Sunday, June 24, 2012
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
The Different Systems of Morality
Aside from Christian morality, there are other systems of
morality. We will not consider here systems of morality coming from other
religions because these systems are better studied in History of Religions.
Instead, we will consider those systems that fall under the concept of Moral
Relativism.
Moral relativism is the philosophical theory that morality is relative, that there are
different moral truths for different people. It comes in two forms: ethical subjectivism and cultural
relativism.
-Ethical
subjectivism holds that morality is relative to individuals,
-Cultural
relativism holds that it is relative to culture.
Both deny the existence of
moral absolutes, of objective moral truths that hold for all people in all
places at all times.
According to moral relativism,
it makes no sense to ask the abstract question whether a given act is good or
bad. There is no goodness or badness in the abstract; there is only goodness or
badness within a specified context. An act may thus be good for one person but
bad for another, or good in one cultural setting but bad in another, but cannot
be either good or bad full stop.
If moral relativism is true, therefore, then we should not
ask whether an act is good or bad in the abstract, but only whether it is good
or bad in a particular situation.
Some see moral relativism as an obvious truth, as
undeniable; others see it as a threatening the moral foundation on which
society is founded.
Arguments for Moral Relativism
Those who support moral relativism cite various proofs of
its truth:
There are those who point out that different individuals and cultures have
different moral beliefs. Moral disagreement therefore demonstrates that
morality is merely a product of personal opinion or culture.
Some say that moral absolutism (the opposite of moral relativism) collapses in certain
circumstances like when there are exceptions to every moral rule, occasions on which certain immoral practices like lying, stealing, and even worse acts are morally justified. Hence, morality must be relative to certain circumstances.
Others that only moral
relativism is consistent with the fact that we should be tolerant of those
with whom we disagree, particularly those from different backgrounds to our
own. We should not to think that we or
our culture is morally better than any other. We therefore ought to be moral
relativists.
Arguments Against Moral Relativism
Those who reject relativism, of course, have arguments of
their own:
At times, it is right to judge that one culture is morally better than others. This kind of judgment is only possible when we use an objective standard for judging.
It is alright to judge whether in a given society or culture, the moral standard has gone up or down. This judgment will not be possible in moral relativism.
Kinds of Moral Relativism
1. Cafeteria morality-this is the kind of relativism where
the individual chooses what he/she wants to practise, what rules to follow,
what suits one’s lifestyle, attitude, etc. The moral plate of such an
individual consists of his/her personal choices, preferences and conveniences
and likes, as in a cafeteria.
This system of morality puts the individual in the place of
the Creator because here, one creates one’s own moral system.
2. Consensus morality-this is the moral system that looks at
what the majority does. Right or wrong depends on what most people do. It seems
morality as democratic, subject to the approval of the majority. It advocates
subjecting moral issues to referendums,
elections, etc.
3. Psychological rationalization- this moral system
considers genetic and psychological make-up as determining a person’s moral
choices and behaviours, undermining personal freedom in the process. It says that
we are not really free because we cannot but act in a pre-determined way
because of our psychology and genetics.
4. Situation ethics- what is right or wrong depends on the
situation. Some immoral acts may be right in certain situations, wrong in other
occasions. It denies intrinsically evil acts and the moral aspects of one’s
intentions. The main source of morality is the situation in which the act is
done.
5. Fundamental option- this refers
to a moral theory according to which each person gradually develops a basic
orientation of his or her life, either for or against God. This fundamental
direction is said to be for God if one's life is devoted to the love and
service of others, and against God if one's life is essentially devoted to
self-love and self-service.
The 1975 Vatican document Persona Humana stated that fundamental option affirms “that mortal sin, which causes separation from
God, only exists in the formal refusal directly opposed to God's call, or in
that selfishness which completely and deliberately closes itself to the love of
neighbour. Individual human acts cannot radically change this fundamental
option. Particular acts are not enough to constitute a mortal sin."
Implicit in this theory is the notion that there can be serious sins, such as
murder and adultery, because these actions are gravely wrong. However, it
suggests that no mortal sin is committed unless a person subjectively rejects
God.
Monday, June 18, 2012
1 In the beginning, God created heavens and earth. 2 The earth was void and empty, and darkness covered the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God hovered over the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light.” And there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; he divided the light from the darkness. 5 And he called the light, ‘Day,’ and the darkness, ‘Night.’ And there was evening and morning, the first day.
6 God also said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide waters from waters.” 7And God made a firmament, and he divided the waters that were under the firmament, from those that were above the firmament. And so it became. 8 And God called the firmament ‘Heaven.’ And there was evening and morning, the second day.
