Cfe 102: Christian Morality in Our Times: Course Number: Course Description

CFE 102: CHRISTIAN MORALITY IN OUR TIMES
COURSE CONTENT
Course Number: CFE 102
Course Description
The course introduces the students to the main themes of Christian Morality. It
searches more deeply, in the light of Christian faith, for the meaning in God’s design
for humankind and creation of the plurality of moral issues and concerns with which
we (humankind/Christians) are surrounded most especially in the contemporary time.
Christian Morality asks what life is and seeks, in the light of Christian faith, to
interpret the basic goal or direction of humankind. It studies the relationship
between revelation and faith, grace and sin and faith and salvation. Christian
Morality studies the various paradigm-shifts in the context of the history of salvation
and in their relationship to the mystery of Jesus Christ and the Christian Church.
COURSE OUTPUT:
1. REACTION PAPERS OR REFLECTION PAPERS
(They are given during Classroom-mode)
2. POWER POINT PRESENTATION ON SPECIAL MORAL

TOPICS/ISSUES
(Topics to be agreed upon and approved by the Faculty; Written output to
be determined by the faculty)
3. ESSAYS
(Personal insights)
4. Written examinations, homework/assignment, activities and quizzes
NOTE: Submission of paper outputs to be determined by the Faculty in consultation

with students.
PERFORMANCE STANDARD
 Case study per periodical
 Case study by group
 Clippings/actual reliable sources
 Rubrics patterned from chapter 1
PRELIMS
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
It is well known that the Philippines has continued to be one of the two Christian
nations in Asia. This religious setting was a tremendous force in shaping the country
and is especially manifested in the government and private sectors. However, it is also
widely known that our country is faced with injustice, political problems, and a
dwindling sense of morality. A common form of injustice faced by many Filipinos is
poverty.
we have a crisis of values which, in highly developed societies in particular, assumes

the form, often exalted by the media, of subjectivism, moral relativism and nihilism.
(CONGREGATION FOR CATHOLIC EDUCATION (for Seminaries and
Educational Institutions) THE CATHOLIC SCHOOL ON THE THRESHOLD OF
THE THIRD MILLENNIUM)
In the second story of creation in Genesis 2:15, we read: “The Lord God then took the
man and settled him in the garden of Eden, to cultivate and care for it.” The verse
fits within the creation story that has a continuing theme of God's giving order to His
creation. Man, in this verse, is called to cultivate and care for the garden of Eden,
not to possess it indiscriminately. Though cultivating and caring infer dominion, still
it is not ownership that the verse points at, rather, stewardship. This verse reminds us
on what man's place in creation should be.
Human beings have, therefore, become confused, almost to the point of forgetting,
their proper place in creation. This confusion has given way to the materialistic
consciousness of humanity. Pope Benedict resonates this kind of predicament as the
crisis of modern consciousness: “The obscuring of faith in creation, which eventually
led to its almost complete disappearance, is closely connected with the “spirit of
modernity.” It is a fundamental part of what constitutes modernity. To go straight to
the point: the foundations of modernity are the reason for the disappearance of
“creation” from the horizons of historically influential thought. Thus our subject leads
to the very center of the drama of modernity and to the core of the present crisis – the
crisis of the modern consciousness.”
This course is designed for the freshmen CICM college students in their search for the
meaning of life in God, in and through Christ, the Way of Life and the Truth. This
course enables them to know what the Christian Community (Church) professes,
celebrates, lives and prays in her daily life, which is in agreement with the call of the
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and at the same time, the
vision of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCP II), of a renewed
integral evangelization which includes renewed catechesis, renewed worship, and
renewed apostolate.
TOPIC INTRODUCTION
Present-day phenomena – scientific and technological milestones, bursting talents and
diverse skills, globalized markets, surging democracies and willful exuberant voices –
have painted a roller coaster ride to the contemporary milieu of every man and woman.
It is observed that in the contemporary period, “Reason is enthroned while faith or
religion is dethroned. Reason and its power are put at the center while faith and
religion are at the margins.” Religion and faith have become ‘commodities’ that are to
be taken, but only when they are needed.
Bernard Haring, has insisted, throughout his writings and over many years, that
Christian life must be understood as a response to God’s self-offer in Christ and to
God’s invitation to a relationship. One factor encouraging a return to virtue ethics, or
at least to the rhetoric of virtue, is the widespread perception that our society is in
moral crisis. This presents the challenge to translate the Christian faith into action. It
gives a clearer view of the dignity of the human person, being the agent of morality. It
also guides the students to a better understanding of the principles of morality. This
would lead them to a deeper insight on the Ten Commandments, culminating on
Christ’s Commandment of Love and the Beatitudes. This chapter concludes with the
precepts of the Church and a synthesis of the Catholic Social Teachings. All of these
are excellent bases of Christian behavior and a way of life, a life of mission.
I. CHRISTIAN MORALITY: BASIC ASSUMPTIONS

 ETHICS - a theoretical task that involves careful reflection on the nature of a
human person. Based on this reflection, one derives the normative principles
which govern one’s relationship with others, the environment, and God. The
usual question we ask in Ethics is: What are the unchanging principles that guide
me in determining good from bad, right from wrong?
 MORALITY – refers to the practical application of ethical principles in
determining good moral behavior. The questions we ask:What should I do in
this situation? Do I have the right to do this? Am I willing to be accountable for
the consequences of my action?
A. ETYMOLOGICAL MEANING
- LATIN WORD: MOS/MORES (CUSTOM/CHARACTER)
B. DESCRIPTIVE MORALITY
- THE STUDY OF MORAL BEHAVIOR OR CONDUCT OF MAN PUT
FORWARD BY A SOCIETY AND INSOFAR AS THESE PRINCIPLES ARE
KNOWN BY REASON
POINTS OUT THE WAY TO RIGHT LIVING AND COMPELS MAN TO

FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS TO HIS/HER ULTIMATE DESTINY
MORALITY DEALS WITH THE PROBLEMS
1. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF HUMAN LIFE?
2. WHERE ARE WE GOING?
3. WHAT IS OUR DESTINY AND WHAT IS THE WAY TO ATTAIN IT?
C Our world at present is experiencing a fundamental crisis: A crisis in global

O economy, global ecology, and global politics. The lack of a grand vision, the tangle
N of unresolved problems, political paralysis, mediocre political leadership with little
T insight or foresight, and in general too little sense for the commonwealth are seen
E everywhere. Our present-day experience of global crisis can be best characterized
X as:
T Humans have become deaf and blind and insensitive to the physical,
ethical and religious degradation and desecration of the Earth that the
anthropocentrism or more specifically, the androcentrism of
contemporary cultures and religions have created. Likewise, human
have been re-cast into techno-sapiens that favor much of the
technological advances at the expense of the homo sapiens and the
natural world. The Earth is no longer a source of calm and peace, no
longer a pure promise of goodness and happiness.
Hans Kung claims that the agony is so pervasive and urgent that we are compelled
to name its manifestations so that the depth of this pain may be made clear. Peace
eludes us – the planet is being destroyed – neighbors live in fear – women and
men are estranged from each other – children die! This is a situation that pushes
people to the margins. This crisis should bring us back to our sense. If this is
done, there is a chance that our sense of the holy can be saved. We need a new
worldview, a worldview that emphasizes the integrity of creation. By this we
mean, the value of all creatures in and for themselves, for one another, and for God,
and their interconnectedness in a diverse whole that has unique value for God,
together constitute the integrity of creation. To achieve this goal, confidence in
the power of science and technology or human power be replaced, if not tempered,
by confidence in the God of biblical tradition. The human vocation to be God’s
co-creators must be relaunched in order for a habitable world to emerge.
I A. Human Person as a Moral Agent
N
…Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our
S
likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of
P the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over
I every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” So God created humankind in his
R image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.
E God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the
D earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds
of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth. (Genesis 1:26-28)
W
O An interpretation of one story on creation tells us that at the summit of creation
R stand man and woman, made in God’s image. The Bible vigorously, affirms the
D sacredness or dignity of every person. The story proclaims that we enjoy this
S dignity, by virtue of God’s love, which shapes us prior to any personal
& achievements or social attributes. If we were to identify ourselves with a role (I
C am the president of the SSC), an achievement (I am the highest pointer in our
H basketball team), or social attribute (I am the reigning Ms. Baguio), then we would
U miss the truth that our dignity comes primarily from our relationship to God.
R
C A primary principle of moral and spiritual life is that our human dignity does not
H depend on human achievement, but it is a gift of divine love, which is grace, we
’ will remain God’s image. We will enjoy a sacred dignity – whether we sin or not,
S whether we are socially acceptable or not. This situation invites us once more to
think and critically reflect about the meaning of human dignity. This invitation is
T crucial for it provokes us to think in order to make a holistic approach in
E understanding what it means to be human and in responding to the problems and
A real situations and issues of the society we are confronted with.
C
H
1. As a Creation of God (Human person is a Subject,Human person as an
I embodied Subject)
N To speak of the human person as a subject is to say that the person is in
G charge of his/her own life. The person is a moral agent with a certain degree of
S autonomy & self determination empowered to act according to his conscience, in
freedom, and with knowledge. The great moral implication of the person as
subject is that no one may ever use a human person as an object or as a means to
an end the way we do other things of the world. Every right entails a duty of
demanding respect for them. And so we must respect the other as an autonomous
agent capable of acting with the freedom of an informed conscience. Exploitation
of human person for one’s own advantage is never allowed. We show respect for
the human person as a subject by guaranteeing that he/she can act on the basis of a
duly informed and free conscience.
As a subject, the human person, is normally called to be conscious, to act

according to his conscience, in freedom and in responsible manner. A person is
responsible not only for what he or she does, but also far more profoundly for who
he or she is. That is why freedom is so fundamental to this dimension of the
human person. Moreover, in the first instance it does not mean simply freedom
to choose. It means freedom to be –to accept oneself and to become oneself.
Our traditional understanding of morality takes this ‘subject’ dimension as its
starting-point. Morality is about our responsibility for what we do and the kind of
person we choose to become. That is why a certain minimum level of freedom
and understanding have always been taken as pre-requisites for moral
responsibility.
CONSIDER THIS:
PERSON IS A CREATION OF GOD

 That God is the source and ground of the person’s being
(galing sa Diyos)
 That the person as a creation is not a God
(diyos-diyosan)
 At the present, who/what is creating the person?

- Technology
- Mass media
- Money (perasonality)
2. As an image and Likeness of God (unique, believer, redeemed by Jesus,

temple of the Holy Spirit)
This aspect is among the essential dimensions of being a human person. Without
it, our attempt to delineate the major dimensions of being a human person would
be fundamentally flawed. To omit this dimension would be to give a seriously
incomplete account of the human person. Such an account, therefore, would not
correspond to reality as we know it.
We interpret the “know and worship God” dimension of being a human person as
being a way of expressing the openness of the human person to the experience of
transcendence. This refers to our capacity to be lost in wonder before the mystery
of reality. It is that dimension of us that is able to register ‘mystery’ and not just
‘puzzlement’ in face of those experiences in life which go beyond the limits of our
human comprehension. The roots of this dimension do not lie in our ignorance, the
fact that we encounter certain phenomena whose causes we cannot determine for
the present. Its roots lie not in our ignorance but in the wealth of our
understanding. It is almost as though the more we come to understand reality, the
more we are led to be lost in wonder before it.
This dimension of being human asks the question of the meaning and truth of
Ultimate Reality not only as it is in itself but as it is existentially related to us. This
raises the whole question of revelation, the possibility of a special self-disclosure
of this ‘Ultimate Reality’ to human beings. Christianity believes that such a
self-disclosure has actually taken place in the history of a particular people and
most uniquely in the person of Jesus Christ.
CONSIDER THIS:
PERSON IS MADE IN GOD’S IMAGE AND LIKENESS

 That the person is made in God’s basic characteristic –
His GOODNESS.
 Thus, every person by nature is Good (He had seen
what He had created as Good)
 If the person by nature is good, how come that at the

present we experience the evilness and cruelty of the
world?
- Oppression
- Exploitation
- Poverty
3. As a social Being (Human Person is essentially inter relational with other
human persons, Human Person are interdependent social beings)

Fundamental equality is not claiming that we are all equally gifted, whether in
terms of intelligence, or beauty, or temperament, or whatever. Its basis lies in the
fact that we are all members of the human species. Human persons are individuals
belonging to the species humankind.
Fundamental equality as members of the one species goes hand in hand with
uniqueness as individuals within that species. This truth too has very special
significance for the human person. This uniqueness contains degree of originality
which is not found in any other species. It links in with the other dimensions of the
human person we have already looked at. For instance, as autonomous subjects we
are not just individual human clones. We are persons who, in one sense, are
self-creating and, in another sense, are the creations of our social, cultural, and
familial history. How that combination of influences actually touches each one of
us is also unique, as is our personal response to all these factors. Moreover, our
originality is increased still further by the web of interpersonal relationships which
form the texture of our lives.
CONSIDEER THIS:
PERSON IS A SOCIAL BEING
 The story of the female and the male is one great
example.
 Adam and Eve display a form of partnership and
companionship (I-THOU)
 Through the other, we become as a person.
 At the present, how are we relating with the other?

(Objectification – I- IT) -that the other person is a
utility
4. As a steward (Human person is Part of the Material world, Human
Person is a historical being)
As body persons we are part of the material world. To be part of the material
world holds born great potential & serious limitation. The potential is that, created
in God’s image with the mandate to bring the earth under human control, we can
act as co-agents with God to make the world a continuously more livable place.
The developments of science & technology are certainly helping us to do that. But
human creations are ambiguous. This dimension of our being a human person
raises the question of our standing vis-à-vis the rest of the material world. There is
no doubt that as human persons we depend on the rest of material creation. We
cannot live without air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat. We need warmth and
shelter. We constitute a major element in natural ecosystems. Moreover, the
undulating history of civilization is a story of the progressive transformation of
‘nature’ into technology and culture. Moving from an early stage of hunters and
gatherers, ‘discovering’ fire and ‘inventing’ the wheel, we have gradually
unearthed the hidden potentialities of the rest of the material creation. We have
developed new forms of energy, communications, transport, construction
materials, etc.
Human technology has gone far beyond the standard way the ordinary operations
of natural activity work. We have not only been able to appreciate the beauty of
the natural world; we have also been able to use material things to create new
forms of beauty in art and architecture, in music and literature. Moreover, this
relationship is not just one of our dependence on the rest of the material world.
Increasingly the rest of the material world is becoming dependent on us for its
survival. In us our world has developed the power of self-destruction or at least of
bringing to an end the continuation of higher forms of life on our planet. At a
less profound level than this, the rest of the material world is being more and more
affected by the way the human family chooses to live. There is no doubt therefore,
that our relationship with the rest of creation is one of interdependence and that
this interdependence is a fundamental dimension of being a human person.
CONSIDER THIS:
PERSON IS A STEWARD OF GOD

 Steward – a co-creator of God
 God had given us the trust to continue the act of
creation (dominion)
 At the present, are we really God’s co-creator?

