Prayer

FREEDOM OF THE
HUMAN PERSON
FREEDOM
 FREEDOM
- The power and ability to
“choose, initiate, and
control” our own actions.
 Freedom according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):
1. 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.

Who should be
blamed for eating
the forbidden fruit?
 Freedom according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):
2. Freedom is a force for growth and maturity in
truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when
directed toward God, our beatitude
(beatification/becoming holy).
 Freedom according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):

3. Freedom is directed in the service of what is good and

just. The more one does what is good, the freer one
becomes. The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of
freedom and leads to "the slavery of sin.
 Freedom according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):

4.
Freedom makes human persons responsible for
his/her acts to the extent that they are voluntary.
 Freedom according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC):

5. Freedom is exercised in relationships between human

beings. Every human person, created in the image of God,
has the natural right to be recognized as a free and
responsible being.
 HUMAN FREEDOM
It gives us the POWER to choose
between “good” or “evil”, to grow in
holiness or not.
ABSOLUTE FREEDOM
AND
AUTHENTIC FREEDOM
 ABSOLUTE FREEDOM
- doing what we can or want without
thinking of the good of others.
 AUTHENTIC FREEDOM
-It is the POWER “to do the good”
(CCC 1740)
- of divine origin: it is being of God,
for God and with God (CCC 1731)
- A SHARED FREEDOM with others
in the community.
 AUTHENTIC FREEDOM
- Freedom from – INTERIOR OBSTACLES
& EXTERNAL FORCES (fear, pain,
guilt, harassment, threats, insecurity, rejection, etc.) Ex.
Moving on, forgiving/accepting yourself

- Freedom for – growing as full persons

and children of God (CFC 697) (love, peace,
harmony, justice, friendship, etc.)
Ex. Freedom to Love
Directions: Meet your group and discuss about your assigned topic. Fill the table with the information agreed
upon by the whole group. Use bullet/s when filling up the table. Output shall be written in a ½ sheet of paper per
group and on the board for presentation. Select 1 representative to present your output before the end of the
activity.
FREEDOM ADVANTAGES WHEN DISADVANTAGES WHEN
FREEDOM IS USED FREEDOM IS NOT USED
PROPERLY PROPERLY
1. In terms of speech, expression
and choice of words

2. In terms of clothing fashion and

style

3. In terms of people we
communicate and spend time with

4. In terms of choosing the food we

eat

5. In terms of how time is utilized

End of part 1
Exercising Prudence in
Human Freedom
 Prudence
- The ability to look at a concrete situation
and know what ought to be done.
- The ability to make the right judgements.
 How Prudence in Human
freedom works?
- First, know what the goods of human nature
are and work towards but never against
them.
- The ability to make the
right judgements.
 Steps in a Prudential Act
1. Deliberation the stage where we gather
relevant information, starting with
considering moral principles.
 Steps in a Prudential Act
2. Judgement. We must weigh all the
evidence fairly, and figure out the best
course of action.
- This separates relevant from irrelevant
information
Failure to make judgement is called
indecision. Procrastination, beating
around the bush, and fiddling around are
some ways of expressing this common vice.
 Steps in a Prudential Act
3. Execution. Once we judge the right
thing to do, we have to act!
- You so not have the virtue of prudence
until you actually do what you have judge
to be right.
Otherwise Failure to execute and carry
out what you believe is proper based on
your judgement is called irresoluteness.
HUMAN ACTS
AND
ACTS OF MAN
 HUMAN ACTS
- Acts that we perform KNOWINGLY and FREELY
which are either ethical or unethical, but are not
morally indifferent/uninvolved.

- HUMAN ACTS are actions of a person emanating

from a full and deliberate knowledge of his/her
intellect and will and therefore, has the capacity
to discern his/her actions.
HUMAN ACTS
Examples:
- Telling the truth
- Caring for the sick
- Fulfilling a promise
- Forgiving a person’s fault
- Murder
- stealing
 ACTS OF MAN
- ACTS OF MAN are performed with the absence of
intellect and will and do not concern the morals.
- Actions that are naturally performed which are
morally indifferent (or neutral) because they are
neither ethical nor unethical
- However, Acts of Man become a Human Act when
directed by the will.
 ACTS OF MAN could be
- They are natural-voluntary like: sleeping,
breathing, eating, taking a bath,
sneezing, shouting because of fright
- They are natural-involuntary like: blinking of
the eyes, beating of the heart.
SOME NATURAL-VOLUNTARY ACTS are
performed outside their natural purpose.
Examples:
- sleeping on duty/post
- eating during class hours
- throwing of garbages anywhere
- sitting leisurely while classes are
going on