Splendor of Truth - The Moral Life THE MORAL LIFE Questions and Answers on the Tenets of Our Faith by SCTJM The Vocation of Man... What is the vocation of man? What and who are we called to be? Does God want us to be happy? Are all people meant to become holy and perfect, or are only the Saints meant to be holy? Conscience, Virtues, Passions, and Sin... If I truly have free will, why does God give me rules? Doesn’t being free mean I can do anything I want? If I am not absolutely free, for what do I have the freedom? What did Jesus mean when He said “the truth will set you free”? What is the meaning of being “a slave to sin.”? What is the relationship between freedom and responsibility? What makes an act morally good or morally evil? Is it allowable to do evil if you believe a good will come from it? Are our passions good or bad? What is our conscience? What are our responsibilities regarding our consciences? Should we always act according to our conscience? If we are supposed to always follow our conscience, what happens if our conscience is uninformed and we make a bad choice? Are we morally responsible? What are the virtues and why are they important? What is sin? What is the difference between mortal and venial sin? What is vice? What are the “seven deadly sins”, and why are they called “deadly”? If I sin, and no one else ever knows about it except me, does it affect anyone besides myself? Does it necessarily hurt even me? Community and Social Justice... Is man in his essence necessarily called to live in community? Are people required to submit to the authorities of their government, employers, etc.? What does it mean to “seek the common good of all,” and how does the Church expect us to live this out in our daily lives? Am I morally required to participate in promoting the common good and/or taking an active part in public life? Can the Church mandate who I vote for? Doesn’t “separation of Church and state” require me to keep my religious beliefs out of politics? Especially concerning the matters of abortion and euthanasia, are Catholics allowed to vote for laws that will decrease abortions and euthanasia, but not get rid of it? What are our social duties towards one another? Moral Law... Over what laws does the Church have authority? On which sectors of human affairs are they allowed to make judgments? What are the obligatory precepts to which all Catholics must adhere? Is there really such thing as absolute moral laws that apply for all men? Don’t we have the ability to decide for ourselves what is right and what is wrong? How do we know of what absolute moral law really consists? Why does God give us so many rules to follow? It seems as though He does not want us to enjoy ourselves. How can you say that He gives the gift before He gives the rules? Isn’t that how heaven works: we do good works and then we go to heaven? Why do religions have different laws? Is it possible that more than one may be proclaiming the truth? How do we know what real right and wrong is, what God’s laws really are? In other words, which religion, if any, has the right idea about God? Did Jesus abolish the Law of the Old Testament when He came? Do we have to still follow its precepts? If someone else is not Catholic, how can I require him to follow the same moral precepts as myself if he has his own set of beliefs about what is right and wrong? Law, Grace, and Justification... Is conversion a one time event, or a continuous process? What do we mean when we say that we have been justified? What is the difference between justification and righteousness? Once a person has been saved, or justified before God, will he go to Heaven no matter what? Can we ever be certain that we will go to Heaven? When God justifies us, do we really change and actually become holy? Or does God simply look at us through the Person of Jesus and see us as holy, but in fact we are not? Does the act of justification require our participation, or is it solely the work of God? What is grace? Are there different types of grace? What is merit? Return to main page www.piercedhearts.org This page is the work of the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary
Splendor of Truth - The Moral Life
THE MORAL LIFE
Questions and Answers on the Tenets of Our Faith by SCTJM
The Vocation of Man... What is the vocation of man? What and who are we called to be? Does God want us to be happy? Are all people meant to become holy and perfect, or are only the Saints meant to be holy? Conscience, Virtues, Passions, and Sin... If I truly have free will, why does God give me rules? Doesn’t being free mean I can do anything I want? If I am not absolutely free, for what do I have the freedom? What did Jesus mean when He said “the truth will set you free”? What is the meaning of being “a slave to sin.”? What is the relationship between freedom and responsibility? What makes an act morally good or morally evil? Is it allowable to do evil if you believe a good will come from it? Are our passions good or bad? What is our conscience? What are our responsibilities regarding our consciences? Should we always act according to our conscience? If we are supposed to always follow our conscience, what happens if our conscience is uninformed and we make a bad choice? Are we morally responsible? What are the virtues and why are they important? What is sin? What is the difference between mortal and venial sin? What is vice? What are the “seven deadly sins”, and why are they called “deadly”? If I sin, and no one else ever knows about it except me, does it affect anyone besides myself? Does it necessarily hurt even me? Community and Social Justice... Is man in his essence necessarily called to live in community? Are people required to submit to the authorities of their government, employers, etc.? What does it mean to “seek the common good of all,” and how does the Church expect us to live this out in our daily lives? Am I morally required to participate in promoting the common good and/or taking an active part in public life? Can the Church mandate who I vote for? Doesn’t “separation of Church and state” require me to keep my religious beliefs out of politics? Especially concerning the matters of abortion and euthanasia, are Catholics allowed to vote for laws that will decrease abortions and euthanasia, but not get rid of it? What are our social duties towards one another? Moral Law... Over what laws does the Church have authority? On which sectors of human affairs are they allowed to make judgments? What are the obligatory precepts to which all Catholics must adhere? Is there really such thing as absolute moral laws that apply for all men? Don’t we have the ability to decide for ourselves what is right and what is wrong? How do we know of what absolute moral law really consists? Why does God give us so many rules to follow? It seems as though He does not want us to enjoy ourselves. How can you say that He gives the gift before He gives the rules? Isn’t that how heaven works: we do good works and then we go to heaven? Why do religions have different laws? Is it possible that more than one may be proclaiming the truth? How do we know what real right and wrong is, what God’s laws really are? In other words, which religion, if any, has the right idea about God? Did Jesus abolish the Law of the Old Testament when He came? Do we have to still follow its precepts? If someone else is not Catholic, how can I require him to follow the same moral precepts as myself if he has his own set of beliefs about what is right and wrong? Law, Grace, and Justification... Is conversion a one time event, or a continuous process? What do we mean when we say that we have been justified? What is the difference between justification and righteousness? Once a person has been saved, or justified before God, will he go to Heaven no matter what? Can we ever be certain that we will go to Heaven? When God justifies us, do we really change and actually become holy? Or does God simply look at us through the Person of Jesus and see us as holy, but in fact we are not? Does the act of justification require our participation, or is it solely the work of God? What is grace? Are there different types of grace? What is merit?