- Domination over creation
- You cannot trust anybody
M The intervention of Christ in the history of humanity gave a perfect image both of
I God and Humanity. Christ gave a higher meaning of life’s goal through his
S passion, death end resurrection. How can we reinforce in our everyday life the
S following:
I 1. reasserts humanity’s divine image and likeness.
O
N 2. Recalls the idea that the source of human life is no other than God
A Himself.
R 3. promises a resolution to the problem of humanity’s fall and separation
Y from God.
R
E
S
P
O
N
S
E
R Austin, Flannery, OP (Gen. Ed.), Vatican Council II: The Conciliar Documents. Vol 1, New
E York: Costello Publishing Co., 1984.
A Benedict XVI. Deus Caritas Est: Encyclical Letter of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI on
D Christian Love. Pasay City: Paulines Publishing House, 2006.
I Dewey, Robert E. and Gould, James A. Freedom: Its history, nature and varieties. New York:
N The Macmillian Company, 1970.
G
Kelly, Kevin. New Directions in Moral Theology: The Challenge of Being Human. London:
S Geoffrey Chapman, 1992.
McKeating, Colm. The Call to Mission: A Biblical Retreat. Makati City: St. Pauls,
2010.
Peschke, Karl H., S.V.D. Christian Ethics: Moral Theology in the Light of Vatican II. Manila:
Logos Publications, Inc., 2012.
Ratzinger, Joseph Cardinal. God and the World: Believing and Living in our Time (A
conversation with Peter Seewald). Trans. by Henry Taylor. San Francisco: Ignatius Press,
2002.
Serafini, Anthony. Ethics and Social Concerns. New York: Paragon House Publishers,
1989.
Weaver, Darlene Fozard. The Acting Person and Christian Moral Life. Washington, D.C.:
Georgetown University Press, 2011.
II. GUIDES TO CHRISTIAN MORAL DECISIONS
These guides must be understood as positive response to the challenge of keeping

the loving relationship. They refer to necessary means toward achieving restorative
justice in a relationship. Clearly, this signals a paradigm shift from the negative
sense of the imperatives as burdensome obligations to keep. Instead these guides
must be seen as responsible acts of freedom in the context of the Covenant as loving
relationship. The guides are expressions of God’s intervention in the concrete, free,
interpersonal relationships of people with one another in the light of what is true,
good, and just. Given this new emphasis, any talk of punishment will have to be
understood a consequence of our misuse and abuse of freedom.
C A. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

O
The Ten Commandments are a rock because they express the providential
N
sovereignty of God. When we read the account in Exodus of Moses’ reception of
T
the Ten Commandments, we see how clearly the question of God’s sovereignty
E
and God’s providence are one. Only by recognizing the powerful care of God can
X
the Israelites dedicate themselves trustfully to God’s own guidance. And, so God
T
establishes God’s own sovereignty in their midst precisely for their benefit.
Obeying and heeding the Ten Commandments is then a way of entering into the
presence of our caring and giving God. Like Moses on the mountain, we get a
glimpse of our providential God through the Commandments themselves. But that
glimpse is only possible for a people of faith who recognize the sovereignty of
God and of God’s name. It is in doing that we see only through prayer and with
abiding devotion can we grasp the rock of Christian morality. From that
perspective, too, we return to the original moral task to do good and avoid evil.
For Benedict XVI, man’s search for common truth among cultures leads him to
the knowledge of the basic rules of morality as they are found in the form of the
Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments form the concrete answer to
man’s quest about the foundations of freedom. To have a better understanding,
let us take the commandments individually.
I The Decalogue or the Ten Commandments are familiarly thought to be given by

N Yahweh to Moses on Mount Sinai. In the story, the Ten Commandments were
S supposed to be written by God on two stone tablets. It was also told that Moses
P destroyed the tablets because of anger when his people abandoned their faith in
I Yahweh. Moses was instructed by God to write the Decalogue in new tablets
R which were placed in the Ark of the Covenant.
E
This Decalogue became important among the Hebrew people for it showed them
D how to live their grace-given life. Also, the Decalogue became the basis of all
other Israelite’s legislation. The two different versions of the commandments
W are found in Exodus (20:1-17) and Deuteronomy (5:6-21), but the substance is
O found on both accounts. The Exodus version emphasizes on the religious
R element while Deuteronomy emphasizes on the humanitarian element.
D
S A. The First Commandment
& “I’ the Lord, am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that
C place of slavery. You shall not have other gods besides me.” (Ex. 20:2-3)
H
U The first commandment suggests that it is very important to properly understand
who God is because the act of the person is definitely influenced by his belief.
R
There must be a focus to one’s vision or goal. Not surprisingly the first
C
commandment begins with a narrative reminding us that God rescued the people
H of Israel from Egypt. God is merciful and God alone delivers his people. Like
’ those who were cured of their leprosy in the New Testament accounts, we are
S called in that commandment to see that we have been touched by the hand of God.
T Only that hand of God saves.
E
A The first commandment therefore, calls us to attention: to wake up to the history
C of God’s initiative saving actions in our own lives. It calls us to see how God
has kept us in being, through God’s own merciful hand, guiding, directing,
H
healing, and sustaining us. It commands us then first to consider God’s mercy in
I our own specific, ordinary lives and then to recognize the Lordship of the One
N whose tender mercies touch us so concretely. For when we know how well we
G are rescued, we know that we have encountered God.
S
B. The Second Commandment
“You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God in vain. For the Lord
will not leave him unpunished who takes his name in vain.” (Ex. 20:7)
How is it, then, that we invoke the name of the Lord? When we utter the name of
God, do those around us know who God is for us? Do they recognize that for us
(and for them) Jesus is our Savior? Clearly in our culture today many people
invoke the name of the Lord frequently and rarely is that invocation anything but
self-serving. Our culture bandies the name of the Lord with incredible abandon
and, not surprisingly, refers to our age as the post-Christian world. For by taking
the name of the Lord in vain, our culture tries to marginalize the Lord.
Given our culture’s callous treatment of the name of God, then, we need now
more than ever to avoid participating in any way in its attempts to isolate the Lord
of history from our world. We must be attentive in the way we invoke the Lord’s
name. We must also be attentive to another problem. As several recent writers
have noted, our culture quietly marginalizes those who take the name pf the Lord
seriously. Their message is simple: genuine thinkers do not believe. In the face of
the silent but audible message, how do we take the name of the Lord? Does the
“sophistication” of the world in any way inhibit what we want to convey when we
utter the name of Jesus? Are we intellectuals intimidated by our peers’ own quiet
attempts to ridicule our faith in the name of the Lord? How much do we tangibly
muted by their estimation?
The second commandment wonderfully reminds us that uttering another’s name

discloses the speaker’s estimation of the one named. From the beginning of our
journey in faith, God has invited us to be attentive to the way we voice the Lord’s
name. Today the same commandment urges us in our ordinary human intercourse
to get into the habit of expressing the Lord’s name with loving reverence, for our
benefit and for our cultures.
C. The Third Commandment

“Remember to keep holy the Sabbath Day.” (Ex. 20:8)
Understanding the purpose of the third commandment is understanding what God

wants for us. That is, like all the commandments, the third one exists because God
wishes to for us through it. Just as God gave us the fourth commandment so that
we would love and respect our elders and the fifth so that we would live
peaceably with one another, God gave us the third commandment so that we
would “rest”, “celebrate”, and “gather”. For these reasons God commands us to
keep the Lord’s day holy.
In the Old Testament, the commandment appears primarily to imitate God, who
rested on the Sabbath. One of the most productive scholars here at Weston Jesuit,
the New Testament theologian Dan Harrington, ascribes to the third
commandment by saying that God wanted us to rest. This man, who writes books
more than anyone I know and is dedicated to understanding and teaching the
Scriptures, does no work on Sunday. He begins keeping the day holy by
worshiping God. He celebrates the liturgy on Sunday precisely to acknowledge
that he participates in the rest that God enjoys. The reason for the third
commandment then is to teach us to recognize our limits and to enjoy them as
God-given .
The second reason is celebration, interestingly, the early Christians did not rest on
Sundays. On the contrary, lest they be understood as idle, they worked as
everyone else did. But when they gathered to worship they honored the Lord’s
day by celebrating it. Here we see, too, that the very meaning for the Christians
celebrating the Lord’s day is through the Eucharist, which itself means
“thanksgiving”. through the Eucharist, Christians gather to keep holy the Lord’s
day, by celebrating in our lives the one who redeemed us by his body and blood
and who promises to come again. Our celebration is at once an act of memorial
and an act of anticipation: we remember what Jesus Christ has accomplished and
we express our expectation of what he pledges. Nothing conveys this more than
our response to the consecration in the Eucharistic prayer: “Christ has died, Christ
is risen, Christ will come again. ”
D. The Fourth Commandment

“Honor your father and your mother, that you may have a long life in the
land which the Lord, your god is giving you.” (Ex. 20:12)
The fourth commandment speaks of respect, reverence, and care that the Israelites
need to show to the elders. It is primarily a great piece of social and
humanitarian legislation. For the Israelites, wisdom was considered the gift of
old age, and upholding tradition and continuity with the past was the
indispensable responsibility of the aged. In a community that consists more of
the young than the elderly, this particular commandment guides the entire
community towards maturity as people.
The fourth commandment calls us to move beyond reconciliation and beyond the
narratives that we have analyzed, accepted, and shared. It urges us to respect,
promote, and protect the integrity of the family as society’s basic unit. As
Benedict XVI puts it beautifully, “this is in fact the Magna Carta of the family…
This basic and enduring respect for the human being is the most important aspect
of the commandment.”
We are called to let those before us obedience, but now to speak again, not as
parents commanding obedience, but as adults sharing with us their formative
years and their experiences that occurred before we were born. We are called to
become familiar with their memories, so as to honor them. We are invited to
know them as they knew us; as children, teenagers, young adults. We are
summoned to walk with them as they talk and as they move eventually toward a
new childhood of their own.
E. The Fifth Commandment

“You shall not kill.” (Ex. 20:13)
We have always started with the gift of life in order to understand the fifth
commandment. Wherever we find the Ten Commandments in Christian writings,
whether the new Catechism or the Tridentine one, whether Luther’s Large or
Small Catechism or Calvin’s Institutes, we always see the Christian’s respect for
life before engaging the specifics of the commandment’s prohibition. We only
understand the seriousness of the fifth commandment when we appreciate the
sacred importance of human life.
In fact, John Paul II has helped us to appreciate more than the sacredness of life
by elaborating on that teaching. Prior to his papacy, sanctity of life basically
considered human life as God’s dominion: what belonged to God was not ours to
violate. Simply put, life was God’s property; we had no options on it. This use of
“sanctity” appeared elsewhere. For instance, the sanctity of marriage meant that
Christian marriage was God’s Bond; we had no right to violate the bond that
belonged to God. Likewise, we spoke of the sanctity of the temple. In applying
“sanctity” to life, then, sanctity was not derived from anything belonging to our
nature: like the sanctity of marriage or of temple, sanctity derived from the
Owner. Gerry Coleman, the previous writer of the CHURCH column on moral
theology, wrote eight years ago: “What makes killing forbidden is that it usurps a
divine prerogative and violates divine rights”. Sacredness rested not on anything
intrinsic to the bond, the temple, or life, but rather simply I the fact they were
divine possessions. The fifth commandment was, the, about not violating God’s
property and sovereignty.
John Paul II expanded on this tradition. Early, in Celebrate Life (1979), he

signaled his interest: “The Church defends the right to life, not only in regard to
the majesty of the Creator, who is the first giver of this life, but also in respect
of the essential good of the human person.” The Pope suggested that God created
within the human something that made human life sacred. Later in his encyclical
Donum vitae (1987) he expanded on this:
Human life is sacred because from its beginning it involves the ‘creative
action of God’ and it remains forever in a special relationship with the Creator,
who is its sole end. God alone is Lord of the life from its beginning until its end:
no one can in any circumstance, claim for himself the right directly to destroy an
innocent human being (Intro., 5).
The Pope brings then the question of God’s dominion into play with us as created
persons, not properties in relationship with God. This passage is in fact key for
understanding all his later writings on life: precisely the text introduces the fifth
commandment in the new Catechism.
F. The Sixth Commandment

“You shall not commit adultery.” (Ex. 20:14)
Adultery is the sin of a married man having sexual relations with anyone other than
his wife or a married woman having sexual relations with anyone other than her
husband. In the Old Testament, adultery was understood as sexual relations
between a married (or bethrothed) woman and a man other than her husband. It was
therefore a sin against the husband woman. In the New Testament, Jesus extended
the definition of adultery to include sexual relations between a married man and a
woman other than his wife (Mk. 10:11-12, Luke 16:18). other New Testament
teachings also understand it that way (1 Cor. 6:15-16, 1 Cor
7:2).http://www.christianbiblereference.org/faq_adultery.htm
The sixth commandment stands as a witness to the fact that it is in our bodies that
we declare ourselves for one another. In marriage, this is classically expressed in
sexual relations. But when we realize that our relationships depend on our bodies,
then we realize that the sixth commandment is not only talking about sexual
relations, but also about every corporeal expression. A kiss, a touch, an embrace,
and a smile communicate the essence of a variety of relationships. The sixth
commandment stands then as a reminder that every time we physically extend
ourselves to another we nurture the faithful bonds we share with one another.
It also warns us against any inappropriate expressions. Above all, it warns us that
violating our vows is not “just a physical thing.” Violating them is an act of
betrayal.We can not distinguish our vows from our embodied relationships with
one another. But those vows are not only violated y inappropriate sexual activity
but also through any physical action that contradicts the vow. A slap, a punch, a
sneer, or a shove contradicts any vowed relationship we have. Just as these actions
are violations, similarly the failure to extend oneself to one’s spouse is an
abandonment of that relationship. For the Christian one need not simply leave
one’s dwelling to abandon one’s spouse; rather withholding any evidence of
affection, tenderness, care or concern is itself an act contradicting the pledge to
one another.
In a manner of speaking the sixth commandment is specifically addressed to

married to people, but it serves also as a paradigm for all other relationships. For
just as the relationship between Christ and the people of god serves as a model for
married people, so too married people in the humanity of their relationship to one
another serve as a model for all relationships. Evidently married life serves as a
model for vowed religious in their similar commitment to chastity, which
embodies their commitment to co0religious as well as those with whom and for
whom they serve. But it also serves as a sign to their children and their children’s
children that love shows itself in deeds rather than in words, and that loving deeds
are always deeply, physically human ones.
G. The Seventh Commandment

“You shall not steal.” (Ex. 20:15)
Originally, the seventh commandment does not refer to a prohibition of

possessing other’s property by way of stealing or theft. It actually points to the
original intention that forbids the enslavement of a free Israelite. It forbids any
member of the covenant community from claiming ownership of or exercising
control over another. This means that the commandment is intended to
safeguard the freedom and equality of each individual in the community. It also
recognizes God’s sovereignty over his people.
In today’s age of globalization, in an age that is marked by economic competition

and market pursuits, this commandment reminds us that being upright in life is
more primordial than having. Benedict XVI expresses this alarm, “we can see
how the world of possessions takes powerful hold upon people’s lives. The
more they have, the more they are dominated and enslaved by what they have,
because they have to be giving ever more attention to preserving and increasing
those possessions.”
H. The Eight Commandment

“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” (Ex. 20:16)
This commandment does not simply refer to the prohibition of telling a lie, but
refers to those greater values: freedom and justice. Bearing false witness against
another would put the innocent in prison and the guilty would remain free. In
the early Israelite community, there was already a consciousness of justice and
freedom. Every just act done by an individual is an act of justice to God, while
every unjust act done to a member is an injustice to God. The Isrealites believed
and were made aware of the fact that their juridical procedures were meant to
protect the individual from such injustice and thus to protect society from the
wrath of God.
We need to recognize the challenge today to speak what we believe. We need to

recognize the call for clear leadership to guide all one of us in the pursuit of the
truth. We need to invite one another to speak the truth as we understand it, so that
in a loving and respectful context we may together discover and articulate the
truth as it really is. That’s not an ideal; it is a command.
I. The Ninth and the Tenth Commandments

