CHAPTER 1 – Our Moral Life in Christ

Christian Morality in Action Morality, free will, our actions, and our interior dispositions are all inextricably interrelated Our actions express our moral dispositions Christ makes the analogy between fruit trees and men, saying that “each tree is known by its fruit,” and so good or bad actions indicate whether we are good or bad people (ref. Lk 6:43-45)

Freedom and Morality Our actions express our free will We commit good acts by using our free will to make good choices under the influence of grace A tendency to sin is a consequence of our wounded human nature, so we can never presume ourselves to be invulnerable to temptation and sin Our commitment to living a moral life in Christ, assisted by our good will and God’s grace, will help us grow in strength and self-control

Grace and the Moral Law Our decisions and actions must be informed by the moral law By choosing to accept the moral law that Christ taught, we choose to conform our dispositions and free will to this law, and thus our decisions must be expressed in moral actions Grace is constantly available, particularly through the Sacraments of Reconciliation and the Holy Eucharist, to strengthen our resolve and our discernment “Grace builds upon nature”

Effects of the Moral Life in Christ Christian morality is a positive morality that prescribes what a person, motivated by love of God, should do to imitate the life of Christ A negative morality is motivated solely by fear of punishment and consists just of “thou shalt nots” While the moral law includes many prohibitions, Christ’s teachings stress the type of persons we should be and the good we must do rather than the evil we should avoid It is best to be motivated by love of God and neighbor rather than fear

Christian Morality Serves and Safeguards Human Dignity The moral law is based on the love expressed in the Great Commandment, a love that respects the dignity of every person A person demonstrates the love of the Father by doing as Jesus asks St. Matthew’s Gospel emphasizes that Christ will judge us based on what we did or did not do on earth We will be asked to account for the good and evil we have done Those who do good are saved, while those who do evil are condemned

Christian Morality Is at the Service of Freedom God’s gifts to humans of an intellect and will sets us apart from the rest of creation and gives us freedom God took a risk in giving us free will since we are able to say no to him and abuse our freedom A moral life in Christ gives us freedom from sin Good actions make us freer, while bad actions diminish our freedom and enslave us to sin Practicing Christ’s message gives us the highest degree of freedom

Christian Morality Is at the Service of Love For the Christian, every aspect of morality begins and ends in love The Christian moral message begins with God offering us his love and ends with the New Commandment to love one another as Christ loved us Christ and the Apostles urged Christians to love God and their neighbor Love for God authenticates love for neighbor, and love for neighbor is indispensable evidence of love for God

Personal Fruits of the Moral Life in Christ Keeping the moral law leads to holiness Every baptized person is called to seek holiness through following the moral law Jesus places his teaching in the Beatitudes side-by-side with the “Old Law” of the Old Testament, which was a preparation for the New Law He fulfills the Commandments, enriches their moral content, and urges that they be put into practice with the help of the Holy Spirit

Fruits of the Moral Law Keeping the moral law leads to happiness God created us to know, love, and serve him, and the first step is keeping his moral law The Catechism reminds us that Jesus teaches that there is an intimate link between happiness and good moral behavior, as conforming to God’s will on earth gives us a foretaste of the perfect happiness that awaits us in Heaven

Keeping the Moral Law Calls Us to Justice In understanding Christian morality, it is important to avoid two extremes: One is to see moral behavior exclusively in terms of social justice and what benefits the common good at the present moment The other is to limit the scope of morality to individual actions only, which ignores the common good and focuses only on the individual’s spiritual life Because Christians are citizens of both this world and the next, we are called to establish a more just and peaceful society and to ensure that personal behavior is in accord with the moral law

What Is Moral Theology? Moral theology is the study of both the principles and actions revealed by Christ and taught by the Catholic Church that will lead to a life of holiness and eternal salvation It is concerned with the good and evil of human actions and of the individual person who performs those actions

Revelation and Reason Moral theology is based on Divine Revelation Its foundation is Divine Revelation, transmitted through Scripture and Tradition, and acknowledging that the origin and purpose of all moral actions are found in God Moral theology is beyond human reason but is not contrary to human reason When reason is separated from the moral law, false conclusions are reached that can have disastrous effects for society and individuals

Natural Sciences and Human Dignity Moral theology is compatible with natural sciences The sciences have a role in corroborating theology; for example, the Church uses modern findings in psychology or medicine to support Christ’s teachings Moral theology recognizes and understands the dignity of the human person The moral law derives from the Great Commandment that calls us to respect the dignity of all human persons

