1.2.

1 Nature of humanity and condition

“God created man a rational being, conferring on him the dignity of a person who can initiate and
control his own actions” — Catechism of the Catholic Church 1730

Nature of humanity
● Dignity
● Free will
● Scaredness 神聖性
● Self-knowledge & rationality
Rationality & ● Human beings have self-knowledge, i.e. knowing who they are and why
Self-knowledge they are here
● Human beings are rational, i.e. the ability to think, to understand and to
reason — make judgements based on this reason
● This helps human to weigh up actions and consequences, using their
conscience and experience to guide them
● ”For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth came knowledge and
understanding”

Free will Human has free will, i.e. the ability to make moral decisions
● It is God-given, and unique to human beings
● Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act,to
do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own
responsibility
● The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes (CCC1733)
● There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just
● The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of freedom and leads to
“the slavery of sin.” (CCC1733)

Moral responsibility:
● Freedom makes man responsible for his acts to the extent that they are
voluntary

Sacredness ● Human are unique and holy as they are created in the image of God
- “Let us make men in our image, after our likeness”

● “Image” and “likeness” show that human beings reflect God; in every
human being, God is visible! E.g.
- To make free and rational decision
- to love
- to be willing to serve others

● Human beings shared God’s properties, excluding his benevolence,

which prompt us to make a good moral decision and developed our
conscience

Dignity Worth of respect

● have fundamental human rights — freedom of expression, a right to
food, shelter and healthcare
Human relationship with creation
● Dominion — power and authority over the earth
● Stewardship — looks after something so it can be passed onto the next generation
Dominion Power and authority over the earth
● God gives human power and control over the creatures
- “Your descendants will live all over the earth and bring it under their
control. I am putting you in charge of the fish, the birds, and all the
wild animals”
- e.g. we can try to control nature, inventing technology and changing
our surroundings

Stewardship ● Human are called to be “stewards”, which means to look after the
planet, so that everyone can enjoy creation
● God: (Bible) the right to rule gives man responsibilities

● Human beings should protect the creation to “Be fruitful and multiply,
and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the
sea and over the birds of the air .. upon the earth”

Catholics and Using the aEarth’s resources at a rate at which they can be replaced.
Sustainability ● replace the damage already done
● reduce harmful practices like pollution, deforestation etc
● promote renewable energy sources
What are the Christians
differing views ● Catholic respected the intrinsic balance of creation
on human’s ● Not engaged in reckless exploitation of the air, water or land of the
relationship with natural world
creations? ● Work on conservation and sustainability of resources
● Many non-Catholic Christians have similar attitude
● More teachings from the bible the supported stewardship:

Sources:
● 2nd Greatest commandment, Jesus “Love your neighbour as you love
yourselves”
● Pope Benedict XVI “The environment is God’s gift to everyone, and in
our use of it we have responsibility..”
● Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) “Man’s dominion…is
limited by concern for the quality of life of his neighbour…” (CCC
2415)
● Pope Francis “the world is a gift that we have freely received and must
share with others” (Laudato Si, 159)

Humanists who are atheist or agnostics

● Take care the earth for the belief of Utilitarianism (功利主義) a theory
that advocates actions that foster happiness/ pleasure and oppose
actions that cause unhappiness/ harm
- To ensure the happiness of the greatest amount of people and the
future of humanity
● Do not believe in afterlife or any purpose to the universe

Non-religious people
● Some people believe that the nature of humanity is to get on with life,
making life as enjoyable as possible for their family and community in
the present
● Some want to preserve the environment for the future

Other religious views on the responsibility for the planet

● The teaching of ahimsa (不傷害) in religions, like Buddhism,
Hinduism, suggests that people should show respect and care for all
living things; and avoidance of violence toward others
● Some believe they have a responsibility to leave the planet in a good
state for their children
● Some link it with the belief of karma (因果報應): any harms caused
(e.g. to the environment) will lead to harms to their own lives