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your
neighbor’s wife, nor his male or female slave, nor his ox, nor anything else that
belongs to him.” (Ex. 20:17)
Our desires are, then, about those whom we love. In fact, if we were to talk about
moral theology or ethics, as Saint Augustine once did, we would call it ordering of
loves. The ethical enterprise is about putting our loves in order. In this way we
achieve our deepest desires.Our ordered loves help us to realize them.
For this reason the ninth commandment reminds us that we ought to put no other
person in the way of our ordered loves. No other person ought to be the cause of
our jeopardizing those loves and our deepest desires. The ninth commandment
warns us against the possibility of throwing the entire complexity of our

relationships aside by another relationship. We know this possibility to be true.
Husbands or wives who pursue another spouse harm not only themselves and the
other’s spouses, but the children, parents, and friends involved in those marriages.
The damage from adultery is far more extensive than what is felt by two or three
persons involved. But the ninth commandment concerns not only married persons.
Single people, clergy, and vowed religious know that it is possible to endanger so
many of our relationships by the emotional pursuit that contradicts the
commitments we presently enjoy. We know how certain personal entanglements
can compromise us and our relationships and we know that so many persons can
be adversely affected by such entanglements.
Coveting is such an ordinary disposition that we do not recognize how frequently

we do covet until we really stop and think about it. Some of us cover success
more than property. We would like the parish in such and such a neighborhood;
we would like to be selected for this particular board or committee; we would like
to win a particular recognition. Though we may not be aware of everything we
covet, we can be sure that there are several things in life that we covet. Sometimes
it is good to list what we really covet if only to find out what it is we would like
to have. Bringing what we covet to the surface or our own consciousness keeps us
from being blind to the subtle messages that influence many of our ordinary
decisions. For what we covet usually reminds us of where our dissatisfaction
really are.
The tenth commandment is a perfect complement to the first one. The first one
reminds us that God is God, that God delivers and protects us, and that in
gratitude we should place no false gods. Before us. Likewise, the last
commandment reminds us that we have much to be grateful for and that we
should not pine after what is not ours; it warns us against false idols. It invites us
to see where we are, to reflect on our lot as more gift than achievement, and to
have hope in the future, accepting it as an opportunity for moving dynamically
forward with a liberating sense of satisfaction with how well life’s journey is
going.
The tenth commandment is like all the other commands from God, a command
leading us to our happiness. It is a gift that warns us against a double misery and
offers instead a double happiness: a happiness with our present lot and a calm
expectation for our future.
M Learn about the Commandments and Commitments

I
S
S As you study this lesson, follow the pattern below:

I
O
N 1. Study the section that describes the commandment and write a simple lesson plan
A with three to five main points.
R
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2. Teach a two- or three-minute version to your companion. Practice how you will
R extend each invitation and how you will resolve concerns.
E
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P 3. Discuss ways to follow up on each commitment that you have invited others to
accept.
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N
S
E
A Benedict XVI. Deus Caritas Est: Encyclical Letter of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI on
D Christian Love. Pasay City: Paulines Publishing House, 2006.
I Bulatao, Romano. “Towards a Critical Hermeneutics of the Torah.” Saint Louis University
N Research Journal, vol. 38 no. 2 (2007) :253-271.
G
Haggerty, Brian A. Out of the House of Slavery: On the Meaning of the Ten Commandments.
S New York:Paulist press, 1978.
Keenan, James F., S.J. Commandments of Compassion. Quezon City, Philippines: Claretian
Publications, 2001.
Kelly, Kevin. New Directions in Moral Theology: The Challenge of Being Human. London:
Geoffrey Chapman, 1992.
conversation with Peter Seewald). Trans. by Henry Taylor. San Francisco: Ignatius Press,
2002.
B. CHRIST’S COMMANDMENTS (Jesus’ teachings on the commandments)
C At the center of the life and ministry of Jesus was the coming of the kingdom or
O reign of God. His parables about the kingdom pointed to the basic truth: a loving
N God who unconditionally offers love and life and cares so much for humanity.
T Jesus’ actions stood alongside his proclamation: He acted as God would act. His
E cause was God’s cause, and God’s cause is the cause of humanity. Jesus
X translated God’s action to human beings. To act as Jesus did is the praxis of the
T kingdom. This praxis shows what the kingdom is all about: the reign of God in
the lives of people, now and in the future.
I
N
S Jesus replied: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
P all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest
I commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as
R yourself.’ (Matthew 22:37-39)
E
D
Jesus’ person and work was experienced by people of God’s caring and abiding
W presence, especially among the poor, the outcasts, the helpless, and the sinners.
O To participate in God’s kingdom, Jesus called people to metanoia (conversion).
R Metanoia expresses a new relationship with God, a relationship which brings
D about the newness of the human person, leading to a new relationship with the
S neighbor. Metanoia demands an attitude of absolute hope. The kingdom of
& God as gift of salvation points to our becoming human, the happiness of human
C beings, the fullness of life. Jesus’ ministry is an unconditional commitment to
H both God and humanity- an indissoluble unity.
U
R
C The faith we have received declares that Jesus Christ revealed and accomplished
H the Father’s plan of saving the world and the whole of humanity because of “who
’ he is” and “what he does because of who he is.” There is an internal communion
S of life of the Blessed Trinity and the unity of the three Persons in the plan of
T creation and redemption… We cannot isolate or separate one Person from the
E other, since each is revealed only within the communion of life and action of the
A Trinity. The saving action of Jesus has its origin in the communion of the
C Godhead, and opens the way for all who believe in him to enter into intimate
H communion with the Trinity and with one another in the Trinity.
I
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G “He who has seen me has seen the Father”, Jesus claims (Jn 14:9). In Jesus
S Christ alone dwells the fullness of God in bodily form (cf. Col 2:9), establishing
him as the unique and absolute saving Word of God (cf. Heb 1:1-4). As the
Father’s definitive Word, Jesus makes God and his saving will known in the
fullest way possible. “No one comes to the Father but by me. I am the Way, the
Truth, and the Life” (Jn 14:6), because “the Father who dwells in me does his
works” (Jn 14:10). Only in the person of Jesus does God’s word of salvation
appear in all its fullness, ushering in the final age (cf. Heb 1:1-2).
M
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LOVE CARD
S
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I
Ask the students to make a card and let them write Bible verse inside the card.
O
Write GOD'S LOVE on the outside of the card, as well as stickers, glitter, hearts,
N
foam hearts or crosses. Students are enjoined to give their LOVE card to their
A
parent/s or sibling/s.
R
Y
R
E
S
P
O
N
S
E
R Acts and Decrees of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines. Catholic Bishops
E Conference of the Philippines. Manila.
A
D
Compendium of Catechism of the Catholic Church. Caryana Lay Monastic Community.
I
N
G E.C.E.R.I.(1994) Maturing in christian faith. National Catechetical Directory of the Philippines.
S Manila: Saint Paul Publication.
Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education. The catholic faith catechism.
Manila, Philippines: Word and Life, 1993.
Tiempo, Alex (2005). Social philosophy: foundations of values education. Philippines: Rex
Bookstore,
UNESCO-APNIEVE Sourcebook (2006).Learning to live together. Philippines: Lithweke

Company.New American Bible
Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education (ECCCE). (1984). National

Catechetical Directory for the Philippines, Manila.
___________. (1994). Catechism for Filipino Catholics. Makati City, Philippines: Word and
Life, 1994.
___________. (1994). Catechism of the Catholic Church. Manila, Philippines: Word & Life,
1994.
Santa Barbara, Luis (2005) This is our faith. Philippines: Claretian Publication.
Tolhurst, James. A Concise Catechism for Catholics: A Simple Exposition of Catholic

Doctrine. Quezon City: Claretian Publications, 1993.
Pilch, J.J. (2012). A cultural handbook to the bible. Grand Rapids, Michigan : William B
Eerdmans Pub.
Harris, S.L. (2012). The New Testament : a student's introduction. 7th ed.New York, N.Y. :
McGraw-Hill
Bible. N.T. Gospels. (2011). The four Gospels : catholic personal study edition. Quezon City :
Pastoral Bible Foundation,
Casey, M. (2010). Jesus of Nazareth : an independent historian's account of his life and
teaching. New York, N.Y.: T&T Clark International,
Kroeger, James (2014). Walking in the Light of Faith. St. Pauls, Makati City, Philippines
C. The (Catholic) Church’s Social Teachings
C Humanity is bound up in an intrinsic and essential relationship of interdependence

O with the rest of creation. There are not two separate and independent ethical
N criteria operating in ecological issues, what is good for humanity and what is good
T for creation as a whole. To consider creation as a whole is to consider it as
E including humanity. It is to recognize humanity as creation reaching a higher level
X of existence, the level of personal and social consciousness. This level of
T existence does not constitute a breaking away from the rest of creation. A healthy
creation remains an integral element of the good of humanity, just as the body is
healthy.
In other words, the health of the rest of creation is now dependent on humanity
conducting itself in a way which befits its place and responsibility within the
whole of creation. Humanity can be a cancerous growth within creation – and
some ‘deep ecologists’ believe it is such already. Or it can be creation reaching
out to yet a higher level of life in which it can articulate its hymn of praise and
thanksgiving to its creator and reflect in its very way of living the deeply personal
and holistic life of its creator. For humanity to distance itself from the rest of
creation and lord it over it would be a form of alienation from an integral part of
ourselves.
In the Catholic Church, the vocation to dialogue with the rest of creation was
called by Pope John Paul XXIII and the Second Vatican Council. The document
on the Church in the Modern World officially adopted a different attitude toward
the world and her relation to it. Openness and compassion replaced by suspicion
and hostility. The good in modern thought is affirmed. The Gospel is seen as
fulfilling the human search rather than replacing it. The various struggles for
liberation are seen reflected in the liberation of the Gospel itself. The Church
affirms all that echoes Gospel values, and sees herself on pilgrimage through this
world as a servant aiding in the liberation and healing of the world’s people. A
new attitude even manifests itself toward the other world faiths.
Humanity is a part of God’s creation; we are inextricably joined with creation in a

delicate web of interdependencies. That web is being threatened by our rampant
industrialization and technology. A spirituality of stewardship is desperately
needed today to lead us back to a saner and healthier relationship to our mother
earth and her other creatures given into our care by God.
I At the end of the 19th century, Pope Leo XIII wrote the first social encyclical The
N Condition of Labor (Rerum Novarum, 1891). This event started a process of
S conscientization in our Church. Slowly, Christians become aware that their vision
P of salvation should not be limited to the salvation of the individual and that, as
I Church, we should have a message about the liberation and transformation of
R society.
E
D
Since the time of Pope Leo XIII, a chain of social encyclicals have been
W published. They offer guidelines on how to live the good news of Jesus in society.
O Many Christians believe that these encyclicals surpass in quality the social
R teachings of liberals, socialists, and Marxists alike. The highpoint of the Church’s
D social teaching is found in the encyclicals of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul
S II. PCP II presents some key themes of this teaching, containing “the principles of
& reflection,” “criteria of judgment,” and “directives for action,” oriented towards
C moral conduct.
H
U
R This way of understanding ‘Catholic social teaching’, therefore, seems to
C acknowledge that if it is to be effective and not merely platitudinous in its
H generality, it needs to be wedded to a process of dialogue, involving people who
’ are competent in determining what needs to be done. This is exactly the
S methodology which the US Bishops’ Conference has followed in producing its
T major pastoral letters, The Challenge of Peace (1983) and Economic Justice for
E All (1986). In both instances the bishops held a series of public ‘hearings’ of
A experts and those working in the field, and they published two ‘draft’ versions of
C each document. Likewise, in his pilgrimages to various countries throughout the
H world, Pope John Paul II seems to have been at pains to get properly briefed by
I people familiar with each country and, in some cases at least, has even left
N preparation of his addresses substantially in the hands of the Local Church.
G
S
Principles of Church (Catholic) Social Teachings
Christianity has always been with social justice. The roots go back to the
foundations of the Judeo-Christian tradition. A group of slaves finds liberation
from Egypt and is given land of their own. Jesus perfects Israel’s experience of
social justice. Of the poor himself, his ministry by and large concerns the poor
who have a special place in God’s affection. Like the prophets before him, Jesus
rebuked the rich of his day for their indifference toward their poor brothers and
sisters. And he overcomes the social barriers. Among his followers and intimate
friends are women who even today in our society are not treated equally. A
Christianity without social commitment is not full Christianity.
From the wellspring of the Church’s social doctrine emerges a moral and spiritual
vision of the human person and of society. This doctrinal corpus challenges the
imbalances of society and the attitudes of individuals. It offers guidelines to
persons on how to live the Gospel of Jesus. It presents “principles of reflection”,
“criteria for judgment”, and “directives for action”, oriented towards moral
conduct. In the light of our situation we believe that certain truths on the social
doctrine of the Church stand out as urgent and necessary. These truths, needing
emphasis today for the development of the just life and of the just society which
serves that life, are:
1. Life and Dignity of the Human Person

The first social teaching proclaims the respect for human life, one of the most
fundamental needs in a world distorted by greed and selfishness. The Catholic
Church teaches that all human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human
person is the foundation for all the social teachings. This theme challenges the
issues of abortion, assisted suicide, human cloning, and the death penalty. The
Catholic Church hold the belief that every human life is precious and is a gift
from God, and that every institution is measured by whether it threatens or
enhances the life and dignity of the human person.
The human person is at the center of the Church’s social doctrine and the subject
as well as object of development in all human dimensions. Integral human
development is development that serves the total person, in all dimensions,
including the spiritual. For human development to be integral, we need to be
faithful to the interior dimension of life. We are not to forget that we are all from
God and that our vocation is to journey back to Him.
When we analyze development programs today, we observe that the dominant

emphasis is on the economic dimension. There seems to be little concern for the
cultural and social consequences. PCP II stresses that economic sufficiency,
which is promoted through immoral activities cannot be justified. Some examples
of an immoral approach are: the repression of human rights, excessive dependence
on foreigners that diminishes our dignity and sovereignty, one-sided assistance
that erodes international solidarity. No amount of money can pay for the inner
values of righteousness and freedom.
2. Common Good
A community is genuinely healthy when all people, not only or several segments,
flourish. The Russian Novelist Doestoeski put it this way: “The degree of
civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons”. “Every social
group must take into account of the needs and legitimate aspirations of other
groups, and even the general welfare of the entire human family”. This concept of
the common good seems to be ‘missing in action’ in contemporary public life,
“not the utilitarian formula of the greatest good for the greatest number, but the
moral formula of the greatest goof for all”, simply on the basis that they are
human beings and therefore inherently worthy of respect”.
Justice and love, according to Pope John XXIII, are the principal laws of human
life. Justice is our recognition of the dignity and rights of our neighbor. If we take
justice as an impartial legal structure that will give everyone her/his due, it will
work well only if we all have equal opportunities. Unfortunately, it is not the case.
We need something much stronger than the “letter of the law,” if each of us is to
get her/his due. Justice alone is not enough. We can speak of justice without love,
but we cannot speak of love, without justice.
For us Christians, the demand for justice is dynamically linked with Christ’s
fundamental command of love. PCP II states that while the demand for justice is
implied in love, still justice attains its inner fullness only in love. It says. “For in
justice, the other person can remain ‘another,’ an alien. In love the other is a
friend, even a brother or sister in Christ.”
If justice is important in our individual relationships, we also need to emphasize

the value of social justice. Social justice is the justice of the common good. It calls
for the promotion of our nationalist desires that makes us say: “Bayan muna bago
sarili.” It means sacrificing something, which we see as our right for the sake of
common good.
3. Call to Family, Community, and Participation