The Christian Concept of Mankind Our immortal souls are what make us human We are made in God’s own image, and our immortal souls that can know and love God and neighbor are what set us apart from the animals Recognition of the soul is essential for human dignity Many people today do not believe in the soul, accepting the false claim that only physical matter can be known with certainty, which leads to a subjective morality and materialistic view and thus to offenses against human dignity

Made by God Our desire to search for truth is evidence of the existence of the soul The universal human desire for knowledge, love, personal fulfillment, etc., points to man’s spiritual nature and immortal soul The human soul is created by God Each person’s soul is made directly by God at the moment of conception, in his image and likeness

Body and Soul The human person comprises a body and a soul We are both physical and spiritual beings, composed equally of matter and spirit Death temporarily separates the soul from the body While the soul continues to exist after death, the body is rendered lifeless and decomposes At the end of time, the soul will be reunited with the glorified body

Body and Soul Are Inseparably United Moral theology involves both the physical and spiritual realities of the human person Morality is concerned with both body and soul since “in fact, body and soul are inseparable” The sacraments point to the unity of body and soul, since in each sacrament, spiritual graces are received through a physical sign

In Baptism, the Soul Is United to Christ The soul shares in God’s divine life in a new and elevated way, becoming a child of God through sanctifying grace A permanent and indelible mark is made on the soul, making the child a member of the Church These graces are completed in the Sacrament of Confirmation, which more perfectly binds a person to Christ’s Mystical Body, and are nourished further in the Sacrament of the Eucharist These Sacraments give the laity a share in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly mission of Christ

Moral Expectations of Christians The elevation of the human soul at Baptism places higher moral expectations on all baptized Christians These standards find their origin and principle in the new life in Christ through sanctifying grace This new life implies a call to achieve the ideals expressed in the Beatitudes, with the help of sacramental grace

To Love as Christ Does Jesus sets higher standards for his followers “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you.” We are called to love others as Christ loves us, with a supernatural love We are called to love even those who the world considers unlovable Jesus promises unimagined happiness to those who follow his New Law of love

Moral Requirements for Man as a Social Being The human is by his very nature a social being, made to live with others and relate to them This is reflected in the sacraments, especially Baptism and the Eucharist, which have both individual and communal characteristics Baptism makes one a member of the Church, and the Eucharist unites all the members of the Church While an individual relationship with Christ is essential, the Christian is never alone but is an integral part of God’s family

Catholic Social Teaching Because personal interests can sometimes overshadow social duties, the Church stresses social morality A large portion of the Catechism is dedicated to the social teaching of the Church, those actions that impact the “human community” Church teaching clearly states that Christian morality cannot be limited to the individual at the expense of his or her social duties

Our Sources of Moral Theology Moral theology draws its principles from Divine Revelation found in Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition, which together form the Deposit of Faith entrusted to the Church The Magisterium of the Church interprets and teaches from this Deposit God reveals his inner life to us by inviting us into a loving relationship Divine Revelation reaches its climax in the Incarnation and Christ’s life and teachings

Growth in Understanding of Christ’s Teachings Moral theology represents the development and growth in understanding of these moral truths Historically, the Church has applied Christ’s teachings to specific situations Theologians, through human reason and in full respect for existing Church teachings, can draw new understanding of the truths in the Deposit of Faith

Sacred Scripture, Source of Moral Theology God inspired certain individuals to record his truths in the Old and New Testaments These divinely inspired truths are designed to help every person find salvation This divine inspiration and Revelation reached its climax with Christ’s Incarnation The Holy Spirit led the Apostles and early Christians to record Christ’s life and teachings, safeguarding these divine truths from error

Primary Sources of Moral Theology Christian morality is especially drawn from two sources: The life of Jesus, which is used as the primary example of how a believer learns to live a Christian life; The teachings and preaching of Jesus— his words, deeds, and precepts—which constitute the “moral rule of Christian life”

Applying Biblical Precepts The rest of the New Testament is also a source for moral theology The Apostles applied Christ’s teachings to the different circumstances of early Church communities Not all biblical teachings were meant to be binding forever The Old Testament contained many precepts that were merely circumstantial, such as when Moses permitted divorce but Christ later prohibited it

Sacred Tradition, Source of Moral Theology Sacred Tradition refers to the living transmission of the Gospel, a message which is conserved and handed down through apostolic succession under the Holy Spirit’s guidance “Tradition” comes from Latin tradere, “to pass on” Tradition is the very life of the Church, through which the Church transmits to every generation what she believes