model which we Christians are
called to follow
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The Splendour of Truth
 The Old Testament commandment to love
our neighbour as ourselves, … had been
given to the Chosen People of old (cf. Dt 6:5;
Lv 19:18). But, as the Holy Father reminds us,
Jesus has given us a new commandment.
Commenting on this new commandment,
the Pope writes: “Jesus’ way of acting and his
words, his deeds and his precepts constitute
the moral rule of Christian life.
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The Splendour of Truth
 Moreover, the vocation to perfect love “is
not,” the Pope declares, “restricted to a
small group. It is meant for everyone...”,
and it is most certainly meant for all of us
gathered here in Synod
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Signs of Moral Decadence
T&T Rank in Corruption Index: Higher= More Corrupt
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Country Rank
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Years 2001-2007
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Signs of Moral Decadence
 The growing disrespect for life,
 The increasing calls for pro-abortion legislation
 The widening gap between the rich and the poor
 Human trafficking, incest and child abuse
 The alarming divorce rate
 The discovery of examination papers for sale,
 The ethnic divisions,
 The total disrespect for the land
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Signs of Moral Decadence
There is a profound and
frightening breakdown of
morality in our nation, with a
corresponding breakdown of
the harmony which is God’s
plan for the world.
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Signs of Moral Decadence
 We forget however that corrupt
institutions come out of a corrupt
society which is made up of corrupt
individuals.
 In very subtle ways we began to think
that what defines a person is the amount
the person has rather than the quality of
their souls. We have let the culture
shape us instead of being the ones to
shape the culture
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Signs of Moral Decadence
 For us gathered here in Synod the new
reality must a Church which with
humility and steadfastness is faithful to
its mission of evangelizing both people
and culture so that a new and morally
revitalized Trinidad and Tobago comes
into being.
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Signs of Moral Decadence
 It means answering the call to holiness
which is part and parcel of our baptismal
anointing to be priests, living lives worthy
of being offered to God; to be prophets
proclaiming the message by our very lives
and calling others through our very lives to
the acceptance of the message; to be kings,
ensuring the well-being of those who find
themselves on the margins.
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Witness of Life
 In the midst of this period of moral
decadence there are signs of hope which
as Church we must highlight because
they point the way to the renewed
morality and call us to imitation.
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Witness of Life
 Upright men and women who in spite of great
personal loss have remained faithful to
Christian principles.
 Accountants who have been black listed
because they refused to falsify accounts
 Teachers who have given lessons without
charge to students who needed
 Doctors who spend time with HIV patients
and made them feel appreciated
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Witness of Life
 This witness to enduring Christian
values is not enough. Witness must be
accompanied by Catechesis; a catechesis
which not only addresses the
intellectual aspects of our faith but
encourages and supports and celebrates
the life long journey to an ever more
joyful witness of our commitment to
Christ.
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Catechesis
 This new catechesis must be very clear in
its content and its aims. The following of
Christ is summed up in the eight
beatitudes.
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Catechesis
 God’s vision for the World is harmony.
As members of Church and as belonging
to a Eucharistic people we are called to
be servants of this harmony
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Catechesis
 Because of the name we bear,
Trinidadians, We in T&T are called to
create unity in diversity. The new
catechesis must therefore empower us
so that we live out the vocation to be
priests, prophets and kings, proclaiming
and living harmony so that we create a
nation which is worthy of being offered
to God.
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Catechesis
 The new catechesis must also address
our relationship with God.
 The relationship with God is expressed
in prayer, prayer which like St. Monica’s
is lasting and enduring, and which is
built on hope, the knowledge that God’s
promises will come to fruition; prayer
which expresses itself not simply in
words but in an attitude to life.
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Catechesis
 The new catechesis must also address
itself to the problem of old paradigms
which no longer hold and which have
not been replaced.
 Heaven and Hell no longer affect the way
in which we operate.
 Accountability, both to the community
and to God, as a value has been lost.
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Catechesis
 The new catechesis must also promote
the old value system of politeness and
“broughtupsy” leading to a restored way
of relating with each other which
recognizes the other as being a child of
God, a brother or a sister.
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Catechesis
 This catechesis must begin in the family
because the family is the first school of
authentic Christian living
 It is in the family that children must
learn generosity of spirit and pureness
of heart. It is in the home that children
must learn to courageously accept the
consequences of living the truth.
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Catholic Education
 Catholic education…must regain its
fundamental purpose and support or
inculcate the value systems which the
Gospel proposes
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Catholic Education
 Catholic education is not about
scholarships. It is about ensuring that
our young men and women attain their
eternal destiny and at the same time are
not focussed only on the self but
promote the common good of society
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Catholic Education
 Children and youth are therefore to be
cared for in such a way that their
physical moral and intellectual talents
may develop in a harmonious manner so
that they may attain a greater sense of
responsibility and a right use of freedom
and be formed to take an active role in
social life (Canon 795).
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Imagination
 Imagination is a faculty which allows us
to see beyond what meets the eye,
beyond the established order of things
in our world today. It allows us to see
what might be, what could be.
Imagination is a precursor to true
liberty.
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Catholic Education
 Catholic Education must foster a new
moral imagination so that our young
men and women dream of a new world
in which power and money and pleasure
are not the driving forces in their lives.
Without moral imagination there will
not be a morally revitalized Trinidad
and Tobago.
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Conclusion
 Catholic moral life is in essence a
following of Christ.
 The crisis of morality in our land is
partially due to our failure as individuals
and communities to share the authentic
relationship with God who first loved us
in all spheres of our lives.
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Conclusion
 If each catholic lives out the baptismal
vocation to martyrdom; if each family truly
become a domestic church, evangelizing
both itself and others; and if the Church
and its institutions live out the moral
imperatives of the Gospel i.e. make the
beatitudes incarnate in its dealings both
within itself and with the world, then all of
us both within and outside of the Church
will experience once again the totally free
and unconditional love of God
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Conclusion
 The imitation of Christ which, as we are
reminded by Pope John Paul II is “the
essential and primordial foundation of
Christian morality,”
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