The social teaching proclaims that the human person is not only sacred, but also
social. It stresses that how we organize society in economics, politics, and law or
policy directly affects human dignity and community. Society often proclaims the
importance of individualism, but Catholic social teaching argues that human
beings are fulfilled in community and family. The Catholic Church believes we
have the responsibility to participate in society and to promote the common good,
especially for the poor and vulnerable.
To achieve our vision of renewed people and renewed nation, we need to adopt a
spirituality of social transformation. Spirituality demands that we live radically
what we preach. It is witnessing to the radical demands of the Gospel. In a
journey with Jesus, we are challenged to witness to the coming Reign of God. It is
spiritual journey.
4. Rights and Responsibilities

Human dignity can only be protected if all human rights are protected and
responsibilities of all human beings are met. Every person has a fundamental right
to life and a right to the basic needs of life. The Catholic Church teaches that
every person has a duty and responsibility to help fulfill these rights for one
another, for our families, and for the larger society. Public debate in our nation is
often divided between those who focus on personal responsibilities and those who
focus on social responsibilities, but the Catholic tradition insists both are
necessary to respond to the basic and fundamental rights of every human being.
This is exemplified in Saint John Paul II, “The road to total liberation is not the
way of violence, class struggle or hate; it is the way of love, brotherhood, and
peaceful solidarity”.
5. Option for the Poor and Vulnerable
This world is shaped by the division between growing prosperity for some and
poverty for others. The Catholic Church proclaims that the basic moral test of a
society is how the most vulnerable member are faring. Our society is marred by a
deepening division between the rich and poor. The value of being pro-poor is
urgent in our country, where the few who are rich and powerful enjoy more
luxuries and privileges, while a large number of the ordinary people, suffer in
poverty and misery. Being pro-poor is based on the Bible. The Old Testament
sees God as a “liberator of the oppressed and the defender of the poor.” Prophets
denounced injustices against the poor. Jesus himself was a prophet, and as
Christians, we make a preferential option for the poor and the needy because they
bear the privileged presence of Christ (Mt 25:31-34). Pope John Paul II puts this
challenge of choosing to be pro-poor in worldwide perspective, saying:
This love of preference for the poor cannot embrace the immense
multitudes of the hungry, the needy, the homeless, those without medical
care and, above all, those without hope of a better future. To ignore these
realities would mean becoming like the rich man who pretended not to
know the beggar Lazarus lying at his gate.
6. The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers

The Catholic Church teaches that the economy must serve the people. Too often
the marketplace take precedence over the rights of workers. Work is more than a
way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God’s creation.
The rights to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to the organization of
unions, to private property, and to economic initiative are all part of protecting the
dignity of work by protecting the rights of the workers. Respecting human life,
defends human rights, and advances the well-being of all.
Unlike animals who have no freedom, initiative and creativity, human work
enables us to “subdue the earth” and “to have dominion over the visible world.”
With work, we become God’s co-creators and stewards or caretakers of creation.
We become partners of the Holy Spirit, in renewing the face of the earth. Thus ith
work, we achieve our fulfillment as human beings. We are the subject of work and
should not be treated as things. We have primacy over things. The resources of
our world have been placed here by our Creator to serve us, when we work.
Labor, therefore, has priority over capital. Labor is the “primary efficient cause of
production.” Capital is a “mere instrument.” Pope John Paul II told the workers
in Legaspi City that Christ himself “immeasurably ennobled and sanctified all
human work by his work as a carpenter in Nazareth and by his many other labors,
thus conferring on workers a special solidarity with himself and giving them a
share in his own redemptive work.”
7. Solidarity
Our society often stresses individualism, indifference and sometimes isolationism
in the face of international responsibilities. The Catholic Church proclaims that
every human being has a responsibility to our brothers and sisters, wherever they
live. We are one human family, whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic,
and ideological differences. Solidarity is about loving our neighbors locally,
nationally, as well as internationally. These virtues is described by John Paul II as
“a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good;
that is to say to the good of all and of each individual, because we are all really
responsible for all” (Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, no. 38).
8. Care for God’s Creation

The Catholic tradition insists that every human being show respect for the Creator
by our stewardship of His creation. We are called to protect people and the planet
by living our faith with respect for God’s creation. In a society with controversy
over environmental issues, the Catholic Church believes it is a fundamental moral
and ethical challenge that cannot be ignored.
Pope Francis in Laudato Si’ had raised the planet’s health to a level of crisis. As
a planet, all are in danger because the earth’s systems are failing. Many scientists
agree that global warming is real, it is already happening and that it is from the
activities and not a natural occurrence. Everyone is already seeing changes such
as glaciers melting, plants and animals being forced out from their habitats and
severe storms and droughts increasing. Scientists predict that deaths from global
warming will double in just 25 years, heat waves will become more intense and
global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in
Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide.” The people are
already experiencing some of these changes and the bulk of destruction is
primarily affecting the poor. He highlights relationality as the new of most
important of all life, impelling him to posit a new metaphysics of relationship
grounded in divine love. People are not only human beings for Pope Francis;
but they are human interbeings and share in the interrelatedness of all these
cosmic life.
9. Subsidiary
The word subsidiarity comes from the Latin word subsidium which means help,
aid, support. The principle of subsidiarity means being wide-eyed, clearly
determining the right amount of help or support that is needed to accomplish a
task to meet an obligation: “not too much” (taking over and doing it for the other:
thereby creating learned helplessness or overdependence) and “not too little”
(standing back and watching people thrash about, thereby increasing frustration
and perhaps hopelessness). “Instead of the ‘less government the better’, the
principle might be better summarized as ‘no bigger than necessary, no smaller
than appropriate’.”
10. Universal Destination of Goods

God intends for the goods of creation to be at the service (or destined for) all of
humanity (universally). Everyone has the right to access goods to meet their
needs. People and nations have no right to squander resources when others are in
need. Saint Ambrose summed it up over 1500 years ago when he said of
charitable giving. “You are not making a gift of your possessions to the poor
person. You are handing over to him what is his. For what has been given in
common for the use of all, you have arrogated (taken up) to yourself. The world is
given to all, and not only to the rich.”
M Recall instances where you shared our social tradition more fully and clearly as an
I essential way to bring good news, liberty, and new sight to a society and world in
S desperate need of God's justice and peace. Design a program (plan of action) of
S these little acts of kindness on how you can sustain or improve them.
I
O
N
A
R
Y
R
E
S
P
O
N
S
E
A Dewey, Robert E. and Gould, James A. Freedom: Its history, nature and varieties. New York:
D The Macmillian Company, 1970.
I Kelly, Kevin. New Directions in Moral Theology: The Challenge of Being Human. London:
N Geoffrey Chapman, 1992.
G
S conversation with Peter Seewald). Trans. by Henry Taylor. San Francisco: Ignatius Press,
2002.
Serafini, Anthony. Ethics and Social Concerns. New York: Paragon House Publishers,
1989.
Weaver, Darlene Fozard. The Acting Person and Christian Moral Life. Washington, D.C.:
Georgetown University Press, 2011.
D. PERSON-CENTERED MORALITY
C The person-centered approach places a renewed emphasis on the motivation to

O evaluate the character of others, arguing that it can account for a number of recent
N empirical findings that appear puzzling or irrational when viewed from the
T perspective of act-centered approaches. Specifically we will present evidence that
E judgments of a person’s underlying moral character can be empirically
X distinguished from judgments about the rightness or wrongness of an act (as
T demonstrated by evidence that judgments of acts can be dissociated from
judgments of character), and that certain transgressions elicit especially negative
reactions not because they are unusually wrong in-and-of-themselves, but because
they are seen as highly diagnostic of an individual’s moral character. The process
of arriving at a moral judgment, then, is often more influenced by what the action
reflects about an agent’s moral character than by the degree of harm the act
caused, or whether the act violates a set of moral rules.
 ELEMENTS
I OF A PERSON-CENTERED MORALITY
N
S

P OBJECT/ACT - GOOD OR BAD
I
 THE CIRCUMSTANCE – SITUATION OF AN ACT (time, place and
R
occasion)
E

D INTENTION/END/PURPOSE – the reason behind the act
- an indifferent act may become morally good or bad
W
O - an objectively good act may become morally bad
R
D - An objectively good act can receive added goodness
S - An objectively bad act can never become good inspite of the good motive
&
C
H short, there is growing Person-Centered Morality evidence that when it
In
U
comes to moral judgment, human beings appear to be best characterized not as
R
intuitive deontologists or consequentialists, but as intuitive virtue theorists:
C
individuals who view acts as a rich set of signals about the moral qualities of an
H
agent, and not as the endpoint of moral judgment. In what follows, we will defend
a’ specific set of claims regarding the centrality of character evaluation in moral
S
judgment. Namely, we argue that 1) individuals are motivated to assess the
character of others, and not just the rightness or wrongness of an act 2) some acts
T perceived as more informative of an individual’s moral character than others,
are
E are therefore weighed heavily in moral judgments, 3) moral evaluations of
and
A and character can diverge, resulting in act-person dissociations, 4) judgments
acts
C moral character can infuse a host of other judgments that are central to moral
of
H
evaluations (e.g., judgments of intentionality, agency, and blame), and 5) that a
I
number of recent empirical findings demonstrating apparent inconsistencies in
N
moral judgment may be better interpreted as reasonable for an individual
G
motivated to assess the character of an agent rather than as simple “errors” of
S
moral judgment. (http://www.socialjudgments.com/docs/Uhlmann.Pizarro.Diermeier.pdf)
Sources of Christian Norms
Christians look to a number of sources for ethical guidance. The Bible has
traditionally been the first and most important source. Gleaning ethical guidance
from the Bible is not easy at it might seem, however. The many books of the Bible
were written in different periods and reflect quite a variety of contexts and
situations. The biblical writers wrote from their own locations in diverse societies
and culture. They saw and understood things differently from one another and
certainly from persons of the modern age, who live in a thoroughly changed
world. Biblical writers sometimes disagreed, and what they thought was ethically
acceptable in their own time - for example, slavery - has changed as culture has
evolved. Compounding these differences, and complicating matters immensely,
present-day decision-makers must interpret what biblical writers meant and then
apply these meanings. The Bible does not interpret itself or make decisions. And
while biblical scholars have developed a wide range of tools to do the task of
interpretation and ethicists offer their best wisdom on interpretation, their
disagreements are commonplace. Indeed, ethical conflicts are sometimes matters
of interpretation and use of biblical texts.
In spite of these complications, themes do run through the Bible, and these themes
can be identified with a degree of accuracy. The biblical writers experienced the
same loving God as modern people and faced many of the same problems. The
Bible remains a good source of guidance.
Theology is the second source of norms. Understandings of God’s power and

humans in have already been identified. The nature of God’s power as love
inspires and leads decision-makers to love their neighbors and to be sensitive to
the work of the Spirit in situations. Different understandings of sin lead to
conflicting views on matters of sexuality. Seeing sin as deep and universal leads
decision-makers to realistic actions that factor in the human tendency to misuse
freedom.
The third source of norms is the historical tradition of the church. Christians
through the centuries have devoted considerable thought to issues of, for example,
violence, sexuality, the poor, and nature. The traditions change and sometimes
yield a multiplicity of guidelines, but they also show continuity and reflect a
certain amount of practical wisdom. Traditions on justice are critical to this
volume.
The fourth source of norms is the church in its many forms. The three previous
sources all grew in church ground. The church ranges from the church catholic or
universal, to specific church organizations such as the Roman Catholic Church
and specific Protestant denominations, to associations of churches, to the local
brick and mortar church, to what in the Bible is referred to as “where two or three
are gathered together.” Likewise, the ethical guidelines range from traditional
historical perspectives, to comprehensive church studies and pronouncements, to
rules of church organizations, and to the wisdom and guidance of a good friend.
The final source is the broad category of secular ethical traditions and other
religions. Christian and secular philosophical traditions in the West have had a
close and mutually edifying relationship for centuries. Native American traditions
are rich in their sensitivity to nature. Taoism is likewise rich in its search for
balance. Buddhism holds to the interrelation of all beings and talks about clinging
or desire as the chief problem. Christians are free to appropriate the insights of
these other traditions, to enter into dialogue with adherents of these traditions, and
to join in common actions.
Using these five sources to establish norms that relate to a given case is complex
and requires practice. The situation or case itself offers an obvious starting point.
So, for example, if the situation involves violent conflict, norms dealing with
violence and nonviolence apply.
Many aids are available to help in locating relevant norms. Concordances help to
locate specific words in the Bible and texts containing these words. The critical
commentaries that follow each case in this volume identify norms and help with
interpretations. Dictionaries of Christian ethics are widely available and provide
short summaries for those whose times is limited. Scholars have studied most
ethical issues, and their publications usually develop norms. Most major
denominations have well-established positions on major ethical issues.
Decision-makers are increasingly consulting websites, although the quality of
articles found is uneven and caution is advised. If cases are discussed in a
classroom setting, teachers may provide background lectures. Also,
decision-makers may turn to the local church, where communities of believers
frequently work through ethical issues, often guided by competent leaders.
M What am I good at? What do I find difficult? There are several tools to help the
I child or young person think about what they are good at or find difficult.
S
S
I 1. What does a good day look like, what are the things that need to happen to
O make it a good day? What does a bad day look like? (5 items for good day and 5
N items for bad day)
A
R
Y
R
E 2. What needs to change to make sure the person has more good days than bad
S days?
P
O
N https://www2.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/sites/default/files/folders/documents/childreneducationa
S ndfamilies/educationandlearning/specialeducationalneeds/PersonCentredPlanningTools.pdf
E
MIDTERMS
II. CHRISTIAN MORALITY: PERSONAL AND FAMILY ISSUES AND
CHURCH’S RESPONSES
C A. ON HUMAN DIGNITY
O
N As Christians, we believe that human dignity is fundamentally a relational reality.
T It is rooted first in our relationship to God. Because of God’s love for us humans,
E we affirm that every person has value, worth or dignity, simply because he or she
X is human. Everybody is a somebody in God’s eyes. Our inherent dignity, as rooted
T in God’s love, is inalienable. It means that it cannot be taken away from us, by our
own or another’s misdeeds.
The intrinsic, inalienable dignity of every person has a moral implication. While
we all enjoy inherent dignity, we also believe, as Christians, that we are called to
build up one another by attributing dignity, esteem, and value to each other. We
do this in the way we speak, regard, and relate to one another. In other words,
inherent dignity elicits an ethic that respects, defends, and promotes human
well-being and does not count some other human values or functions as more
important than being human.
Human dignity is the fundamental basis of all morality. Without a grasp of

inherent dignity of persons, there would be no morality at all. We act morally, in
the first place, because we believe that everybody is a somebody, who ought to be
respected and treated as such. Thus, there are rights that protect our dignity as
embodied persons (the rights to life, food, clothing, shelter, and basic health care),
as workers (the right to a just wage), as social beings (the right to assembly), as
members of a family (the right marry or to remain single, the right to procreate),
as students, and so forth. We could not have a human rights watch, or claim the
violation of human rights, without recognizing inherent human dignity.
I 1. Children are Gifts (cloning, surrogacy, artificial insemination)