9 Truly God said: “Let the waters that are under heaven be gathered together into one place; and let the dry land appear.” And so it became.10 And God called the dry land, ‘Earth,’ and he called the gathering of the waters, ‘Seas.’ And God saw that it was good.11 And he said, “Let the land spring forth green plants, both those producing seed, and fruit-bearing trees, producing fruit according to their kind, whose seed is within itself, over all the earth.” And so it became.12 And the land brought forth green plants, both those producing seed, according to their kind, and trees producing fruit, with each having its own way of sowing, according to its species. And God saw that it was good.13 And there was evening and morning, the third day.
14 Then God said: “Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven. And let them divide day from night, and let them become signs, both of the seasons, and of the days and years.15 Let them shine in the firmament of heaven and illuminate the earth.” And so it became.16 And God made two great lights: a greater light, to rule over the day, and a lesser light, to rule over the night, along with the stars.17And he set them in the firmament of heaven, to give light over all the earth,18 and to rule over the day as well as the night, and to divide light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.19 And there was evening and morning, the fourth day.
20 And then God said, “Let the waters produce animals with a living soul, and flying creatures above the earth, under the firmament of heaven.”21 And God created the great sea creatures, and everything with a living soul and the ability to move that the waters produced, according to their species, and all the flying creatures, according to their kind. And God saw that it was good.22 And he blessed them, saying: “Increase and multiply, and fill the waters of the sea. And let the birds be multiplied above the land.”23 And there was evening and morning, the fifth day.
24 God also said, “Let the land produce living souls in their kind: cattle, and animals, and wild beasts of the earth, according to their species.” And so it became.25 And God made the wild beasts of the earth according to their species, and the cattle, and every animal on the land, according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.26 And he said: “Let us make Man to our image and likeness. And let him rule over the fish of the sea, and the flying creatures of the air, and the wild beasts, and the entire earth, and every animal that moves on the earth.”27 And God created man to his own image; to the image of God he created him; male and female, he created them. 28 And God blessed them, and he said, “Increase and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and the flying creatures of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.”29 And God said: “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant upon the earth, and all the trees that have in themselves the ability to sow their own kind, to be food for you,30 and for all the animals of the land, and for all the flying things of the air, and for everything that moves upon the earth and in which there is a living soul, so that they may have these on which to feed.” And so it became.31 And God saw everything that he had made. And they were very good. And there was evening and morning, the sixth day.
Genesis 2
1 And so the heavens and the earth were completed, with all their adornment.2 And on the seventh day, God fulfilled his work, which he had made. And on the seventh day he rested from all his work, which he had accomplished.3 And he blessed the seventh day and sanctified it. For in it, he had ceased from all his work: the work whereby God created whatever he should make.
4 These are the generations of heaven and earth, when they were created, in the day when the Lord God made heaven and earth,5 and every sapling of the field, before it would rise up in the land, and every wild plant, before it would germinate. For the Lord God had not brought rain upon the earth, and there was no man to work the land.6 But a fountain ascended from the earth, irrigating the entire surface of the land.
7 And then the Lord God formed man from the clay of the earth, and he breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul.8 Now the Lord God had planted a Paradise of enjoyment from the beginning. In it, he placed the man whom he had formed.9 And from the soil the Lord God produced every tree that was beautiful to behold and pleasant to eat. And even the tree of life was in the midst of Paradise, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 And a river went forth from the place of enjoyment so as to irrigate Paradise, which is divided from there into four heads.11 The name of one is the Phison; it is that which runs through all the land of Hevilath, where gold is born; 12 and the gold of that land is the finest. In that place is found bdellium and the onyx stone. 13 And the name of the second river is the Gehon; it is that which runs through all the land of Ethiopia. 14 Truly, the name of the third river is the Tigris; it advances opposite the Assyrians. But the fourth river, it is the Euphrates. 15 Thus, the Lord God brought the man, and put him into the Paradise of enjoyment, so that it would be attended and preserved by him.
16 And he instructed him, saying: “From every tree of Paradise, you shall eat. 17 But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat. For in whatever day you will eat from it, you will die a death.”
18The Lord God also said: “It is not good for the man to be alone. Let us make a helper for him similar to himself.”19 Therefore, the Lord God, having formed from the soil all the animals of the earth and all the flying creatures of the air, brought them to Adam, in order to see what he would call them. For whatever Adam would call any living creature, that would be its name. 20 And Adam called each of the living things by their names: all the flying creatures of the air, and all the wild beasts of the land. Yet truly, for Adam, there was not found a helper similar to himself. 21 And so the Lord God sent a deep sleep upon Adam. And when he was fast asleep, he took one of his ribs, and he completed it with flesh for it. 22 And the Lord God built up the rib, which he took from Adam, into a woman. And he led her to Adam.
