Transcript Christian Morality

Christian Morality
The Importance of the Issue
• New paradigms, new
questions
• Confusion
• Ignorance of what the church
teaches
• Challenges of a rapidly
changing society
• Conflicting emotions, gut
feelings, politics, and
immature religion
What Is Morality?
• Simply a set of rules and regulations to
be obeyed or else?
• SO MUCH MORE!!
Some Models of Morality
• LEGAL
• LOVE
• DISCIPLESHIP
• INNER CONVICTION/MORAL CONSCIENCE
• Let’s look at these a little deeper. . . .
Legal Model: God as Judge/Law-Giver
• Oldest model, deeply ingrained
• From society’s need to organize
itself, to help maintain peace and
harmony;
• Consequences for breaking laws
• Morality synonymous with the Law
• God is law-giver; we are obliged to
obey
• Extreme disobedience results in
explusion from the Church
Limitations of the Legal Model:
Extreme Responses
• Scrupulosity: a preoccupation and fear of not
perfectly following the law
• Circumvention: asking how much we can get
away with before committing a sin
• Rigid imposition of the law stirs up rebellious
questioning of authority; law seen as
oppressive and burdensome
• Relativism: I should be able to determine if it
is right for me or not
The Need for the Law:
Realizing that it is not the central
component in morality………..
• A truly mature adult sees the need for the law
• Society will always need agreed upon norms and
values that uphold the common good
• These norms must and do drive our values
The Love Model
• Based on the Two Great Commandments and the
Beatitudes; from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount
• Such love is directed TOWARD OTHERS
• Love that Jesus taught us by word and example
drives our moral responses in ALL SITUATIONS
Limitations of the Love Model
• Uncertainty as to what the most loving action
is in a given situation: WWJD?
• We run the risk of putting our own morality
on the shoulders of Jesus to give divine
acceptance of our own narrow view
• Model fails us in determining the right thing to
do in many circumstances
The Discipleship Model
• Based on an intimate, reciprocal relationship with
Jesus
• Commissioned followers of Christ follow the
example of the New Testament and join with other
Christians in community
• A welcome change to the legal model!
• Much discernment happens in the context of
community as it seeks to live out the Gospel
Limitations
• No clear directives given to address the
complex situations Christians face
• No concrete answers to what is morally right
and wrong
• More is needed
Inner Conviction or Moral Conscience
Model
• Joyful acceptance of personal responsibility
for moral living
• 10 Commandments = joyful reciprocal
response to the love, care and nurturing
shown to us by God in a sacred covenant
relationship
• Directives of the law guide us but we choose
to make a personal mature commitment to
live by the Law’s imperative
More Advantages of Inner Conviction
or Moral Conscience Model
• Law is not imposed, it is embraced
• Embraced in response to our love relationship
with God who is in covenant relationship with
us
• We do NOT follow the law out of fear or blind
obedience but in complete FREEDOM of
choice to say yes to God
Conscience
• NOT SIMPLY the tool within us to determine if we
hsould to the right thing and avoid the wrong or
immoral thing
• IT DRIVES OUR ENTIRE APPROACH TO LIFE; it
helps us discover God’s design for our lives; who
we are, how we are to live and God’s ultimate will
for our lives
• Is developed (or not) from childhood as we obey
the rules of society; grows and develops as we
learn that the rules are good for all people
Conscience
• Achieves its highest level when we act not
because of some obligation to follow the law
but because it is the right and moral thing to do
• We develop a good conscience over time by
creating the habit of good behavior
• Habitual truth-telling = truthful person = ability
to discern truthfulness and lack of it in specific
lie situations
• Same can be said of all the virtues
Aristotle insisted that morality is judged by the
judgment of a morally virtuous person not
simply by a code of law or ethics.
Forming A Good Conscience
• Definition of Conscience: a judgment of reason by
which the person recognizes the moral quality of
a concrete action.
• God has placed a moral law in every human
heart.
• That moral law is the human conscience, our
ability to know what is right and what is wrong.
• Conscience helps us discern what we should do in
a particular circumstance.
Forming Conscience, Cont.
• Conscience helps persons assume
responsibility for their own actions.
• When a person chooses to engage in an evil
act the conscience stands in constant
judgment and witness of that act.
• Consciences challenges the person to turn
away from evil and turn toward virtue.
• Moral choices are guided by conscience.
Conscience, cont.
• A good conscience adheres to reason and to
what is willed by God’s wisdom
• It takes a lifetime to form one’s conscience
• Every Catholic is required to form his/her
conscience according to the Church’s moral
norms.
Tools Used to Form Conscience
• Prayer
• Study of Biblical principles: WWJD?
• Study of Biblical interpretation – not just our own
understanding of it
• Moral counsel of other faithful Christians
• Authoritative teaching of the Church
• Gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding,
reverence, knowledge, right judgment, courage,
wonder
Examination of Conscience
•
•
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Actions
Motives for our actions
Value of our actions
Choices we intend to make, choices we have
made
What constitutes a moral act?
• WHAT WE DO
• THE INTENTION – WHY WE DO THE ACT
• ACTUAL SITUATION OF THE ACT: Where?
When? How? With whom? Consequences?
• SEE TRIPLE FONT THEORY
FURTHER. . .
• The ACT Is moral if it is by itself a good thing to
do – a good action
• The ACTION is morally good if the action itself is a
good action and if the person doing the act has a
good intention.
• WE CAN NEVER TO SOMETHING WRONG OR EVIL
IN ORDER TO BRING ABOUT SOME GOOD.
• WE CAN NEVER DO SOMETHING GOOD IF THE
INTENTION FOR DOING IT IS EVIL.
EXERCISE
Conscience is the Highest Order
• We are to follow our conscience above all else.
• Human beings have the right to act in freedom
according to their conscience. They may not be
forced to act contrary to their conscience
especially when it comes to religious issues.
• Importance that conscience is properly
formed! Ignorance might make for a false
judgment about the morality of an action.
Conscience
• May be wrong if we do little to inform it
• If we act blindly
• As the result of bad habits, we cannot see our
own culpability in moral actions
• FAITH, PRAYER, WORD OF GOD enlightens our
conscience
Conscience Is Not an Opinion
We must always consider what the Scripture
says, what the Church teaches, what we
discern within us to be moral.
ONLLY THEN, AFTER EXTENDED PROCESS,
WOULD WE NOT ACT IN ACCORDANCE WITH
CHURCH TEACHINGS.