N Human cloning is the making of a hereditarily indistinguishable duplicate of a
S current, or beforehand existing, person or developing cloned tissue from that
P person. In spite of the fact that qualities are perceived as affecting conduct and
I discernment, "genetically identical" does not mean inside and out
R indistinguishable; nobody would deny that indistinguishable twins, in spite of
being common human clones with indistinguishable DNA, are separate
E
D individuals, with independent encounters and not out and out covering identities.
(S. (2018, June 01). Human cloning. Retrieved June 12, 2018, from
https://www.sciencedaily.com/terms/human_cloning.htm)
W
O a. The typical definition of surrogacy refers to an arrangement in which the
R surrogate is the child's genetic mother. The woman's egg is fertilized in a lab
D using sperm from the man who wishes to raise the child. This form of surrogacy
S may be used by a woman with medical issues that affect her ability to ovulate
& normally. In addition, some women choose surrogacy as an option if they have a
C serious illness that would decrease their ability to carry a pregnancy to term or
H could be potentially passed to the child. The other form of surrogacy is more
U accurately referred to as gestational surrogacy. In this case, the pregnant woman
R is not biologically related to the baby. She is implanted with a fertilized egg and
agrees to turn over the baby at the end of the pregnancy. This option is often used
C
by women with normal ovarian function who have problems with their uterus.
H (Hinders, D. (n.d.). Definition of Surrogacy. Retrieved June 12, 2018, from
’ https://pregnancy.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Definition_of_Surrogacy)
S
T b. In artificial insemination, a doctor inserts sperm directly into a woman's cervix,
E fallopian tubes, or uterus. The most common method is called "intrauterine
insemination (IUI)," when a doctor places the sperm in the uterus.The procedure can
A
be used for many kinds of fertility problems. In cases involving male infertility, it's
C
often used when there's a very low sperm count or when sperm aren't strong enough
H to swim through the cervix and up into the fallopian tubes. When the issue is female
I infertility, it's sometimes done if you have a condition called endometriosis or you
N have anything that's abnormal in your reproductive organs. (WebMD. (n.d.). Infertility
G and Artificial Insemination. Retrieved June 12, 2018, from
S https://www.webmd.com/infertility-and-reproduction/guide/artificial-insemination#1)
CHURCH’S RESPONSE
The development of human life from the fertilized egg (zygote) to adulthood
occurs on a continuum. We may talk about embryo, fetus, infant, child, and adult,
but they are all forms of human life, and he lines between them are not clearly
drawn. No one can say precisely at what point an infant becomes a child, when a
child becomes an adult,or when a fetus is capable of existence ex utero. People in
the middle ages speculated about the point where the embryo became “ensouled”
(some held at conception, others forty or eighty days afterward). In more recent
days, some believe that “quickening” (movement of the fetus in the womb)is the
beginning of a significant new stage, although movement surely took place before
it was detected by the mother. Others cite brain activity or response to a stimuli as
a significant plateau. All this is idle. The fetus at all levels is a form of human life.
It is of the human species. And long before viability or quickening, the fetus ha
the body and all the physical characteristics that are associated with human life.
Life is life: it has a prenatal phase and a postnatal phase. If, at a late stage, the
fetus is “potentially able to live outside the mother’s womb,” it has this same
potentiality in pregnancy also. The only difference is that in one case, the fetus is
closer to achieving its potentiality than in the other.
If one defines persons in a particular way, it will turn out that the fetus is not a
person. Justice Blackmun apparently defined it to mean forms of human life that
have been born, for he defines the unborn the right to life guaranteed by the
Constitution. Admittedly, fetuses cannot hold property, participate in the census,
or count as dependents on income tax forms. But all this is legalistic and has no
bearing on the moral issue. If we define persons, as some psychologists do, as
forms of human life that have become “socialized” or have a clear sense of their
own identity, infants are not persons and would also be denied the right to life. A
theologian may define person as any form of human life possessing a soul and
argue that the fetus is such a form. How can we resolve this definitional dispute?
We do not have to. Somewhere along the line, sooner or later, life achieves
personhood. Even if we do not believe that the fetus is a person, it has in all of its
stages the potentiality of becoming the person. If we value personhood, we must
value that which has the potential of achieving personhood.
The crucial consideration against abortion, then, is that the fetus is a form of
human life, a person or a potential person, and thus has the right to survival. It is
immoral to deprive such a being of life. Richard A. Wasserstrom summarizes a
view that places the fetus in “a distinctive, relatively unique moral category”
somewhat lower than persons but superior to animals.
2. Science and Technology (cybersex (pornography), cyberbullying )
a. Cybersex is the engagement of Internet users in sexual conversation and

physical participation to the level where it is possible to satisfy the urge for sexual
pleasure on personal computers or other Internet enabled gadgets . This is the
interaction may be between two or multiple people and may include or exclude
masturbation . Cybersex has taken many forms over time as technology continues
to be accessible and affordable for all and as the Internet technology continues to
play a major part of most careers. One of the phenomena that have come out of
cybersex is the ‘cyber-affair’.
Cyber-affairs are any romantic or sexually oriented relationships initiated via

online communication and maintained predominantly over electronic
conversations that occur in virtual communities. This kind of relationship can be
continuous between two or more people or it may be random instances of erotic
chat room encounters between or among strangers. (Fasugba-Idowu, G. T., & Hassan,
S. A. (2008). Cybersex: Advantages And Disadvantages. IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social
Science (IOSR-JHSS),14(3), 60-65. Retrieved June 12, 2018, from
http://iosrjournals.org/iosr-jhss/papers/Vol14-issue3/I01436065.pdf)
b. Cyberbullying is bullying that takes place over digital devices like cell phones,
computers, and tablets. Cyberbullying can occur through SMS, Text, and apps, or
online in social media, forums, or gaming where people can view, participate in,
or share content. Cyberbullying includes sending, posting, or sharing negative,
harmful, false, or mean content about someone else. It can include sharing
personal or private information about someone else causing embarrassment or
humiliation. Some cyberbullying crosses the line into unlawful or criminal

behavior.The content an individual shares online – both their personal content as
well as any negative, mean, or hurtful content – creates a kind of permanent
public record of their views, activities, and behavior. This public record can be
thought of as an online reputation, which may be accessible to schools,
employers, colleges, clubs, and others who may be researching an individual now
or in the future. Cyberbullying can harm the online reputations of everyone
involved – not just the person being bullied, but those doing the bullying or
participating in it. (StopBullying.gov. (n.d.). What Is Cyberbullying. Retrieved June 12, 2018,
from https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/what-is-it/index.html)
3. Pre Marital Sex/Artificial Contraception(in passing)
a. Though a human being gains the physical maturity of procreation at the

beginning of puberty, he/she is considered eligible for mating and reproduction
much later may be after 18 years of age or 20. And also the society insists that a
sexual practice outside a marriage is improper and illegal at times. Premarital
sexuality is any sexual activity with an opposite sex partner or with a same sex
partner before he/she has started a married life. The term is usually used to refer
the intercourse before the legal age of a marriage. Adults who presumably marry
eventually also fall under this definition. (Prokeraia. (n.d.). Premarital sexuality and
social effects. Retrieved June 12, 2018, from
https://www.prokerala.com/relationships/sexuality/premarital-sex.htm)
b. Artificialbirth control can be defined as any product, procedure or practice that

uses artificial or unnatural means to prevent pregnancy. Barrier methods such as
condoms and diaphragms, hormonal methods such as the pill and IUDs, and
surgical sterilization procedures such as a vasectomy or hysterectomy are all
considered to be artificial birth control methods. The withdrawal method is
considered by some to be artificial birth control, as well. (Staff, M., & Staff, A. M.
(2017, December 12). What Is the Meaning of Artificial Birth Control? Retrieved June 12, 2018,
from https://www.modernmom.com/2c29a41c-051f-11e2-9d62-404062497d7e.html)
CHURCH’S RESPONSE
Early Christianity clearly teaches that premarital sexual intercourse is immoral.
Jesus, Paul, the four great Fathers of the Latin Church, the medieval schoolmen,
and the great Protestant reformers of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries
agreed in condemning it. The Catholic Church and all major Protestant
denominations today still condemn it.
Though it would be erroneous to construe the sixth beatitude (“blessed are the
pure in heart”) in a narrowly sexual way,Jesus did oppose fornication. In the
account added to the eighth chapter of John, Jesus saved the erring woman from
stoning (“Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at
her”) ans told her that he did not condemn her. He is reported to have said,
however, “go and sin no more.” That Jesus was willing to forgive harlots and
fornicators (and even argue that they were not as bad as the Pharisees) does not
mean that he approved of their conduct. His view, rather, was this: Even the
fornicators, if they repent, may enter the Kingdom.
The fighting edge of early Christianity was the most often directed at the sexual
promiscuity,not only countenanced, but celebrated by the pagan religions. The
fertility rites of the Babylonian and Phoenician religions were widely practiced -
sometimes by Hebrews themselves. Nor where the Olympian gods known for
their chastity. The temple of Aphrodite at Corinth utilized services of hundreds of
temple prostitutes. The Roman brothels were notorious, the word fornication
deriving from fornix, the arch or vault of underground brothels. Against pagan
permissiveness, the early Christians sought to establish a code of sexual purity.
Matthew Arnold regarded chastity and charity as the distinguishing marks of
Early Christianity.
Paul, in his letters to the churches throughout the Hellenistic world, inveighed
against sexual transgressions: Therefore God gave [the pagan idolators] up in the
lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of the bodies. . .Now the works
of the flesh are plain: immorality, impurity, licentiousness. . .But immorality and
all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you. . .Put to death
therefore what is earthly in you: immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire. . .For
this is the will of God, your sanctification, that you abstain from immorality; that
each one of you know how to take a wife for himself in holiness and honor. . .
For Paul, the suppression of lust was an essential part of the Christian task to cast
off the “old man” and grow in grace as a child of God. The sinful body, crucified
with Christ, is to be replaced by a sanctified spirit, increasingly Christ-like, at
peace with itself and with God. Only when the spirit triumphs over the flesh can
the individual enter the kingdom of God.
Premarital sex is a conspicuous example of the triumph of the flesh over the spirit.
To engage in it is to indulge our earthly passion instead of seeking our
transcendent glory. It is to accept our bondage to our bodily passions instead of
living freely in the spirit. A person who engages in illicit sex cannot be the vessel
of the Holy Spirit. He or she has embraced the world in time and death.
The Catholic tradition has consistently viewed same-sex sexual acts as the most
serious of the sexual vices against nature, but has also included contraception and
masturbation in the category. It might seem puzzling to characterize homosexual
acts, masturbation, and contraception by married couples as similar types of sins,
yet that connection points to what is at stake for Catholic moralists: Impeding the
procreative purpose of sexual acts their justification. Thus homosexual acts,
masturbation, and marital sexual acts that use contraception are all illicit because
they interfere with the procreative potential and purpose of sex.
Humanae Vitae outlines this renewed, integral vision of marriage and conjugal
love through four characteristic “marks and demands of conjugal love.” These are
that the love is (1) fully human - it is of the sense and the spirit, combining
instinct ans sentiment with an act of the free will; (2) total - a complete sharing
without “undue reservation or selfish calculations”; (3) faithful and exclusive until
death; and (4) fecund, in that “it is not exhausted by the communion between
husband and wife, but it is destined to continue, raising up new lives.” Fecundity
is one among several other marks of conjugal love that only makes sense when it
is integrated with the total, human, faithful love. There is thus a shift from a
hierarchy that gives the procreative end primacy to a vision of complementarity
that is characterized by the language of the inseperability of the unitive and
procreative ends of marriage. There is a rich and interesting history of this shift;
but for our purposes, this shift serves to mark another way in which the effect of
the contraception debate really extended beyond contraception.
5. Death (suicide and euthanasia)

a. The term suicide describes the act of taking one's own life. There are various
kinds of suicide, so our first task is to clarify our use of the term. Within this
article, we are referring to suicide in the conventional sense, in which someone
plans out or acts upon self-destructive thoughts and feelings, often while they are
experiencing overwhelming stress. “Assisted suicide” occurs when a physician
helps a terminally ill person to die, avoiding an imminent, inevitable and
potentially painful decline. Our current discussion of suicide does not address
assisted suicide.
The intent of suicidal behavior, whether consciously or unconsciously motivated,

is to permanently end one's life. Truly suicidal acts (or, as they are sometimes
called, "gestures") need to be distinguished from other self-harming,
self-injurious, or parasuicidal acts and gestures which are also deliberate, but not
intended to cause death. Typical self-injurious acts include cutting or burning
oneself. The intention behind these behaviors is to cause intense sensation, pain
and damage, but not to end one's life. Self-injurious behaviors may lead to
accidental suicide if they are taken too far, but their initial intent and goal are not
suicidal. (REISS, N. S., PH.D, & DOMBECK, M., PH.D. (2007, October 24). Defining Suicide.
Retrieved June 12, 2018, from https://www.mentalhelp.net/articles/defining-suicide/)
b. Christianity, born at a place and time in which suicide was commonly accepted
as an honorable departure from life, early placed itself in opposition to the
practice.
The commandment “Thou shalt not kill” was interpreted categorically. While
exceptions were made for warfare and the administration of justice, both
legitimate functions of duly ordained governments, none was made in the case of
killing oneself. Suicide is homicide, murder. Nowhere in the Bible is there precept
or permission to take one’s life. Just as Christians are to uphold and respect the
life of others, they are to uphold and respect their own. Although our life is
“given” to us by God, we are God’s creatures and still belong to him. “Hence
whoever takes his own life sins against God, even as he who kills another’s slave
sins against their slave’s master.”
CHURCH’S RESPONSE
There would seem to be some exceptions to the Christian stance against suicide:
The Old Testament hero, Samson, pulled down the building, killing himself along
with his enemies. But Samson, says Augustine, was justified on the ground “that
the Spirit who wrought wonders by him had given him secret instructions to do
this.” Perhaps the holy women who threw themselves into the river to avoid
ravishment during the persecutions, and are today venerated as martyrs, are also
exceptions. Perhaps, they too were “prompted by divine wisdom”; Augustine does
not know. Abraham, when he went to kill Isaac, was prepared to violate the
injunctions against private execution (moreover of an innocent person), but he
certainly was responding to a direct order from God. These cases, indeed, are very
exceptional. “He, then, who knows that it is unlawful to kill himself, may
nevertheless do so if ordered by Him whose commands we may not neglect. Only
let him be very sure that the divine command has been signified.” Jesus
consistently urged his followers to flee persecution to preserve their lives,never
once advising them to “lay violent hands upon themselves.” The members of the
Jim Jones cult in Guyana who took their lives were probably deceived - by their
own feelings and by the monstrous man who gave the orders.
Augustine, who had a vivid conception of the dangers, trials, and temptations of
human existence, inveighed against suicide. Christian women who have been
raped by barbarians should not commit suicide, for the sin was not theirs. And
even if they did sin by assenting in some sense to the act, suicide would be wrong.
For here, as in all cases of moral disgrace (including that of Judas), suicide
precludes the opportunity to repent. Those who commit suicide for fear that they
will do an immorality have foolishly chosen a certain sin over an uncertain sin.
The pagans mistakenly extol the purity of Lucretia, the noble matron of ancient
Rome who destroyed herself after having been raped by King Tarquin’s son. Her
act “was prompted not by love of purity, but by the overwhelming burden of her
shame.”
Christians may expect many tribulations in this “vale of tears” through which they
must pass. If some are relatively fortunate in this life, they need only look at the
misfortunes of others now and in times past - or read the account of Job in the Old
Testament. The recourse of the Christian is not to take his or her life but to call on
God for help during times of distress. God does not inflict anything on us that we
cannot, with God’s help, bear. Misery may be the occasion for a closer union with
God. And there is the ultimate consolation that we are members of a higher realm
than the “earthly city”: We belong to the “city of God,” where there is infinite and
everlasting peace. One of the great Christian virtues is hope. Paul wrote: “we
know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and
not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit,
groan inwardly as we wait for adoptions as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
For in this hope we are saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes
for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with
patience.” It is through hope that another great virtue is sustained: fortitude.
M What Does It Mean to Be Human? (20 minutes)
I
S 1. Write the words "HUMAN" and "RIGHTS" at the top of chart paper or a
S blackboard. Below the word "human" draw a circle or the outline of a human being.
I
O Ask students to brainstorm what qualities define a human being and write the words
or symbols inside the outline. For example, "intelligence," "sympathy."
N
A
2. Next ask students what they think is needed in order to protect, enhance, and
R fully develop these qualities of a human being. List their answers outside the circle,
Y and ask participants to explain them. For example, "education," "friendship,"
"loving family."
R
E 3. Discuss:
S
P  What does it mean to be fully human? How is that different from just "being
O alive" or "surviving"?
N
S  Based on this list, what do people need to live in dignity?
E
 Are all human beings essentially equal? What is the value of human
differences?
 Can any of our "essential" human qualities be taken from us? For example,
only human beings can communicate with complex language; are you
human if you lose the power of speech?
 What happens when a person or government attempts to deprive someone

