Freedom and Conscience

Freedom and Conscience

1. Man

   • is free
   • is a moral being
   • is responsible for his own acts

2. True Love

   • a free gift of oneself
   • leads to self-mastery

3. Conscience

   • The practical application of the objective moral law to concrete circumstances
     • Can be wrong or deformed.
       • We have a duty to form our conscience
         • How?
           • Practice frequent and honest self-examination
           • frequent the reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation
             • 2 elements of sincere repentance: Contrition (sorrow for sin) and purpose of amendment (the intention to avoid sin in the future)
             • There is little point in acknowledging our sins if we don't intend to eliminate them because they'll just come back! We have to be truthful and sincere to ourselves
             • Spiritual direction is the counsel of some wise person (best to be a priest) who can advise us on the progress of our spiritual lives and who will challenge us to live the steps and direct us
           • When conscience is repeatedly ignored, our conscience becomes numb to wrongdoing and ceases to function as it should
           • We are all called by Baptism to become a saint: fullness of conscience includes a clear awareness of this
     • applies moral truth, does not create it. NOT an infallible guide and can be ignorant or blinded. It fails when objective moral law is ignored or misunderstood
   • the reality of it is witnessed in Sacred Scriptures and through human experience
   • everyone has a duty and a right to exercise our moral conscience

4. Theology Quiz

   • Love
     • If love is taken or required it is no longer free
     • Love is self-giving
       • this is often hard, it may require overcominng laziness, selfishness, sensuality, stinginess, etc.
   • The Moral Act
     • Freedom
       • doing not whatever you want but doing what you ought
     • Good moral actions make us freer.
     • Bad moral actions make us a slave to sin
     • Every Human...
       • faces moral decisions and is morally responsible for his or her own moral acts
     • A moral act involves:
       • An action, that results from a deliberate choice between good and evil, or degrees of goodness
         • involves both deliberation and choice
         • has moral content
         • a personal act, involving the intellect and will, never leaving us the same, affecting the character of the person who acts
   • Freedom and Responsibility
     • The more knowledge one possess, the more morally responsible one is for her/his own actions.
     • There is no such thing as a freedom that is independent of responsibility
     • The origin of moral evil is the free decision of a man to reject God's moral law
     • The factors that lesson or remove moral fault:
       • Habit
         • Acting in an almost involuntary way because of having done the same thing rrepeatedly
           • A new lie told by someone who is a pathological liar
       • Inordinate attachment
         • Desire for something that goes beyond reason
           • An alcoholic who continues drinking even though he wants to stop
       • Inadvertence
         • Not noticing something
           • Speeding because you don't see the speed limit sign changing the speed limit
       • Ignorance
         • Not knowing something
           • A person who has never heard of the Christian messaige
       • Fear
         • Being afraid of something
           • Lying about cheating for fear of being expelled
       • Duress
         • Being put under force
           • Being forced to drive a get-away car at gun point
   • Grace
     • The Effects of the grace we receive through the sacraments
       • through the grace of God, the person is enlightened about how to fellow Christ and strengthened to perform actions that fulfill God's plan
     • Does grace diminish freedom?
       • We align ourselves with God's will by obeying the prompting of grace,and we grow in inner freedom and confidence
     • How do we align our will with God's will?
       • Grace does not diminish freedom, it helps us to see the truth more clearly and gives us strength to conquer our passions so we can gradually align our will with God's will
     • We must continually seek God's grace, continually respons to the actual graces God is working within us, inclining us to turn to him and do good.
   • The Prodigal Son Story Characters
     • Father: God. Forgiving, loving
     • Youngest son: sinners who repent
     • Older son: jealousy, ego, persons who try to be righteous but end up sinning by being jealous of God's love for the sinners