RE LESSON 1 pt.2

HUMAN INTELLECT and FREE WILL

CATHOLIC FAITH AND JUSTICE includes:

HUMAN INTELLECT

Enables us to recognize and understand God's command to do good and avoid evil

FREE WILL

Enables us to choose good with the guidance of our conscience and to obey God's law of love

1. Any system determined entirely by economic factors is contrary to the human person.

2. Any theory which makes profit the exclusive and ultimate end of economic activity is morally unacceptable. It produces perverse effects and leads to conflicts.

3. Any system which subordinates the basic rights of persons and groups to the collective organization is contrary to human dignity. Reducing persons to merely means of profit is enslavement.

Three Doctrines:

Cardinal Levada's glossary

In ____, charity (or love) is defined as, "The theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God."

charity (or love)

The theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God.

Paul

___ tells us that love is the greatest of the theological virtues: "So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love"

love or charity

defines as any strong affection, closeness, or devotion to things or persons

storge, philia, eros, and agape

The Greeks distinguished four types of love:

Storge

familial love

Storge

is a word for the bond that exists between one who loves and persons, animals, and the things that surround him

Storge

It is compatible with quite a bit of taken-for-grantedness or even of hatred at times.

Philia

pertains to friends

Philia

freely chosen because of mutual compatibility and common values.

Eros

is passion, not only of a sexual nature, but also of an aesthetic or spiritual nature, for what is conceived of as supremely beautiful and desirable

Agape

love is manifested when one person has much to give to another needier

Agape

It is generous self-donation without concern for reward.

Tower of Babel

God created the world as something good in itself. But man fell away from God, deciding against God's love and bringing evil into the world. The Bible tells about this in the story of the first sin and fall of Adam and Eve. Human beings – the story about the ___ explains – wanted to be like God

catholic social teaching

Is the officially proclaimed teaching of the Catholic Church on social, cultural, political and economic issues.

catholic social teaching

It generally comes in the form of social encyclicals which were developed in the late 19th century.

catholic social teaching

It. is an evolving body of prophetic thinking that continues to apply truthful Christian practice in ever-changing contexts

Enkyklios

Encyclical in Greek is called

circular or general

Enkyklios means

encyclical

is a circular or letter of the pope to a group of bishops or to all the bishops of the world, clergy and laity on the matters of faith and morals.

encyclical

it shares etymological origins with “encyclopedia’ which means general knowledge

• Divine Revelation

• Natural Law

• Human Wisdom & Social Sciences

The Church draws its social doctrine from three foundational pillars:

Divine Revelation

Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition as interpreted by the Magisterium.

Natural Law

Moral truths accessible to human reason, written on the human heart by God

Human Wisdom & Social Sciences

Empirical observation, history, and scientific analysis evaluated through a moral lens.

• Principles for Reflection - Truth

• Criteria for Judgment - See & Judge

• Directives for Action - Act

THE THREEFOLD STRUCTURE OF ACTION Stages and Purpose:

Principles for Reflection

Provides enduring moral constants regarding human dignity and social order.

Criteria for Judgment

Evaluates existing political, economic, and cultural systems against Gospel values

Directives for Action

Offers practical moral guidance for individuals and communities to build a more just society

THE HUMAN PERSON

serves as the central pillar of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) in The Social Agenda of the Catholic Church.

Human Dignity

___ is not granted by the state, society, or economic utility; it is endowed directly by God (Imago Dei).

Body and Soul Unity

The human person is neither a pure mind nor a mere physical machine, but a unified composite of body and spiritual soul with an eternal destiny

• Intellect and Free Will

• Social Nature

• Moral Agency

CORE ATTRIBUTES OF THE HUMAN PERSON

Intellect and Free Will

Humans possess reason to seek truth and free will to choose the good, making moral responsibility possible.

Social Nature

Human beings are inherently communal. Man cannot find fulfillment or realize his potential except in relationship with others ("It is not good for man to be alone")