of something that is necessary to human dignity?
 What would happen if you had to give up one of these human necessities?
4. Explain that everything inside the circle relates to human dignity, the wholeness
of being human. Everything written around the outline represents what is necessary
to human dignity. Human rights are based on these necessities.
Read these sentences from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR)
and explain that this document sets the standard for how human beings should
behave towards one another so that everyone’s human dignity is respected:
…recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights
of all members of the human family is the foundation of the freedom, justice,
and peace in the world…
Preamble
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are
endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in
a spirit of brotherhood.
Article 1
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
http://hrlibrary.umn.edu/edumat/hreduseries/hereandnow/Part-3/Activity1.htm
B. ON FAMILY
C In the family, which is a community of persons, special attention must be devoted

O to the children, by developing a profound esteem for their personal dignity, and a
N great respect and generous concern for their rights. This is true for every child, but
T it becomes more urgent the smaller the child is, and the more it is in need of
E everything, when it is sick, suffering or handicapped.
X
T
By fostering and exercising a tender and strong concern for every child that comes
into this world, the Church fulfills a fundamental mission: for she is called upon
to reveal and put forward anew in history the example and commandment of
Christ the lord, who placed the child at the heart of the Kingdom of God: “Let the
children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of
heaven.”
… I wish to express the joy that we all find in children, the springtime of life, and
the anticipation of the future history of each of present earthly homelands. No
country on earth, no political system can think of its own future otherwise than
through the image of these new generations that will receive from their parents the
manifold heritage of values, duties and aspirations of the nation to which they
belong and of the whole human family. Concern for the child, even before birth,
from the first moment of conception and then throughout the years of infancy and
youth, is the primary and fundamental test of the relationship of one human being
to another. And so, what better wish can I express for every nation and for the
whole of mankind, and for the children of the world than a better future in which
respect for human rights will become a complete reality throughout the third
millennium, which is drawing near.
Acceptance, love, esteem, many-sided and united material, emotional, educational

and spiritual concern for every child that comes into this world should always
constitute a distinctive, essential characteristic of all Christian in particular of the
Christian family: thus children, while they grow “in wisdom and in stature and in
favor with God and man’’’ offer their own precious contribution to building up
the family community and even to the sanctification of their parents. (Source: Pope
John Paul II. (2005). Familiaris Consortio: Apostolic Exhortation of Pope John Paul II on the
Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World. Pasay City: Paulines Publishing House
Daughters of St. Paul)
I 1. responsible parenthood/family planning

N Parenthood is the state of being a parent. Traditionally, it means being a father or
S mother of the biological child. When adoption is involved , the parents are the
P legal father or mother (couple) of the child. Parenting is defined as the skills,
I experiences, abilities, and responsibilities involved in rearing and educating a
R child.
E
D
Responsible parenthood is the will and ability to respond to the needs and
aspirations of the family and children. It is a shared responsibility between
W husband and wife to determine and achieve the desired number and spacing of
O their children according to their own family, life aspirations, taking into account
R psychological preparedness, health status, socio-cultural, and economic concerns
D (PPMP DP 2005-2010). Responsible parenting (RP) is defined as the series of
S decisions couples make to ensure the best possible life for the family and for the
& community to which the family belongs . RP is a commitment to ensure the
C well-being of the family and to enable each member to fully develop his/her
H capabilities and potentials.
U
R
C In the context of any religion, Responsible Parenting is defined as the ability of
H the parents to raise children in the Filipino way and to satisfy the social, economic
’ and religious responsibilities of the family. It is also the parent’s accountability
S to provide a good quality of life, both material and spiritual to their family,
children, and community. Responsible parenting also includes the process of
deciding how many children to have and when to have them.
T
E
A
a. Duties and Responsibilities of Parents
C
H Parenting involves the abilities, skills, responsibilities, duties and life experiences
I in attending to and providing for the physical, emotional, intellectual, financial,
N and spiritual needs of the children. Parenting also includes the inculcation of
G values and the instilling of discipline. It entails a lot of hard work and great
S responsibilities; no time-out, no vacation or sick live. It takes 24/7 in fulfilling
parenting roles. Thus, parents face a lot of challenges. Once a parent, always a
parent.
b. Provision of Physical Care and Love
 The physical, emotional and mental health of children depends on the quality
of prenatal care they receive.
 The duty and responsibility starts during the prenatal stage.
c. Inculcating Discipline
 Parents should be role models in inculcating discipline in their children.
 Children should be trained to think and reason out for themselves and be able
to distinguish between right and wrong.
 They should learn to accept limitations, to appreciate the value of freedom
with responsibility and understand the requirements of living happily and
peacefully with other people.
d. Developing Social Competence

 Socially competent children children are described as friendly, happy,
self-confident, responsible, imaginative, alert and energetic. These children
have good communication skills and a high emotional quotient (EQ).
 Social competence can only be achieved if children have a high self-esteem.
This is developed by allowing them to do things on their own, to think for
themselves and to make age-appropriate decisions.
2. Care for the elderly

Population ageing has significant social and economic implications at the
individual, family, and societal levels. It also has important consequences and
opportunities for a country’s development. Although the percentage of older
persons is currently much higher in developed countries, the pace of population
ageing is much more rapid in developing countries and their transition from a
young to an old age structure will occur over a shorter period. Not only do
developing countries have less time to adjust to a growing population of older
persons, they are at much lower levels of economic development and will
experience greater challenges in meeting the needs of the increasing numbers of
older people.
Financial security is one of the major concerns as people age. It is an issue for
both older persons and a growing challenge for families and societies. Population
ageing is raising concerns about the ability of countries to provide adequate social
protection and social security for the growing numbers of older persons. In many
countries, the expectation is that the family will take care of its economically
dependent older members. While some families support their older relatives,
others are not in a financial position to do so in a way that does not affect their
own economic situation. Older persons who do not have family to support them
are especially vulnerable. Informal support systems for older persons are
increasingly coming under stress, as a consequence, among others, of lower
fertility, out-migration of the young, and women working outside the home. There
is an increasing consensus that countries must develop social protection systems
that cover at least the basic needs of all older persons. Ensuring a secure income
in old age is seen as a major challenge for governments facing fiscal problems and
competing priorities. Some countries are increasingly worried whether they will
be able to pay for pensions and whether they will ultimately be able to prevent a
rise of poverty in old age, particularly in countries where the majority of older
persons are employed in the informal sector. While many developed countries and
some emerging economies are challenged with an ageing workforce and ensuring
the sustainability of pension systems, most developing countries have to establish
their systems now when the challenge is less acute and when the fiscal space
available for social policies is increasing as a consequence of the “demographic
dividend”.
Health is another major concern for older persons. The demographic transition to
an ageing population, accompanied by an epidemiological transition from the
predominance of infectious diseases to non communicable diseases, is associated
with an increasing demand for health care and long-term care. Although not an
inevitable outcome of growing old, the numbers of older people affected by
mental health problems are increasing due to population ageing. Their
management has become an increasing concern for both developing and
developed countries. Maintaining good health and access to health care is a core
concern of older people everywhere. In many developed countries quality of care
and rising health care costs are major issues related to population ageing. Many
developing countries are challenged by a double cost burden: the costs related to
infectious diseases may still be high while population ageing and the rising
number of non-communicable diseases are putting additional pressure on
resource-strained health-care systems.
Poor conditions earlier in life place older people at risk of serious health problems
and adversely affect their health and vitality. The understanding that the living
environment, working conditions, nutrition and lifestyle choices in younger years
influence our health in older age should be a key ingredient for policies and
programs with an intergenerational focus. As populations age, it is critical that
health systems and the training of health professionals at all levels are adjusted to
meet the requirements of older people, and that ageing is recognized within
diagnostic, curative and rehabilitative care programs within the formal health
system, especially at primary and community level. Ensuring enabling and
supportive environments as people grow older is a significant challenge, so that
older persons can age actively and participate in the political, social, economic
and cultural life of society. This means that living arrangements, including
housing and transportation are age-friendly, to ensure older persons can “age in
place” and remain independent for as long as possible. Older persons, who find
themselves in conflict situations, natural disasters – including those resulting from
climate change – and other humanitarian emergencies, are particularly vulnerable.
When younger generations migrate to cities or abroad, older persons are often left
behind without traditional family support.
3. Divorce/ Extra Marital Affairs
Divorce is the dissolution of marital relations; in this process marriage is
completely broken down either in social or legal context. The Black Dictionary of
law has defined divorce as "the legal separation of husband and wife affected by
the judgment of decree of a court and either totally dissolving the married
relations or suspending its effect so far as concern the combination of the
practices. Divorcees are free to remarry after divorce where as separation may not
allow it. Divorce is nothing and in common senses it is taken easily somewhere in
which a couple ends their marital relations and starts to remarry, but it may create
some vital problems in the family, like adjusting to new life.
Similarly, the situation of children after the divorce of their parents would face
troubles, disturbances and challenges. They would be mentally tortured, Problem
of raring and caring of the children may arise due to the absent of their parents,
even as the divorcee may be mentally disturbed. Remarriage of the divorced
female is very difficult due to social and cultural practices. However, there are
different cases of divorce seen in each and every society either in developed or in
underdeveloped, secular or non-secular and in different caste and ethnic groups.
But this is true that the ratio of divorce found in modern society is higher than
previous one. Secular societies are more tolerant and more open for a divorce
woman. "The younger generation is increasingly ignorant of the ritualistic basis of
their religion. Due to the social and cultural complexities, mobility for job, impact
of secularism, global impact of capitalism, emerging legal grounds, of
industrialization and urbanization, changing attitudes on traditional norms and
value system is causing disintegration of marital relations. Therefore developed
and modern societies have more fertile grounds for divorce.(Sociological Analysis of
Divorce: A Case Study from Pokhara, Nepal.
https://www.nepjol.info/index.php/DSAJ/article/download/284/274)
4. Family Gaps
Parenting is the most influential factor to a child’s growth and development
therefor a very important aspect of a person’s totality in relation to his/her
intrapersonal and interpersonal relationship. Parenting style is defined as overall
climate of parent child interactions. It is a way of elevating the overall well-being of
a child to be able to deal with future struggles of life. The construct of parenting
style is used to capture normal variations in parents’ attempts to control and
socialize with their children.
Parenting style captures two important elements of parenting: parental

responsiveness and parental demandingness. Parental responsiveness (also referred
to as parental warmth or supportiveness) refers to “the extent to which parents
intentionally foster individuality, self-regulation, and self-assertion by being

attuned, supportive, and acquiescent to children’s special needs and demands”.
Parental demandingness (also referred to as behavioral control) refers to “the
claims parents make on children to become integrated into the family whole, by
their maturity demands, supervision, disciplinary efforts and willingness to
confront their child who disobeys” .
Parents are more anxious as compared to other generations. “…everything is on the

internet, so all kinds of worries are actually published so I think the millennial
parents are more anxious now compared to the parents of the last generations” as
said by the second millennial respondent. They tend to be very protective because
all kinds of information are very easily accessed through the net which are not.
Also, millennial parents find it difficult to balance their time between works and to
always attend to their children’s needs. With the availability and inclination of
gadgets like phone, tablets and personal computers/laptops, parenting tends to be
mediated or substituted by technological use which creates the progression of
virtual parenting. Being too preoccupied with technology makes the child to be
impatient and distracted.
CHURCH’S RESPONSE
Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that parents have always tried to influence the
human ‘quality’ of their children. The whole nurturing and educational process is
directed towards ‘forming’ their children-and this includes religious up-bringing
as well. Hence, in a sense it is very natural and very good for parents to want the
best for their children. However, there is a very delicate line between ‘wanting the
best’ and ‘determining the best’. Because their children are human persons in their
own right, the ‘best’ would seem to include safeguarding and even increasing
their children’s capacity for self-determination. Manipulation is a dominative
exercise of power by parents over their children aimed, albeit unconsciously
perhaps, at determining their children’s identity as persons.
If the diminution of the capacity for self-determination is seen as a violation of a

person’s dignity in the social and educational field, the same must surely be true
with regard to modifications in a person’s make-up that it might be possible to
bring about though genetic therapy and engineering. Truly human therapy is
directed towards enabling a person to live as fully as possible as an individual
member of humankind. Hence, it seeks to cure or even eliminate pathological
factors which diminish a person’s options in life. However, if genetic therapy
were used to exaggerate certain human traits (e.g. tallness for athletic or sporting
prowess, intelligence through ‘Nobel Prize quality’ breeding, etc.), the likely
outcome would be that a person would be to that extent ‘distanced’ from his or
her fellow human beings. That would have a major impact on determining such as
a person’s ‘originality’. To that extent his or her uniqueness as a person would be
deliberately determined by other people. I suggest that would constitute a
violation of a most sacred dimension of our being a human person. The same kind
of consideration would put a large question mark against parents choosing the sex
of their children, if genetic engineering ever made this a possibility for humans.
M Set a Family Bonding through a Picnic
I
S
Enjoy an excursion on the water followed by a picnic. Many recreational and
S
outdoor places are available for your family bonding. Pack a lunch and set out on an
I adventure to a nearby island, beach, or park, or along the banks of a nearby river.
O Make this family bonding a time to share our stories, dine together, giggle, play
N games, swim together or party together. It's an opportunity to enjoy being together
A while leaving the baggage of daily life behind. "It's about having everything that
R you need, and needing only what you have."
Y
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S
P
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SELECTED READINGS:
Bolser, K., & Gosciej, R. (2015). Millennials: Multi-Generational Leaders Staying Connected. Journal
of Practical Consulting, Vol. 5(Iss. 2), pp. 1.
Darling, N. (1999). Parenting Style and Its correlates. ERIC Digest.
DeChane, D. J. (2014). How to explain the Millennial Generation? Understand the Context. Inquiries
Journal, VOL. 6. NO. 03, PG. 2/3.
Mary Venus Joseph, P., & Jilly John. (2008). Impact of Parenting Style on Child Development. Global
academic Society Journal: Social Science Insight III,
What is Traditional Parenting. (2011, September 22). Retrieved from Parenting Old School:
www.parentingoldschool.com/parenting-old-school-/what-is-traditional-parenting/
FINALS
III. CHRISTIAN MORALITY: SOCIAL AND ECOLOGICAL ISSUES AND
CHURCH’S RESPONSES
A. ON SOCIETY
C “Globalization in the middle part of the twentieth century had stirred crucial and
O tremendous changes in all aspects of human life, whether social, economic,
N religious, political or cultural.” At a time when the world had just adjusted to
T the changes and challenges brought by industrialization, this unexpected
E phenomenon crept in. If one reflects upon on both the credit and debit of
X globalization, it is realized that whatever good that has come out of it is to a large
extent a by-product – sometimes a totally unintended by-product – of a process
T
whose basic motivation is the expansion of markets, the maximization of
profits and accumulation of wealth.
Many people do not visibly see the ill-effects of globalization because this
phenomenon has come down in the guise of new technology, economic growth
and development. Technology as Bernard Adeney claimed, is considered as the
sweet fruit of globalization, the tool of development, the sign of progress, and the
symbol of hope, security, prosperity and freedom. But aside from this, it should
not be ignored that globalization is a symbol of status and power, inequality and
injustice, and that it often benefits the few (the rich) at the expense of many (the
poor).
The Philippines was not spared from the impacts of globalization. As it is

