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8 TRUTH AND HONESTY (The Eight Commandment)

9 EIGHT COMMANDMENT … forbids all kinds of falsehood and commands total truthfulness: –know –love & –live the truth

10 CCC The eighth commandment forbids misrepresenting the truth in our relations with others…

11 CCC The Old Testament attests that God is the source of all truth. His Word is truth. His Law is truth. His "faithfulness endures to all generations.“ Since God is "true," the members of his people are called to live in the truth…

12 JESUS is the Truth … revelation of God’s mind, will and heart

13 CCC In Jesus Christ, the whole of God's truth has been made manifest. "Full of grace and truth," he came as the "light of the world," he is the Truth…

14 TRUTH Material truths are discovered through scientific experiment and exploration Spiritual truths are revealed in part through the prophets and fully in Jesus

15 Hebrews 1:1-2 1 In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets; 2 in these last days, he spoke to us through a son, whom he made heir of all things and through whom he created the universe, Confraternity of Christian Doctrine. Board of Trustees, Catholic Church. National Conference of Catholic Bishops, & United States Catholic Conference. Administrative Board. (1996, c1986). The New American Bible : Translated from the original languages with critical use of all the ancient sources and the revised New Testament (Heb 1:1). Confraternity of Christian Doctrine.

16 CRITERIA (TO ATTAIN THE FULLNESS OF TRUTH) Faith and reason Humility and trust

17 LIVING THE TRUTH Essential in relationships Relationships must be based on trust

18 Matthew 5:37 37 Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the evil one. Confraternity of Christian Doctrine. Board of Trustees, Catholic Church. National Conference of Catholic Bishops, & United States Catholic Conference. Administrative Board. (1996, c1986). The New American Bible : Translated from the original languages with critical use of all the ancient sources and the revised New Testament (Mt 5:37). Confraternity of Christian Doctrine.

19 CCC "Men could not live with one another if there were not mutual confidence that they were being truthful to one another… Truthfulness keeps to the just mean between what ought to be expressed and what ought to be kept secret: it entails honesty and discretion…

20 TRUTH MUST BE PRACTICED WITH CHARITY

21 Reconciling Truth and Charity May be necessary to keep silent/hide the truth for the sake of charity; use prudence. “It is one thing to lie and another to conceal one’s thought.” (St. Augustine) We should not withhold truth from those who have the right to know it.

22 RESPECT FOR THE TRUTH Appropriateness of communication CCC 2489 CCC 2510 Privileged communication CCC 2490 CCC 2491 Obligation of Civil Authorities CCC 2498

23 CCC 2489 (Appropriateness of Communication ) 2489 Charity and respect for the truth should dictate the response to every request for information or communication. The good and safety of others, respect for privacy, and the common good are sufficient reasons for being silent about what ought not be known or for making use of a discreet language. The duty to avoid scandal often commands strict discretion. No one is bound to reveal the truth to someone who does not have the right to know it.

24 CCC 2510 (Appropriateness of Communication ) 2510 The golden rule helps one discern, in concrete situations, whether or not it would be appropriate to reveal the truth to someone who asks for it.

25 CCC 2490 (Privileged Communication) 2490 The secret of the sacrament of reconciliation is sacred, and cannot be violated under any pretext. " The sacramental seal is inviolable; therefore, it is a crime for a confessor in any way to betray a penitent by word or in any other manner or for any reason."

26 CCC 2491 (Privileged Communication) 2491 Professional secrets - for example, those of political office holders, soldiers, physicians, and lawyers - or confidential information given under the seal of secrecy must be kept, save in exceptional cases where keeping the secret is bound to cause very grave harm to the one who confided it, to the one who received it or to a third party, and where the very grave harm can be avoided only by divulging the truth. Even if not confided under the seal of secrecy, private information prejudicial to another is not to be divulged without a grave and proportionate reason.

27 CCC 2498 (Obligation of Civil Authorities ) 2498 Civil authorities have particular responsibilities in this field because of the common good... It is for the civil authority... to defend and safeguard a true and just freedom of information."

