The Nature of Moral

Theology
Part I
Gods Love and Our Response

Starting Point of Morality

Morality properly begins with God

and Gods love.
God loves us first and our moral life
is our response.
Our image of God is crucial; how we
imagine God affects how we respond.

God as Trinity
A Communion of Love

God as Trinity presents

us an image of a
communion of love an
eternal giving and
receiving of love among
equals.
Created in the image of
God as Trinity, we are
called to a life of loving
communion with others;
we were created to be in
relationships of love.

The Father in the Parable of the

Prodigal Son

A God who whose love

is unconditional.
Gods love for us does
not depend on our
behavior our sins do
not diminish Gods love
nor our good works
increase Gods love.
God does not force us
to love him; God invites
us to communion with
Him.

False and Incomplete

Images of God

An Overpersonalized God
(Incomplete image)

I only talk to him about

my needs but not the
needs of the world.
My spiritual life is
separated from my
moral life how I pray
does not affect how I
live.
I love God but I hate
my neighbor.

An Overpersonalized God
Correcting this image:
See God as a Father
who relates to all his
children personally and
equally.
A God who cares about
how I relate with others

A God who desires not

only what is good for me
but also the good of the
whole world

Result:
I see others as my
brothers and sisters in
Gods family
Integration of my
prayer life with my
relationship with others
and my activity in the
world
I become more socially
conscious and
concerned about the
needs of my community

God as a Lawmaker
(Incomplete Image)

Overemphasis on
observance of the law
Measuring goodness
based on obedience
to rules
Emphasis on external
behavior and less
attention to character
development

God as a Lawmaker
Correcting this image:
God gave us laws to
guide our loving; not to
make us slaves to the
law
Goal of moral life is
imitation of Christ, not
observance of the law.
Moral laws are supposed
to guide our character
development, not to
simply control behavior.

Result:
We learn the values that
are behind the moral
rules.
We turn to Christ to
guide us how to apply
rules.

There is integration
between our external
behavior and our value
formation.

God as Judge/Punisher
(Incomplete/False image)

God is always
watching and judging
my every move and
if I make a mistake I
will get punished
I try to be good to
avoid punishment
A moral life based on
fear

God as Judge/Punisher
Correcting this image
Even if the scripture gives
us images of God as judge;
God is predominantly a
God of love and mercy.
God never punishes; he
does not desire our
suffering.
God only sends us good
things that will help us and
build us up he never
harms us.

Result
We relate to God not
with fear but with
humble gratitude.

We stop interpreting
bad things that happen
as Gods punishment.
We become more
merciful to others and
less judgmental.

God as Tester
(False Image)

God sends me
problems to test my
faith in him.
My faith is weak if I
am unable to cope
with my problems.
Life is one big test
and if I fail this test I
will not reach heaven.

God as Tester
Correcting this image:
See as God is my Creator; he
does not need to test me; he
knows me completely.
Problems do not come from
God; they just happen.
God send us the Spirit to
console us and strengthen
us when problems become
too heavy.

Life is not a test; it is journey

with Christ (with others) to
our heavenly home.

Result:
I am at peace with God
who knows me intimately.

I can face problems with

God at my side.
It is ok to feel sad and cry
out to God in times of
trouble that is not a sign
of weakness or lack of
faith. It is being human.
I become less hard on
myself and others. We just
try to do our best with
Gods grace.

Mercy is at the heart of our

morality

Mercy is what makes Catholic

morality distinctive.
We are called to live out the mercy of
God in our dealings with others.
The parable of the Good Samaritan
tells us the story of our salvation
which is a story of mercy

The Good Samaritan

The man on the side of

the road represents
humanity, wounded by
sin, helpless and weak.
The priest and Levite
who pass him by
represent the teaching
of the Law and the
Prophets that were not
able to help humanity
out of its sinful situation

The Good Samaritan

The Samaritan is
Christ, the one who
showed mercy.
He helped
wounded
humanity, cared for
the wounds caused
by sin, and carried
humanity to safety.

The Good Samaritan

He takes the wounded

man to an inn, which
represents the Church.
He pays a price so that
the wounded man may
be attended to.
He entrusted the man to
the care of the inn
keeper
He promises to return to
pay what is lacking and
to make sure that the
man has been properly
cared for.

The Good Samaritan

We, the members of the Church, are the inn keepers

who are entrusted with the merciful care of Gods
people wounded by sin.
Christ gave to the Church his life and his spirit to
ensure the continual care of his people.
When Christ returns, he will ask us how we have been
merciful to his people according to his example.
Just as Christ had been merciful to us we should also
be merciful to our fellow sinners.
Our moral life as a Church must therefore be an
imitation of the mercy of Christ.

MERCY

Christ showed us
Gods mercy by
entering into the
chaos of human life
to rescue us from sin.
To be merciful like
Christ, we should
also be ready to
enter into the chaos
of others in order to
help them.

Reflection Questions

How have my formative experiences shaped

my image of God?
How does my image of God affect the way I
live my life? Do I need to correct my image of
God?
What moral difficulties could I relate to a
false or incomplete image of God?
How is my moral life defined by mercy?
In what ways am I called to enter into the
chaos of others in order to help them?