Transcript The Church and Moral Teaching

THE CHURCH AND MORAL
TEACHING
pp. 118 - 123
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The Church is the continuation in history of the mission of
Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Richard Gula outlines 3 tasks of the Church in guiding
moral life:
The Church shapes moral character.
The Church guards and maintains moral tradition.
The Church is a community of moral deliberation
whenever and wherever moral issues emerge.
1) The Church shapes moral character
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The Church has an impact on our moral vision.
Its position on moral and ethical issues is reported
in its own publications, press, T.V., internet, churches,
Catholic schools, and Catholic homes.
The Church is most effective through its rituals and
symbols, its art and architecture, symbol and stories,
the Bible and liturgy, social outreach programs and
interactions with other Christians.
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These actions touch our imagination and shape our
vision of the world.
They allow us to see this world immersed in God’s
love.
Liturgy is the common tool through which the Church
teaches (more than formal teaching).
2) The Church Guards and maintains
moral tradition
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The Church has a large body of moral teachings to
assist in forming our consciences.
Moral teachings are found in Church documents but
the teachings are carried out by people:
- the faithful, theologians, priests and pastoral
ministers, the teaching authority of the Church
(magisterium)
The Faithful
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The baptized, parents, family, friends, culture,
catechism, schools, tradition (introduce us to moral
tradition)
Food banks, soup kitchens, Society of St. Vincent de
Paul, volunteering, international missionary and
service work
We guard and maintain the moral tradition by
giving witness to the justice and mercy of God.
Theologians
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Theologians interpret moral tradition
They bridge the gap between moral tradition and
present time by researching and interpreting moral
issues.
They are not official teachers in the Church – they
instead present ancient messages using ideas and
imagesa that are useful today.
Priests and Pastoral Workers
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Priests, deacons, pastoral assistants, administrators and
catechists.
They strive to make teachings accessible to ordinary
believers.
Ordained ministers (priests and deacons) carry out
sacraments for the community.
The sacraments give us the grace to respond in faithful
and committed action with our lives.
The Teaching Authority of the Church
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Magisterium is the teaching office of the Church
Bishops of the world (includes Cardinals and the
Pope)
They delegate to priests and catechists; they give a
teaching mission to theologians (imprimatur and nihil
obstat); publish definitions of faith, promulgate
degrees of ecumenical councils, encyclicals,
apostolic letters etc.
2 levels of the Magisterium
Ordinary – normal daily teachings of the bishops and
the pope through encyclicals and apostolic letters.
Extraordinary – 1) ecumenical councils (pope and the
college of Bishops gather and deliberate pronouncing
a solemn degree e.g. Vatican II. 2) Pope speaks ex
cathedra as head of the Church. Only happened twice
in history. These are considered infallible statements.
3) The Church is a community of moral
deliberation.
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Ethical positions emerge in response to events in a
community and in the world.
Bishops consult experts in the field and try to stay
tuned to the moral climate of the time.
The Church strives to use media outlets to dialogue,
debate and collaborate.
Check out these websites:
http://www.vatican.va
http://www.cccb.ca
http://acbo.on.ca
These sites contain official teachings and publication
by the bishops.
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Discussion Question:
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What impact do Gospel values have on society,
politics and ethics?