CHRISTIAN ETHICS In the Footsteps of Christ CLARIFICATION OF TERMS y ETHICS from the Gk.

word ethikos, which means character, & ethos, which means custom. y Custom means a more or less permanent moral behavior in accordance with the precepts of natural moral law which is universally known and common to all men. In other Religions y Even non-Christians who do not know the Gospel of Christ but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, & moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience, may achieve eternal salvation. - Vatican II, LG 16 y Whatever true, holy, and good could only come from one Divine Source. y Jesus remains the Way, the Truth, the Life to ALL men and women. Specificity of Christian Morality y In terms of Sources y In terms of Characteristics Sources of Christian Ethics y Sacred Scriptures y Church Teaching y The Normatively Human o Human Reason o Experience Jesus Our Model y The uniqueness of Jesus Christ: Fully Divine and truly human. y Christ s divinity assures the validity of his understanding and teaching regarding the meaning of humanity, and his humanity guarantees the possibility of our living in accordance with his teaching. Christian moral challenge y To be formed in the spirit of Christ s love Our Call to Love y Jesus and the Commands to Love o Love for God and neighbor  Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength . You

must love your neighbor as yourself. (Mk 12:29-31; Mt 22:37-40) o The Love we received from God  I give you a new commandment: love one another; just as I have loved you, you must love one another. By this love you have for one another, everyone will know that you are my disciples (Jn 13:34-35) The norm for loving shifts from self-love to God s love for us as revealed in and by Christ.

Characteristics of Christian Morality y Affects first the person and then the action. o Transforms both the inside and the outside. o Considers the profound attitudes of the person. y Requires not only just actions but also holiness. y Finds its beginning and end in love. And it is love the way Christ loves. Truths Presupposed in Ethics 1. The Existence of God God is the Creator of man and his (Supernatural) Ultimate End. 2. Immortality of the Soul the hope for eternal life and eternal rewards sustains man in his struggle against evil. 3. Dignity of the Human Person together with the rights and duties given to man to fulfill his destiny in the world. 4. Man s life on earth is temporal and temporary. Everything will come to pass. Importance of Ethics 1. As derived from its material and formal objects. 2. Man s most important concern is to find his ultimate purpose in life which is shown by Ethics. 3. Social life (human relations) is regulated by ethical moral principles. 4. Individuals who are not familiar with Christ and His teachings will have the opportunity to learn them. 5. Through Ethics one learns how to create a clean living with healthy lifestyle as well as to face daily challenges with confidence and trust in God. Division of Ethics 1. General Ethics deals with the nature of the human acts and their relation to morality. It focuses on the general principles of morality. 2. Special Ethics deals with the application of the general principles of morality to the particular actions of man in private and public.

NOTES FOUND ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF CHRISTIAN MORALITY 1) Philosophical principle: Action follows being. For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit; for each tree is known by its own fruit. The good man out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure produces evil; for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks (Lk 6:43-45) 2) Result of #1. Morality addresses every aspect of a person s existence. It will then influence the deepest thoughts and desires of the person. It is in the interior of a person that the moral life is forged. (see Mt 5:21-22, 2728) 3) Single acts are a result of attitudes. Some likes or dislikes, disposition to do good or evil, repeat themselves because the individual has formed certain habits through his past actions. Particular acts are important but it is necessary to analyze why they occur so frequently. 4) Christian morality is a POSITIVE morality that prescribes what a person, motivated by the love of God, ought to do. It can never be reduced to a merely NEGATIVE morality, motivated by a fear of punishment. Jesus moral preaching stresses doing the good more than avoiding evil. It is about the type of person one should be rather than a list of do s and don ts. For ex., It is not that the young and foolish virgins acted wrongly, but that they did not act wisely (Mt 25:1-3). In the parable of the talents the one who received only one talent was condemned because he refused to make use of the talent (Mt 25:14-30). See also Mt 25:31-46. 5) The moral program of the Christian is not a morality of the minimum, but of a maximum; that is, it requires not a decent or honorable existence, but a saintly life. Be perfect as your heavenly father is perfect (Mt 5:48). 6) In Jesus preaching there are concrete prohibitions, such as adultery (Mt 5:27), avarice (Mt 6:19-24), rash judgments (Mt 17:1-6), divorce (Mk 10:210), blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Mk 3:28-30), scandal to the innocent (Mt 18:1-5), etc. But the ethical norms in Jesus morality do not constitute a morality of rules, rather a morality that includes laws. These exist in order to guide man to the good life. 7) While it is true that Jesus preaching reflects God s habitual disposition of forgiveness and love, it is also a fact that punishment is often mentioned in the New Testament. In the teachings of Catholic theology, heaven and hell as real ends of human existence are two dogmas of the Church that correspond to the good or bad conduct of man during his life. 8) The Christian moral message endeavors to cultivate true freedom so that man will not fall into the trap of sin. For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery (Gal 5:1). 9) Man is at the same time a citizen of this world and the next. It cannot ignore the grave task of making a better world, according to God s will; and

at the same time it is aware that the present moral state affects the eternal life in the future. 10) The good of the moral life is the practice of love and not the fear of punishment. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and he who fears is not perfected in love (1Jn 4:18). In this fashion, the acts of the believer, conforming to the moral message preached by Christ Jesus, lead to trust and hope in life. This attitude is full of expectation and is void of any type of pessimism.