23 And Adam said: “Now this is bone from my bones, and flesh from my flesh. This one shall be called woman, because she was taken from man.” 24 For this reason, a man shall leave behind his father and mother, and he shall cling to his wife; and the two shall be as one flesh. 25 Now they were both naked: Adam, of course, and his wife. And they were not ashamed.
Genesis 3
1 However, the serpent was more crafty than any of the creatures of the earth that the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Why has God instructed you, that you should not eat from every tree of Paradise?” 2 The woman responded to him: “From the fruit of the trees which are in Paradise, we eat. 3 Yet truly, from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of Paradise, God has instructed us that we should not eat, and that we should not touch it, lest perhaps we may die.” 4 Then the serpent said to the woman: “By no means will you die a death. 5 For God knows that, on whatever day you will eat from it, your eyes will be opened; and you will be like gods, knowing good and evil.” 6 And so the woman saw that the tree was good to eat, and beautiful to the eyes, and delightful to consider. And she took from its fruit, and she ate. And she gave to her husband, who ate.
7 And the eyes of them both were opened. And when they realized themselves to be naked, they joined together fig leaves and made coverings for themselves. 8 And when they had heard the voice of the Lord God taking a walk in Paradise in the afternoon breeze, Adam and his wife hid themselves from the face of the Lord God in the midst of the trees of Paradise. 9 And the Lord God called Adam and said to him: “Where are you?”10 And he said, “I heard your voice in Paradise, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and so I hid myself.”
11 He said to him, “Then who told you that you were naked, if you have not eaten of the tree from which I instructed you that you should not eat?” 12 And Adam said, “The woman, whom you gave to me as a companion, gave to me from the tree, and I ate.” 13 And the Lord God said to the woman, “Why have you done this?” And she responded, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” 14 And the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, you are cursed among all living things, even the wild beasts of the earth. Upon your breast shall you travel, and the ground shall you eat, all the days of your life. 15 I will put enmities between you and the woman, between your offspring and her offspring. She will crush your head, and you will lie in wait for her heel.”
16 To the woman, he also said:
“I will multiply your labors and your conceptions. In pain shall you give birth
to sons, and you shall be under your husband’s power, and he shall have
dominion over you.”
17 Yet truly, to Adam, he said:
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten of the
tree, from which I instructed you that you should not eat, cursed is the land
that you work. In hardship shall you eat from it, all the days of your life. 18 Thorns and thistles shall it
produce for you, and you shall eat the plants of the earth. 19 By the sweat of your face shall you eat bread,
until you return to the earth from which you were taken. For dust you are, and
unto dust you shall return.” 20 And Adam
called the name of his wife, ‘Eve,’ because she was the mother of all the
living. 21 The Lord God also made for
Adam and his wife garments from skins, and he clothed them.
22 And he said: “Behold, Adam
has become like one of us, knowing good and evil. Therefore, now perhaps he may
put forth his hand and also take from the tree of life, and eat, and live in
eternity.” 23 And so the
Lord God sent him away from the Paradise of enjoyment, in order to work the
earth from which he was taken. 24 And he
cast out Adam. And in front of the Paradise of enjoyment, he placed the
Cherubim with a flaming sword, turning together, to guard the way to the tree
of life.
PROLOGUE OF St. John’s Gospel
1In the
beginning was the Word: and the Word was with God: and the Word was God. 2 The
same was in the beginning with God. 3 All
things were made by him: and without him was made nothing that was made. 4 In him
was life: and the life was the light of men. 5 And
the light shines in darkness: and the darkness did not comprehend it.
6 There
was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 This man came for a witness, to give testimony
of the light, that all men might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but was to give testimony of
the light.
9 That
was the true light, which enlightens every man that comes into this world. 10 He
was in the world: and the world was made by him: and the world knew him not. 11 He came unto his own: and his own received him not.
12 But
as many as received him, he gave them power to be made the sons
of God,
to them that believe in his name. 13 Who
are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the
flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And
the Word was
made flesh and dwelt among us (and we saw his glory, the glory as it were of the only
begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Friday, June 15, 2012
Thursday, June 14, 2012
WR Moral Theology Course Outline
Course Outline
for Religion IV: Moral Theology
(PAREF Woodrose
School, SY 2012-2013)
I. Introduction: An overview of Moral
Theology (to give a general idea of what the course is all about with
emphasis on the right attitudes towards the subject matter. At the end of the
Introduction, the students should be able to explain what Moral Theology is all
about, enumerate the sources of Christian moral reflection, cite and
differentiate other systems of morality, appreciate the beauty of Christian
moral life and explain the right attitude towards the subject.)
A. What is Moral Theology?
B. What is Christian Morality?
C. Sources: Holy Scripture, Catechism
of the Catholic Church, Documents from
the Church’s Magisterium like Veritatis Splendor, Evangelium Vitae, etc.