narrated “advocacy and advances in human dignity are interacting and intersecting
with gross violations of women’s and children’s human rights. Inequality and
poverty are so widespread. There are heroic efforts for peace in Mindanao, but
they have not ended violence, terror, and war.
I 1. Corruption
N Generally speaking as “the abuse of entrusted power for private gain”. Corruption
S can be classified as grand, petty and political, depending on the amounts of money
P lost and the sector where it occurs. Grand corruption consists of acts committed
I at a high level of government that distort policies or the central functioning of the
R state, enabling leaders to benefit at the expense of the public good. Petty
corruption refers to everyday abuse of entrusted power by low- and mid-level
E
public officials in their interactions with ordinary citizens, who often are trying to
D access basic goods or services in places like hospitals, schools, police departments
and other agencies.
W
O Political corruption is a manipulation of policies, institutions and rules of
R procedure in the allocation of resources and financing by political decision
D makers, who abuse their position to sustain their power, status and wealth. (E.V., T.
S I. (n.d.). Thank You for Donating toTransparency International! Retrieved June 13, 2018, from
https://www.transparency.org/what-is-corruption#define)
&
C 2. Unjust labor Practices (unjust dismissal, stockholding mindset)
H Termination of a contract of employment without due process or in a manner that
U violates the terms of the contract is called unjust dismissal. In such cases, the
R courts usually take the employee's contractual rights into consideration in
C awarding damages. Also called wrongful discharge or wrongful termination.
H
’ 3. consumerism (materialism/commodification)
S Commodification, is a process of not distinguishing anymore either consciously
T or unconsciously between human and non human entities resulting from a
E capitalist perspective solely for the sake of profiteering. Moreover, in the process
A of commodification, not only is the human person reduced to a tool that has an
C exchange value but also his relations. The given explanation above on how
laborers and practically human beings are exploited, and consequently
H
commodified, may be an oversimplification. But this is how exploitation is
I essentially nowadays.
N
G
S Commodification, which directly affects human beings, is a human creation;
therefore, it can be solved. However, human reality is not the only reality that gets
affected. People's commodifying consciousness has greatly altered not only the
human world (the world as perceived by human beings) but also the natural world.
Because human beings in a capitalist society amass wealth, both human beings
and environment are exploited. The exploitation of the former has found
numerous criticisms from different political humanist perspectives. Some of
the exploitations, to name some, are contractualization of workers, prostitution,
child labor, and others. Workers in contractualization are commodified because
workers are seen as tools, not different from machines, that if workers' services
are no longer needed, they will be scrapped. Moreover, even the consciousness
among workers is already working within the ambits of commodification because
they no longer perceive work as an extension of their being but merely as a tool
for survival. Workers had to find a way to maximize their pay and minimize their
work load which in turn will greatly effect the quality of service they will be
giving. This will contribute to the decrease of the quality of service which in
turn will be disadvantageous to a any institution.
In other words, commodification has not just affected employers but even
employees as well and will have the negative effects just explained. The
exploitation of nature and the danger this act may bring, on the other hand, have
just recently been introduced into the minds of people. In the article Capitalism
and the Accumulation of Wealth by John Bellany Foster, it is as though a prophet
has given his message of judgment in this statement: Over the next few decades
we are facing the possibility, indeed the probability, of global catastrophe on a
level unprecedented in human history. The message of science is clear. As James
Hansen, the foremost climate scientist in the United States, has warned, this may
be “our last chance to save humanity.” (John Bellamy Foster, “Capitalism and the
Accumulation of Catastrophe,” Monthly Review: An Independent Socialist Magazine, Vol. 63
Issue 7(Dec2011).
4. Responsible Citizenship
Everyone has a duty to be a responsible citizen. But unfortunately, not everyone

takes this responsibility seriously. There are plenty of people the world over who
do not know what being a responsible citizen means and these are the people who
destroy our communities. For being a responsible citizen results in a happy and
harmonious community – if everyone else does the same. Being a responsible

citizen covers many areas – some of them legal obligations, some social and some
moral. So of course, because not all of them are legal obligations, being a
responsible citizen is not as easy as staying within the law. In fact, to be a truly
responsible citizen, we sometimes must go out of our way to do things which help
our society – give a little of our time and effort for the greater good.
No one can be a responsible citizen without staying within the law. It is as simple
as that. Criminals, by their very nature, are not behaving as responsible citizens.
Laws exist to protect citizens, the communities they live in and their property. So
to be a responsible citizen, we must respect these laws and abide by them.
Harming others or others’ property does not equate to being a good citizen.Social
obligations really form the bulk of being a responsible citizen and what this
means. To be a responsible citizen, we should help our communities and those
who live in them. So, being a responsible citizen can encompass things such as
volunteering. (Walker, J., BA. (2018, February 13). Being a Responsible Citizen. Retrieved
June 13, 2018, from http://www.responsiblecitizen.co.uk/being-a-responsible-citizen.html)
5. Religious Diversity
Religious pluralism is a historical situation that characterizes our world today. It is
a neutral paradigm for Christian theology. As a new paradigm, it leads us to
experience a theological turning point. We are in a new historical situation" one
that is no longer dominated as in the last century, by religious indifference and
secularization but by the plurality of religious faiths. This is also the result of a
real doctrinal revolution ushered in by Vatican II in its pronouncement of a
positive judgment on non Christian religions. The seeds of truth and holiness in
other religious traditions are now recognized. (Vatican II, Nostra Aetate).
Vatican II's well known statement opened the door to relationships with other
faiths. The statement of the magisterium went beyond domination and conversion.
Religions have something positive to offer to one another, which are not just
functionally or dynamically equivalent. What the religions are offering and
saying is not the same thing, in different forms, but unique and irreplaceable ways
of salvation.
Crossing boundaries leads us into the diversity of truth conditions of other cultural
and religious traditions- Truth lies also elsewhere, outside the walls of Christianity
and the Church (Hebrews 13:14). Since Vatican II, crossing frontiers has become
a central concept in pastoral efforts to open out a dialogue with the world and all
its cultures and traditions (Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes). The world which is
becoming increasingly secular, must be infused with faith (lumen), joy (gaudium)
and hope (spes). Crossing frontiers leads us to the world of the new generation
that emphasizes religious freedom, self-emancipation and group solidarity. It also
leads us to the issues raised by feminism and ecology as weII as fundamentalism
and secularism. Two social forces are distinctively responsible for the emergence
of these issues: modernization and secularization. Modernity is the outcome of
secularization.
There is a great need to address the challenge to enlarge the space for
interreligious exchange, intercultural communication" and interfaith witness. This
is inevitable. We have to acknowledge that all religious traditions are the products
of historical and political processes. Their distinctiveness is constructed upon

these processes and events. Pluralism serves as a powerful reminder of the
'constructive-ness of religion. Hence, acknowledgment of the fragility and
limited nature of all human discourse about the divine is significant Christian
theology tells us that God is the foundation of all knowledge and makes dialogue
between the world and religions and between believers and non-believers
possible. Differences are not only to be tolerated. They must also be celebrated.
Diversity is to be valued to transform the world into a better place to live in.
Hence, openness to the religious-other would uncover potentialities for
approaching the plural mystery of God and the riches of Gods infinite wisdom.
CHURCH’S RESPONSE
Structures, institutions and laws should not be thought of a necessary evil we have
to endure. They are essential features of embodiment as applying to the field of
social relationships. They are all related to what Catholic social thinkers have
termed ‘the common good’. This is not something impersonal to which or good as
individual persons has to be sacrificed. The common good refers to the state of
affairs which is needed in any particular society if the individual goods of its
members are to be safeguarded and promoted. Although Vatican II is more
concerned about pastoral renewal than precise definitions, it considers the notion
of the common good sufficiently important to present a carefully worded
definition of it in three different places. For instance, Gaudium et Spes follows its
treatment of the interdependence of the human person and society with the
statement: ‘The common good is the sum of those conditions of social life which
allow social groups and their individual members relatively through and ready
access to their own fulfillment (n.26; cf. also n.74 and Declaration on Religious
Freedom, n.6).
To say the structures, institutions and laws are indispensable since they flow from
this social dimension of being a human person is not to suggest that such
structures, institutions and laws are not of human origin. In other words, it is quite
consistent with recognizing that they may vary from culture to culture and from
age to age. There will always be a changeable dimension to them and, as a
human constructs, they are necessarily imperfect. That is why it would be a denial
of our very humanity to look for some ideal Christian social order. Any political
party which claimed to base its manifesto as such an ideal Christian social order is
living in a dream-world and is not doing justice to the reality of the human person.
If that is true, what about the body of social thought which goes under the heading
of ‘Catholic social teaching’ and which is clearly so dear to the heart of Pope John
Paul II? There is no doubt that sometimes this social thought is spoken of almost
as thought it is offering some kind of ideal Christian social order. However, a
more careful exegesis of the major ‘social encyclicals’ as seen in their historical
context reveals that they were very clearly ‘situational’ documents. They were
responding to particular situations of structural injustice or dehumanizing social
movements which in their day were seriously harming the lives of people,
especially the poor. For instance, the very first of the great social encyclicals,
Rerum Novarum (1891), was a response to some of the problems caused by the
Industrial Revolution. Too few people controlled the sources of wealth with the
result that very many people were living in dire poverty and enduring inhuman
working conditions. Rerum Novarum defended the right of workers to form trade
unions and demanded a just wage for them. It argued that private property,
though a legitimate institution, was only a secondary right and founded on the
more basic truth that the good of this earth are given for the good of all people. It
opposed ‘class struggle’ as being divisive and so not an effective way of creating
a more just society. Hence, it was against the socialist movement of the time
because it was so strongly wedded to the ‘class struggle’.
A careful exegesis shows that most of the other major social encyclicals have
largely followed a similar approach. They attempted to read what seemed to be
going on in society in the light of what they saw to be basic principles for social
life which flowed from a Christian world-view. It is this gradual elaboration of
these basic principles over the past 100 years that is usually referred to as
‘Catholic social teaching’. To a casual observer it can give the impression of
offering a blueprint for a Christian social order. When properly understood, it
does nothing of the sort. It operates more as a kind of check-list of social values,
formulated in various ways, which can be helpful in a critical evaluation of any
particular society. ‘Catholic social teaching’ is often enunciated in the form of
general principles which insist on certain facets of social organization that need to
be borne in mind if a society it to be truly respectful of human persons. The
principle of subsidiarity is a good example of this. It is enunciated in terms of a
general principle in Quadragesimo Anno, n.79:
Just as it is gravely wrong to take from individuals what they can accomplish by
their own initiative and industry and give it to the community, so also it is an
injustice and at the same time a grave evil and disturbance of right order to assign
to a greater and higher association what lesser and subordinate organizations can
do.
M Blogs:
I
S
S Social justice projects can be challenging because they take students and teachers
I outside of their comfort zones. To be successful, start by establishing an
O atmosphere where students feel safe sharing their opinions and by developing a
N classroom culture of respect. Consider some exercises or projects that are private in
A nature (shared only within the classroom) and others that are public. Factor in
R student comfort levels and context when deciding where the projects will be shared.
Y
Of all the meaningful experiences that we can provide students, those related to
R social justice might be the most important. All the facts, concepts, and skills we
E teach are for nothing if students are unable to use that knowledge in ways that
S improve the world around us.
P
O
N
Students can create online posts that consist of text, images, artwork, links, and
S video around a given theme. These posts, depending on frequency and length,
E might take the form of an online essay, a short daily/weekly reflection, or a
large-scale research project.
SELECTED READINGS:
“Development, Justice and Peace,” CBCP Monitor, Feb 15-28, 2010, sec. A, p.4.
Saint Augustine Confessions, translated by Henry Chadwick, (Great Britain: Cox and Wyman Ltd.,
1998), p.125.
The Editorial, “Glorious Rhetoric, Notorious Realities,” Impact, Vol. 41, no.2, Dec 2007, 23.
Michael Walsh and Brian Davies, Proclaiming Justice and Peace: Papal Documents from Rereum
Novarum through Centesimus Annu, (Mystic, Cennecticut: Twenty-Third Publications, 1991), p. 19.
Pope Benedict XVI, In the Beginning...A Catholic Understanding of the Story of Creation and the Fall,
(Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1995), 82.
Harvey Cox, The Market as God: Living in the New Dispensation, The Atlantic Monthly 283, no . 3
(March 1999): 18.
B. ON ENVIRONMENT/ECOLOGY (Philippine environmental situationer)

