Christian Morality: What Does Love Look Like? Armando Herrera Confirmation Class

Opening Prayer Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth. O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

Introduction We will explore the concept that, for Christians, living a moral life requires that we respond to Jesus’ mandate to love as he loved We will explore how to make moral judgments

Group Exercise: Love is… You have 25 definitions of love in your packet One person reads the definitions and puts them on the table for all to see Pick top 10 that best define love (put the rest back in the envelope) From the top 10 select the best 3 that best define love From the last 3 pick the best one that defines love Have a person from each team tell the group what does the selected definition means from a practical level

The Meaning of Christian Love “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love: (Jn 15:9) “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 15:12) This statement is the foundation of Christian morality Love is the highest law – love directed to God, to neighbor, to self and to all creation The Reign of God is love Love means being deeply concerned about the dignity and welfare of other people It means respecting all life because we are in relationship with all life – this is central to Christian life Christ is the sign of God’s love for us (and our example)

Clean Joke of the week The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples. The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray: "Take only ONE. God is watching.“ Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies. A child had written a note, "Take all you want. God is watching the apples."

How do we know the Moral Law? Gn 1:26-27 tell us that man is created in the image of God Unlike all other animals, we have spiritual souls We have intellects and wills Like God, we know and love We are truly free, unlike the rest of creation that is moved by instinct Because we are free, we are moral beings We can choose to do either good or evil

Conscience Through our intellect, we can discover the morality or goodness of an action This judgment of the intellect is called “Conscience” It is true that we must follow our conscience but, We need to first form our conscience according to Church teachings! Ask for some examples of how we can do this

How do we know what is good and evil? We consult the moral law Which is based on the eternal law of God God is a God of truth, justice and love Therefore, we must act in truth, justice and love The moral law is unchanging because God is unchanging: He will always be truth, justice and love The 10 commandments sum up the requirements of the moral law

How do we evaluate Moral Acts? Morality considers the rightness and wrongness of human actions We can only evaluate those human actions performed freely and knowingly 3 elements to determine morality of an action: The object of the act (what the act is objectively) The intention or purpose of the act (why) The circumstances surrounding the act For an act to be moral all of these 3 must be good!

Morality Exercise – evaluate the morality of each of these actions Praying with the intention of getting human praise Robbing a bank to provide a family vacation The end doesn’t justify the means Speeding to take someone the hospital Abortion because the mother can not afford to raise a kid Abortion in order to save the life of the mother Assisted suicide for a person with a terrible and painful terminal decease

How can we do to get better? One thing we can do to make it easier is to put some effort into developing good habits – virtues With God's help we can acquire and practice these virtues and lead the kind of moral life that brings us into closer communion with God Four Cardinal Virtues Prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance

Cardinal Virtues - Definition Prudence is the habit of thinking before acting. The prudent person uses reason to figure out the true good in every situation and then to choose the right way to achieve it Justice is the virtue of giving to God and to our neighbors what they are due. The just person thinks about the needs to other people, recognizes their God-given dignity, and reaches out to them with love Fortitude is the strength to live morally even in difficult situations. A person with fortitude is able to resist temptations and make sacrifices in order to do good Temperance is the self-control that keeps one's appetite for pleasure from becoming extreme. It doesn't mean we can't have fun. The temperate person develops the habit of setting limits, however, because too much of a good thing can get in the way of the moral life and can separate us from God

Group Exercise Group 1: Mathew 5: 13-16 and Mt 5:17-26 Group 2: Mt 5:38-48 and Mt 6:1-15 Group 3: Mt 6:16-24 and Mt 25-34 Group 4: Mt 7:1-11 and Mt 7:15-29 In just a few words in your handbooks, identify the central value or teaching of Jesus reflected in the passage. Identify at least three applications that the content of the passage might have for young people today, and then list these in your handbooks under the statement about the value or teaching. Share your answers with the rest of the group

Summary Learn and strive to love as God loves. A love that gives, outside of self, cares for the beloved Form your conscience based on the teachings of the Catholic Church Follow your conscience Practice and improve on the cardinal virtues Persevere and remember that the Mercy of God has no limits because God is Love

Closing Prayer – Suscipe* Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess, You have given me: I surrender it all to You to be disposed of according to Your will. Give me only Your love and Your grace; with these I will be rich enough and will desire nothing more. Amen * Attributed to St. Ignatius of Loyola