D. Other systems of morality:
Consensus Morality, Cafeteria Morality, Psychological Rationalization,
Situation Ethics, Fundamental Option
E. The Right Attitudes towards Moral
Theology
Reference: Chapters 1 and 2 of Our Moral Life in Christ
II. Lesson 1: God
the Creator (At the end of the lesson, the students should
be able to explain why the correct belief in God and the right idea about man
are crucial in the uprightness of one's moral life. This lesson will include Creation
Theology, Theological Anthropology and an introduction to the Theology of the
Body)
A. Genesis chapters 1 and 2
B. Who is God?
C. The Order of Creation
D. The Creation of Man: "Male and
Female He created them."(Gen 1:6)
Reference: Chapter 2 of Our Moral Life in Christ, Genesis chapters 1-2; Video:
The God of Wonders
III. Lesson 2:
Man, Created in God's Image and Likeness (At the end of
the lesson, the students should be able to explain what it means to be a human
person, differentiate freedom from license, distinguish between human acts and
acts of man, enumerate the modifiers of the human acts, the sources of moral
acts and comprehend what the human conscience is and what it is not.)
A. The Human Person as God's Image:
Personalism
B. The Human Person as God's Likeness:
Purpose of Human Life
C. Human Rights
D. Human Freedom
E. Human Acts and its modifiers
F. Human Conscience
Reference: Our Moral Life in Christ, chapters 3 and 4; Video: The 9th
Day or Sophie Scholl
IV. Lesson 3: God
the Lawgiver (At the end of the lesson, the students should
be able to define what law is, enumerate the different kinds of law,
demonstrate the existence of natural law, and explain what the New Law is. In
this lesson, each one of the 10 commandments will be discussed.)
A. The Eternal Law of God
B. The Natural Law
C. The Decalogue
D. The New Law
Reference: Our Moral Life in Christ, chapters 5, 10-17
V. Lesson 4: Sin
and Conversion (At the end of the lesson, the students should
be able to explain what sin is, enumerate the different kinds of sin, explain
what occasions of sins are and discuss the means to apply to avoid sin).
A. The Genesis Account on the Fall of
Man
B. The Reality of Sin and the Kinds of
Sin
C. Occasions of Sin and Temptations
D. Guilt and Grace
Reference: Our Moral Life in Christ, chapter 7
VI. Lesson 5: Jesus
Christ and the New Law (At the end of the lesson,
the students should be able to explain why Jesus Christ is central in one's
moral life and what it means to be a Christian.)
A. The Protoevangelium: Genesis 2
B. Christ the Redeemer
C. Following Christ
Reference: Our Moral Life in Christ Chapter 8, Catechism of the Catholic
Church
VII: Lesson 6: The
Moral Teachings of the New Testament (At the end of
the lesson, the students should be able to point out the moral prescriptions in
the New Testament, explain each one of the 8 Beatitudes, and cite passages with
moral teachings in the Pauline epistles.)
A. St. Matthew Chapters 5,6,7: The
Beatitudes
B. The Moral Teachings of St. Paul
C. Other Moral Teachings in the
Catholic Epistles
Reference: New Testament
VIII: Lesson 7: The
Christian Vocation to Holiness and Apostolate (At the end of the lesson, the students should be able explain the
beginning, growth and development of Christian life and be inspired to aim for
personal holiness and do apostolate.)
A. The Beginning of Christian Life
B. The Sacraments of the Church
C. Prayer and Sacrifice
D. Personal Holiness
E. The Apostolic Mission of Christians
Reference: Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part IV
REFERENCE for the
course:
1. The Holy Bible
2. Catechsim of the Catholic Church
3. Our Moral Life in Christ
4. Veritatis Splendor
5. The Sources of Christian Ethics by
Servais Pinckaers, OP
Notes:
1. Each session
will have 3 distinct parts: the first 10 minutes will be spent on Gospel
reading and commentary, the next 10 minutes will be a group presentation on
some points of Veritatis splendour, the rest will be spent on the main subject
with lectures and seatworks.
2. A quiz will be
given after 3 chapters of the Gospel have been discussed, another quiz after 15
points of Veritatis splendor have been discussed, and long test covering the
first half of the main subject.
3. The class will
be brought to the chapel for the class confession every two weeks. The entire
period is spent to enable the students go to confession, pray the rosary, etc.
in the chapel.
4. Two long tests
will be given per term.
5. Introduction,
Lessons 1-2 and part of Lesson 3 will be covered during the 1st
term. Lessons 3-4 will be taken up in the Second Term; Lessons 5-7 in the third
term.
Fr.Roque Reyes
SY 2012-2013
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)