Autonomy

Definition: Freedom from external control or influence. Self-sufficiency Autos = Self Nomos = Law

Autonomy

Autonomy Understood Security seekers vs fulfilment seekers For example, the older generations are security seekers. Having experienced the uncertainties surrounding the Second World War, they are chiefly motivated by the need of economic and physical security. They cling to traditional certainties in the family, at work, in ethics and religious practice. The younger generations become progressively more fulfilment seekers in the sense of being motivated more strongly by the needs of self--realization, belonging and quality of life. One consequence is a growing resistance to religious creeds and to organizations that impose restrictions on one's views or personal behavior.

Security Seekers: Fulfilment Seekers: stress marriage stability and the traditional role of women give priority to hard work, good manners and obedience tend to be traditional in their religious convictions. They believe in a personal God, adhere to beliefs regarding heaven, hell, sin and the devil, and are committed to traditional moral standards Fulfilment Seekers: stress a woman's right to work even if she is a mother, and prefer divorce to an unhappy relationship. want interesting jobs. They rate imagination, creativity, independence and tolerance as priority. more likely to see God as a Life Force, to have doubts on traditions, to be more permissive in morality and to be more critical of the Church.

External vs Internal Catholicism External-authority Catholics: emphasize the stability of the institutional Church. T they are concerned about the credibility of the Church and its persistence as a social institution. these Catholics are rooted in the traditional, hierarchical exercise of authority. they stress the importance of private confession, where priests, representing the external authority of the institutional Church, give counsel and absolve sins. Pre 40’s conventional ideas Internal-authority Catholics: conceive of religious authority as internal, flowing from the exercise of one's conscience. they believe the locus of authority is within the believer -- that God speaks through the experiences and reflections of individual Christians. from this perspective, Catholics are to take personal responsibility for their faith, which is intimately related to one’s daily experience in the world. Post 60’s Progressive Ideas