Moral Theology Final Exam Vocabulary Quizlet 2026

Infinite

Endless; without limit.

Gluttony

The habit of overusing food, drink, or pleasure beyond what is reasonable.

Inadvertence

When a person fails to notice something or an accident happens

Conjugal

Related to the obligations, responsibilities, and interactions between a husband and wife.

Finite

Limited; having an end

Sloth

The habit of avoiding what is right because it feels difficult or demanding.

Duress

Pressure, threat, or force that makes a choice less free.

Marital Act

The sexual union between husband and wife

Beatitude

The infinite unending joy of God in eternity

Wrath

The habit of letting anger become hatred, revenge, or a desire to harm.

Conscience

A judgment of reason by which a person recognizes what is right or wrong in a concrete situation.

Nuptial Meaning

Related to marriage; in theology, the body as a sign of self-gift.

Christian Anthropology

The study of the human person from the Christian perspective

Envy

The habit of being sad or resentful at another person's good.

Well Formed Conscience

A conscience trained to know and judge from truth.

Unitive

The bonding aspect meant to unite spouse in the marital act

Summa Theologica

St. Thomas Aquinas's systematic study of the Catholic faith, uniting theology and philosophy.

License

Doing whatever I want; freedom from laws

Malformed Conscience

An erroneous conscience that is not judging from what is actually true.

Procreative

The aspect of the marital act by which the couple remains open to new life.

Apparent Good

Something that seems good but actually leads away from human flourishing

Freedom

the ability to choose and do what is truly good, so we can become the kind of people God made us to be (for excellence)

Means

The action or method chosen to reach a goal

Humane Vitae

Paul VI's encyclical on the transmission of human life

Actual Good

Something truly good for us because it leads to fulfillment and human flourishing.

Basic Good

A fundamental aspect of human existence that all people desire; what makes life objectively meaningful and contributes to flourishing.

Ends

The goal or purpose; what the person is trying to achieve.

Contraception

An action used to block the procreative meaning of sex by preventing pregnancy.

Powers of the Soul

The intellect, will, and passions meant to work together for real goods

Teleology

Reasoning from purpose and design: asking what something is for in order to understand how it flourishes.

Moral Act

A human action freely chosen with knowledge, intention, and responsibility.

Ovulation

The release of an egg from the ovary during a woman's cycle.

Intellect

The power that sees truth, judges what is good, and gives information to the will.

Common Good

The social conditions that allow people to reach their fulfillment.

Object

What the person understands himself to be doing in a moral act

NFP

Natural Family Planning: tracking fertility and choosing to use or abstain from the fertile window for serious reasons.

Will

The power that chooses and commands action under the guidance of the intellect.

Eternal Law

God's overarching master plan for the world: the pattern, order, and intelligibility of reality.

Intention

The goal or motive of an action; what the person ultimately hopes to acheive

Estrogen and Progesterone

Female reproductive hormones that regulate her cycle and signs of fertility

Passions

The power that moves us toward what appears good and away from what appears harmful through natural emotions and desires.

Natural Law

Participation in Eternal Law by using reason to understand what is written on the heart.

Circumstances

The situational factors that can increase or decrease the moral responsibility if an action

Testosterone

A male sex hormone connected to male sexual development and fertility.

Virtue

A good habit that helps us choose the good, live well, and grow in holiness.

Revealed Law

God's law made known through revelation: the 10 commandments & teaching of Jesus Christ

Double Effect

A principle for judging an action that has two outcomes.

Infertile

Not fertile; unable to conceive or father a child

Cardinal Virtues

The four "hinge" virtues from which other acquired virtues stem: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance.

Civil Law

Haman Laws made by the government to regulate behavior within society.

Consequentialism

The error of judging whether an action is right or wrong mainly by its results, rather than by the action itself

IVF

In vitro fertilization: creating human embryos outside the marital act in a laboratory setting.

Temperance

The habit that trains the Passions to enjoy pleasure in a balanced and reasonable way.

Just Law

A human law that aligns with God's law and promotes the common good.

Intrinsically Good

Good in itself; worth choosing for its own sake rather than only because of what it gets us.

IUI

Intrauterine insemination: placing sperm into the woman's reproductive tract to assist conception.

Fortitude

The habit that trains the Will to do and endure what is right in the face of fear, pain, or difficulty

Unjust Law

A law that fails to align with God's law and promote the common good.

Intrinsically Disordered

Wrong by the action itself because the choice goes against the true good of the human person.

Surrogacy

When a woman carries and gives birth to a child for another person or couple to raise.

Justice

The habit that trains the Will to give God and others what they are due.

Truth

The conformity of the mind to reality

Storge

Affection or family-like love, often rooted in familiarity and belonging.

Dopamine

A brain chemical connected with pleasure, reward, and reinforcement of habits.

Prudence

The habit that trains the Intellect to judge rightly what should be done here and now.

Objective Truth

Truth that is real whether or not anyone knows it, believes it, or feels differently about it.

Philia

Friendship love: the love of companions who share life and seek the good together.

Desensitized

Becoming less responsive to something after repeated exposure.

Theological Virtue

Supernatural habits, infused by God, that enable us to believe in Him, hope in Him, and love Him

Subjective Truth

True for the person because it describes their own experience or opinion.

Eros

Love of Desire: is drawn toward beauty and union.

Hypersensitized

Becoming overly reactive or more intensely triggered after repeated exposure.

Faith

The supernatural habit that helps us believe in God and accept what He has revealed.

Moral Relativism

The idea that right and wrong are decided by the individual or culture rather than measured by truth.

Agape

Self-giving love that wills the good of the other.

Expendable

Treated as disposable or able to be used and discarded.

Hope

The supernatural habit helps us trust God's promises and desire eternal life with Him.

Sin

A deliberate offense against God's law.

Complementarity

The way man and woman are designed to fit together bodily and personally in marriage.

Commodity

Something treated as a product to be bought, sold, used, or consumed.

Charity

The supernatural habit that helps us love God above all things and love our neighbor for God's sake.

Mortal Sin

Serious sin that destroys sanctifying grace and separates the person from God.

Fornication

Sexual intercourse between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman.

Human Dignity

The built-in worth of every human person, simply because they are human, not because of what they can do, produce, or offer.

Vice

A bad habit or moral weakness formed by repeated sin, that pulls us away from reason and the good.

Grave Matter

What makes an action seriously wrong, not just minor.

Cohabitation

When an unmarried couple lives together as though they are married

Euthanasia

Intentionally causing death to eliminate suffering.

Capital Vices

The main bad habits that corrupt the soul and lead to other sins.

Venial Sin

Less serious sin that weakens us and makes us more likely to commit serious sin.

Oxytocin

A bonding chemical associated with attachment and trust, especially in women

Redemptive Suffering

Suffering united to Christ and offered with love that gives it spiritual meaning.

Pride

The habit of putting ourselves above truth, others, or God.

Culpable

Morally responsible or blameworthy for a wrong action.

Vasopressin

A bonding chemical associated with attachment especially in men

Ordinary Treatment

Care that is morally required because it offers reasonable hope of benefit without excessive burden.

Greed

The habit of loving money or possessions too much and without proper limits.

Vincible Ignorance

Lacking knowledge through a person's own fault

Covenant

A sacred, permanent exchange of persons

Extraordinary Treatment

Treatment that is not morally required because it is excessively burdensome or offers little reasonable hope of benefit.