28 WITNESSING TO THE TRUTH With prudence, grace and sensitivity Avoid timidity/compromising the truth

29 CCC The duty of Christians to take part in the life of the Church impels them to act as witnesses of the Gospel and of the obligations that flow from it. This witness is a transmission of the faith in words and deeds…

30 OFFENSES AGAINST THE TRUTH 1.Lying CCC False witness & perjury CCC Rash Judgment, i.e. assuming as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of another CCC 2477 CCC Detraction, i.e. without objectively valid reason, discloses another’s faults and failing to persons who did not know them CCC Calumny, i.e. by remarks contrary to the truth, harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them CCC Encouraging/confirming another in malicious acts and perverse conduct CCC Boasting or bragging/Irony CCC Gossiping James 3:2-6 & 9-10

31 CCC 2484 (Lying) 2484 The gravity of a lie is measured against the nature of the truth it deforms, the circumstances, the intentions of the one who lies, and the harm suffered by its victims. To lie is to speak or act against the truth in order to lead someone into error.

32 CCC 2476 (False Witness & Perjury) 2476 False witness and perjury. When it is made publicly, a statement contrary to the truth takes on a particular gravity. In court it becomes false witness. When it is under oath, it is perjury…

33 Rash Judgment i.e. assuming as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of another (CCC 2477)

34 CCC To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret insofar as possible his neighbor's thoughts, words, and deeds in a favorable way: –Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favorable interpretation to another's statement than to condemn it. But if he cannot do so, let him ask how the other understands it. And if the latter understands it badly, let the former correct him with love. If that does not suffice, let the Christian try all suitable ways to bring the other to a correct interpretation so that he may be saved.

35 Detraction i.e. without objectively valid reason, discloses another’s faults and failing to persons who did not know them (CCC 2477)

36 Calumny i.e. by remarks contrary to the truth, harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them (CCC 2477)

37 CCC 2480 (Encouraging/confirming another in malicious acts and perverse conduct) 2480 Every word or attitude is forbidden which by flattery, adulation, or complaisance encourages and confirms another in malicious acts and perverse conduct…

38 CCC 2481 (Boasting or Bragging/Irony ) 2481 Boasting or bragging is an offense against truth. So is irony aimed at disparaging someone by maliciously caricaturing some aspect of his behavior.

39 James 3:2-6 & 9-10 (Gossiping) 2 for we all fall short in many respects. If anyone does not fall short in speech, he is a perfect man, able to bridle his whole body also. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we also guide their whole bodies. 4 It is the same with ships: even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot’s inclination wishes. 5 In the same way the tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions. Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze. 6 The tongue is also a fire. It exists among our members as a world of malice, defiling the whole body and setting the entire course of our lives on fire, itself set on fire by Gehenna. … 9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. This need not be so, my brothers. Confraternity of Christian Doctrine. Board of Trustees, Catholic Church. National Conference of Catholic Bishops, & United States Catholic Conference. Administrative Board. (1996, c1986). The New American Bible : Translated from the original languages with critical use of all the ancient sources and the revised New Testament (Jas 3:9). Confraternity of Christian Doctrine.

40 Kinds and Forms of Gossips Angry gossips Envious gossips Entertaining or amusing gossips Honest gossips Insecure gossips

41 How to Prevent Gossips “If you cannot speak well of someone, do not speak of the person at all” Think well of others: refrain from making negative judgments unless the facts are well-founded Give someone the benefit of the doubt for we can never fully know what is in someone’s heart

42 DUTY OF REPARATION Do reparation whenever possible CCC 2487

43 CCC Every offense committed against justice and truth entails the duty of reparation, even if its author has been forgiven. When it is impossible publicly to make reparation for a wrong, it must be made secretly. If someone who has suffered harm cannot be directly compensated, he must be given moral satisfaction in the name of charity. This duty of reparation also concerns offenses against another's reputation. This reparation, moral and sometimes material, must be evaluated in terms of the extent of the damage inflicted. It obliges in conscience.

44 THINK Before You Speak T – Is it true? H – Is it helpful? I – Is it inspiring? N- Is it necessary? K – Is it kind?

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51 How to Print

52 Reference Books