(calamities)
C The world faces more daunting environmental challenges. Global warming has
O cause climate changes disrupting the natural cycles and weather patterns. While
N hurricanes are getting stronger, droughts are becoming longer and more intense.
T Mountain glaciers around the world have receded, increasing sea levels which
E could bury low-lying islands underwater. Global warming is partly caused by
X greenhouse gases released by natural phenomena. Large quantities of these gases
come from anthropogenic activities like the burning of fossil fuels. Changing
T
pattern of rainfall leads to local shortage of food and health problems and even
armed disputes. Many water sources are threatened by faulty waste disposal,
industrial pollutants, fertilizer un-off, and saltwater intrusion into underground
aquifer leading to unsafe drinking water and depletion of ground water. Soil has
been contaminated by excess of salts and hazardous chemicals. Erosion and
exhaustion of nutrients and trace elements have degraded the quality of soil
resulting in poor crop harvests. Deforestation and mining are among human
activities which have adversely affected biodiversity.
In the Philippines, there is ecological consciousness that co-exists with species

extinction because of illegal logging, mining, fishing, and so on. Human life and
the natural world are definitely under threat. A new vision of life must be
founded on the conviction that human are embedded in nature and nature is also
embedded in human beings. Dianne Bergant argues “we are truly children of the
universe, made of the same stuff as are the mountains and the rain, the sand and
the stars. We are governed by the laws of life and growth and death as are the
birds and the fish and the grass of the fields. We thrive in the warmth of and
through the agency of the sun as does every other living thing.”
I 1. Pollution
N Pollution is the process of making land, water, air or other parts of the
S environment dirty and not safe or suitable to use. This can be done through the
P introduction of a contaminant into a natural environment, but the contaminant
I doesn't need to be tangible. Things as simple as light, sound and temperature can
R be considered pollutants when introduced artificially into an
E environment. Pollution is the undesirable change in the physical , chemical, and
D biological conditions of the environment. Pollution generally treated in three
natural categories: air water, and land.
W
O a. Air Pollution
R There are five major pollutants discharged into the atmosphere: carbon
D monoxide, particulate, sulfur oxides, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides. Its
S major sources, aside from motor vehicles, are fuel combustion of
& electric-power plants, industrial processes and burning of solid wastes.
C
H
U The effects of air pollution on us are varied. Excessive inhalation of carbon
R monoxide displaces oxygen in our blood, and therefore, reduces the amount
C of oxygen carried to the body tissues. Sulfur oxides, on the other hand, are
H believed to cause temporary and permanent injury to our respiratory
’ system,through the irritation of the lung tissue and upper respiratory tract.
S Photochemical oxidants, like nitrogen dioxide, aldehydes, and peroxyzcyl can
T cause eye irritation. The intake of nitrogen oxides, particularly by children,
E increases their susceptibility to contact flu.
A
C
H
I
N
b. Water Pollution
G
S Water is one of the most important natural resources that we necessary to
sustain our life in this planet. But, the growth of population and industry, as
well as, the increase of agricultural production, results in a heavier
water-borne load of insecticides, herbicides, and nitrates. These pollutants
spread not only into our streams, rivers, lakes, and seas, but into our ground
water as well.
c. Land Pollution
The land around us makes it possible for us to establish structures, like
housing settlements and industrial complexes, which support our activities. It
is also the medium through we can have agricultural products. Landforms,
like mountain ranges, contain mineral resources that we need for industrial
progress. All of these make land a valuable resource for us. But, when we
misuse land, we experience environmental pollution and the depletion of our
land-based resources.
Land pollution may be traced to two general resources; 1) solid wastes from
domestic, commercial, and industrial activities, and 2) agricultural pollution
from pesticides and fertilizers.
Other sources of land, air, and water pollution are due to the use of fossil fuels
for industrial purposes; lead emissions from cars, increasing number of
refrigerators and air conditioners, dumping of toxic wastes, and many more.
2. Mining Industry
The Philippines is the fifth most mineral-rich country in the world for gold,
nickel, copper, and chromite. It is home to the largest copper-gold deposit in the
world. The Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) has estimated that the country
has an estimated $840 billion worth of untapped mineral wealth, as of 2012.
About 30 million hectares of land areas in the Philippines is deemed as possible

areas for metallic minerals. According to the Mines and Geosciences Bureau
(MGB), about nine million hectares of land areas is identified as having high
mineral potential. The Philippines metal deposit is estimated at 21.5 billion metric
tons and non-metallic minerals are at 19.3 billion metric tons, as of 2012.
(QUINTANS, J. D. (2017, September 04). Mining industry in the Philippines. Retrieved June 12,
2018, from http://www.manilatimes.net/mining-industry-philippines/348610/)
3. Massive Industrialization
Some two to three centuries ago, huge social and economic advances marked the
worldwide evolution from a conservative agricultural and commercial society to

an experimental industrial civilization. Manufacture of new mechanical
innovations to ease the tasks of mankind had replaced manual labor and
conventional tools our ancestors had used long ago. Perhaps you recall from
history books how in just a few decades of this period, the global village
competently accepted the countless innovations made like the electricity,
automobiles and telephones.
Philippines’ workforce has long been known worldwide for the efficiency it
presents. Thousands of overseas Filipino workers are hired every year. This
proves how foreigners feel satisfied at the service of Philippine natives. In fact, a
study has been conducted by the Swiss International Institute for Management
Development in 2004 which reveals that Philippines ranks number one in Asia in
terms of availability of skilled workforce. Aside from being naturally smart and
respectful, Filipino workers are also efficient in speaking English. Also, labor in
the Philippines is priced markedly low, compared to equally qualified employees
from other countries. These are the main reasons why the Philippines seems to be
a potential location for call centers. (GlobalSky. (n.d.). The #1 Best Value Call Center in the
Philippines. Retrieved June 12, 2018, from
http://globalsky.com/industrial-revolution-in-the-philippines/)
4. Reforestation
Reforestation is the natural or intentional restocking of existing forests and
woodlands (forestation) that have been depleted, usually through deforestation.
Reforestation can be used to rectify or improve the quality of human life by
soaking up pollution and dust from the air, rebuild natural habitats and
ecosystems, mitigate global warming since forests facilitate biosequestration of
atmospheric carbon dioxide, and harvest for resources, particularly timber, but
also non-timber forest products.
A similar concept, afforestation, another type of forestation, refers to the process

of restoring and recreating areas of woodlands or forests that may have existed
long ago but were deforested or otherwise removed at some point in the past or
lacked it naturally (e.g., natural grasslands). Sometimes the term "re-afforestation"
is used to distinguish between the original forest cover and the later re-growth of
forest to an area. Special tools, e.g. tree planting bars, are used to make planting of
trees easier and faster. (Cousineau, L. (n.d.). Reforestation Definition. Retrieved June 12,
2018, from http://www.climate-change-guide.com/reforestation-definition.html)
5. Waste management
According to a report of the Senate Economic Planning Office, the Philippines in
2016 was generating at least 40,000 metric tons of waste a day. And
waste-to-energy companies need at least 16,000 tons of trash annually to generate
1MW of energy. With the amount of trash that the Philippines is generating,
waste-to-energy companies can provide electricity to a handful of areas in the
country that are experiencing energy demand challenges.
Waste management is the collection, transportation, and disposal of garbage,

sewage, and other waste products. Waste management encompasses management

of all processes and resources for proper handling of waste materials, from
maintenance of waste transport trucks and dumping facilities to compliance with
health codes and environmental regulations. (PALAFOX, F. A. (2018, March 08). Waste
management: Saving the Philippine islands, tourism and the environment. Retrieved June 13,
2018, from
http://www.manilatimes.net/waste-management-saving-the-philippine-islands-tourism-and-the-env
ironment/384758/)
CHURCH’S RESPONSE:
The encyclical Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (SRS), which speaks of the Christian
doctrine on the environment, gives and explains the three main reasons why we
are to respect our environment, including our natural resources. Some of the ideas
included are the following:
1. The natural cosmos must not be used “simply as one wishes according to
one’s own economic needs”;
2. Natural resources are limited and some are not renewable; and
3. The direct or indirect result of industrialization is, ever more frequently, the
pollution of the environment, with serious consequences for the help of
population.”
In short, the Church affirms “the true concept of development cannot ignore the
use of the elements of nature, the renewability of resources and the consequences
of haphazard industrialization - three considerations which alert our consciences
to the moral dimension of the environment.” (SRS, 34).
Partnership in Creation
The word ecology is derived from the Greek word, *”oikos,” which means
“house” or place in which to live. But let us see what field of science has to say
about ecology. In the field of science, it is the study of organisms “at home.”In
ecology, we study living beings, the place in which they live , and the interaction
among and between the living and non-living components of the place being
studied. We attempt to understand the complex web of linkages, relationships and
interdependencies in a particular environment or ecosystem. As we study, we start
to realize that there is a partnership going on among the beings in our ecosystems.
Ecosystems are never completely static; they are dynamic realities. Nevertheless,
most ecosystems, in their natural environment, do develop a dynamic stability.

But, if we introduce significant changes from the outside, the pattern of
relationships in ecosystems can be disrupted. Outside influences are not
necessarily bad. In some cases, they are needed. As partners in creation, it is our
task to introduce outside influences, if necessary.
It is, however, unfortunate, that most of the time, the outside influences that we
introduce are so massive that an ecosystem collapses. An example of this is
Eutrophication, in which high concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorous are
intentionally disposed of in a body of fresh water. This induces a proliferation of
algae, which suffocate many of the traditional life forms in lakes, making them
biologically dead.
When we shift our study from a singe ecosystem to the earth itself, many
ecologists fear that the changes, which are presently taking place in the biosphere
- the air, water, and the thin layer of soil that are essential for all life on earth, are
so massive that they will cause the collapse or serious depletion of essential
ecosystems, like the oceans, with disastrous consequences for all life
forms,including us.
Ecology has much to teach of us as individuals and as human family so that we

may begin to care more for the only home we all share - the planet earth. Mass
media, global culture and technology vis-a-vis Moral-spiritual discernment. The
influences of mass media, globalization, and technology in our daily lives need
our moral-spiritual reflections.
Discernment does not simply mean the act of perceiving, distinguishing or

recognizing events and experiences in life. Discernment is rather richer in its
theological parlance referring to the art of seeing God’s will in complex
circumstances. The art of discerning requires a struggle of openness in organizing
and assessing God’s plan for us in our lives and our relationship with one another.
This discernment requires an “ongoing process of response to people’s needs in
give situation as they are encountered in changing circumstances.”
As a result of assessing God’ will for us, there is something profound that happen
to us. The gift of charity or our ability to be generous to others are poured forth
into our beings. However, there are two evident facts that contradict the gift of
charity in our human experience: our lack of freedom and our lack of truth.
In discussing our lack of freedom, we start with St. Paul’s term: “For I do not do
the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” (Rom 7:10) Similarly, we
say: “Bakit ba masarap ang bawal?’ (Why is it enjoyable to do that which is evil?)
or “gusto kong bumait pero di ko magawa”, (I want to do better but I can’t) “may
quiz ako bukas pero nagyayaya sila mag-gimmick, sino ba ako para atrasan ang
bagay na yan!” (I have a quiz tomorrow but they are inviting me for a drinking
spree, who am I to turn down their offer?) and so on. This fact of condition is a
certain lack of inconsistency in doing acting which is a basic option in life.
Secondly, the lack of truth is the act of lying to ourselves and to one another. We
try to deny that we do evil things and we also try not to accept that we can change
for the better. There are times we prefer no to face our capacity to do good
because we become uncomfortable, and the task is unsettling. We rationalize our
mistakes so we become masters of wearing ‘masks’. These obstacles show up in
our attitudes, habits and values leading to patterns of actions revealing both that
we have the capability to do bad and to do good.
M Litter Free Zone

I
S
S The class is divided in small groups (5 members each) and are assigned an area in the
I building/campus to care for especially keeping it clean and spic and span for a
O week. During free time or agreed common time, the group in charge ensures that
N their corresponding areas are spic and span and free of any litter. The faculty in
charge will rate the litter free zone and a recognition to the Litter Free Zone can
A
be done before the semester ends.
R
Y
R
E
S
P
O
N
S
E
SELECTED READINGS:
M. Holine, Finding the Message of Pope’s Encyclical Vol.57 (2015).
A. Gore, “Making Changes for Our Children,” Vital Speeches for the Day 73. No.5 (2007).
R. S., Guzman, Environmental Education for Sustainable Development (Quezon City: 2000).
J. Broome, “The Ethics of Climate Change,” Scientific American 298 no.6 (2008).
P. Rogers, “Facing the Fresh Water Crisis,” Scientific American 299 no.
Q. Tubeza, “Business Acts on Global Warming,” Philippine Daily Inquirer (2009).
Vitaliano Gorospe, Forming the Filipino Social Conscience (Makati City: Bookmark, Inc., 1997),
172.
Chandra Muzaffar, “Globalization: The Perceptions, Experiences and Responses of the

Religious Traditions and Cultural Communities in the Asia Pacific Region”, Colloquium on Church in
Asia in the 21st Century ( Manila, Philippines: Office for Human Development-FABC, 1997), 40.
Bernard Adeney, “The Dark Side of Technology”, Anglican Life and Witness (A Reader for
Lambeth Conference of Anglican Bishops 1998), ed. C. Sugden & V. Samuel (London: SPCK, 1997):
58-59.
Edgar Javier, “Proclaiming the Word of God: New Voices on the Horizon,” Religious Life
Asia, Vol. XII no. 2 (April-June 2009): 3.
Dianne Bergant, quoted in Javier, “The Earth is Sacred,” 5.

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CFE 102: CHRISTIAN MORALITY IN OUR TIMES

2. POWER POINT PRESENTATION ON SPECIAL MORAL

4. Written examinations, homework/assignment, activities and quizzes

NOTE: Submission of paper outputs to be determined by the Faculty in consultation

we have a crisis of values which, in highly developed societies in particular, assumes

I. CHRISTIAN MORALITY: BASIC ASSUMPTIONS

POINTS OUT THE WAY TO RIGHT LIVING AND COMPELS MAN TO

C Our world at present is experiencing a fundamental crisis: A crisis in global

As a subject, the human person, is normally called to be conscious, to act

PERSON IS A CREATION OF GOD

 At the present, who/what is creating the person?

2. As an image and Likeness of God (unique, believer, redeemed by Jesus,

PERSON IS MADE IN GOD’S IMAGE AND LIKENESS

 If the person by nature is good, how come that at the

human persons, Human Person are interdependent social beings)

 At the present, how are we relating with the other?

PERSON IS A STEWARD OF GOD

 At the present, are we really God’s co-creator?

II. GUIDES TO CHRISTIAN MORAL DECISIONS

These guides must be understood as positive response to the challenge of keeping

C A. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

I The Decalogue or the Ten Commandments are familiarly thought to be given by

The second commandment wonderfully reminds us that uttering another’s name

C. The Third Commandment

“Remember to keep holy the Sabbath Day.” (Ex. 20:8)

Understanding the purpose of the third commandment is understanding what God

D. The Fourth Commandment

E. The Fifth Commandment

John Paul II expanded on this tradition. Early, in Celebrate Life (1979), he

F. The Sixth Commandment

In a manner of speaking the sixth commandment is specifically addressed to

G. The Seventh Commandment

Originally, the seventh commandment does not refer to a prohibition of

In today’s age of globalization, in an age that is marked by economic competition

H. The Eight Commandment

We need to recognize the challenge today to speak what we believe. We need to

I. The Ninth and the Tenth Commandments

warns us against the possibility of throwing the entire complexity of our

Coveting is such an ordinary disposition that we do not recognize how frequently

M Learn about the Commandments and Commitments

S As you study this lesson, follow the pattern below:

B. CHRIST’S COMMANDMENTS (Jesus’ teachings on the commandments)

UNESCO-APNIEVE Sourcebook (2006).Learning to live together. Philippines: Lithweke

Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education (ECCCE). (1984). National

Tolhurst, James. A Concise Catechism for Catholics: A Simple Exposition of Catholic

C. The (Catholic) Church’s Social Teachings

C Humanity is bound up in an intrinsic and essential relationship of interdependence

Humanity is a part of God’s creation; we are inextricably joined with creation in a

1. Life and Dignity of the Human Person

When we analyze development programs today, we observe that the dominant

If justice is important in our individual relationships, we also need to emphasize

3. Call to Family, Community, and Participation

4. Rights and Responsibilities

6. The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers

8. Care for God’s Creation

10. Universal Destination of Goods

C The person-centered approach places a renewed emphasis on the motivation to

Sources of Christian Norms

Theology is the second source of norms. Understandings of God’s power and

Human dignity is the fundamental basis of all morality. Without a grasp of

I 1. Children are Gifts (cloning, surrogacy, artificial insemination)

2. Science and Technology (cybersex (pornography), cyberbullying )

a. Cybersex is the engagement of Internet users in sexual conversation and