How we Live

 

Naked ape or Image of God?

 

What is the one thing from the Catholic Church’s 2,000 years history that remains uppermost in popular, secular, consciousness?  Is it her contribution to universal education or healthcare, or her patronage of the arts and sciences, or her promotion of the law and human rights.  No, none of these!  The one thing that the man or woman in the street knows about the Catholic Church is that we’re against condoms!

Though there are good reasons to be dismayed about this impoverished understanding of the Catholic Church it does reflect the reality of the situation we face – that most people know that the Catholic Church takes an unequivocal and consistent stand about issues of morality, not just sexual morality.

The Church is in the media so often about sexual morality because this is a flash point in the conflict going on between different visions of what it means to be a human being.

The Church is upholding the perennial vision of human beings as possessing the dignity and responsibility of being made in the image of God against the increasingly prevalent misconception that human beings are merely higher primates, ‘naked apes’, with no inherent moral truths, only social conventions and the assertion of personal choice.

 

As Pope John Paul II puts it:

 

‘It is no longer a matter of limited and occasional dissent, but of an overall and systematic calling into question of traditional moral doctrine, on the basis of certain anthropological and ethical presuppositions.  At the root of these presuppositions is the more or less obvious influence of currents of thought which end by detaching human freedom from its essential and constitutive relationship to truth.’  (John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, 4).

 

Consequently, with the replacement of man as made in the Image of God with man as the naked ape, the individual is increasingly losing the traditional moral and legal protection that comes from an objective understanding of the sanctity of human life.  This has been replaced by an ethical approach based on subjective judgements about freedom of choice, personal autonomy and consent and quality of life.

 

Therefore, the granting of human rights, such as the most fundamental right, the right to life, has become arbitrary, and at the disposal of the powerful.  Furthermore, if an individual is not capable of personal autonomy and consent, others in positions of power are increasingly being given ultimate authority over their lives.

 

For example, the ruling elites in the UK have determined that the unborn child is not a human being and therefore may be killed at any time up to 24 weeks. Also, adults judged to be approaching the end of life are having fluids and nutrition withdrawn and are being heavily sedated to hasten their deaths.

Hence, the Catholic Church speaks out about morality not because she is disapproving of the modern world – or obsessed with sex – but because she is passionate about protecting human nature from such debasement, impoverishment and exploitation.

 

The Church has been appointed by Christ the protector and guardian of the human person:

‘The Church, the "pillar and bulwark of the truth”, "has received this solemn command of Christ from the apostles to announce the saving truth”.  (I Timothy 3:15; cf. Lumen Gentium 17).  "To the Church belongs the right always and everywhere to announce moral principles, including those pertaining to the social order, and to make judgements on any human affairs to the extent that they are required by the fundamental rights of the human person or the salvation of souls.”  ‘ (CCC, 2032).

 

Sources of Moral Truth

The Catholic Church draws on three complimentary sources of moral truth that originate in God’s creative and saving work – Natural Law, Old Testament, New Testament.

 

The Natural Law 

The Catholic Church argues that the only defence against reducing morality to the whims of the individual, arising from breaking freedom from truth, is the recognition of the objective authority of the precepts of natural law, and its function in structuring human nature.

 

‘The natural law, present in the heart of each man and established by reason, is universal in its precepts and its authority extends to all men.  It expresses the dignity of the person and determines the basis for his fundamental rights and duties:

 

“For there is a true law: right reason.  It is in conformity with nature, is diffused among all men, and is immutable and eternal; its orders summon to duty; its prohibitions turn away from offence…To replace it with a contrary law is a sacrilege; failure to apply even one of its provisions is forbidden; no one can abrogate it entirely” (Cicero)’ (CCC, 1956).

 

Natural law derives from the fact that our being, our human nature – which comes from God the Creator – shows us the truth.  It is ‘nothing other than the light of understanding infused in us by God’. (St Thomas Aquinas).

 

St Thomas Aquinas situates Natural Law within the overarching context of Eternal Law, the divine plan [ratio] of all creation that exits within the mind of God Himself as the ruler of the universe.  The eternal law directs the activity of all created things, including the activity of man. Natural law is the active participation of humans as intelligent, rational creatures in the eternal law.

‘The natural law is nothing other than the light of understanding placed in us by God; through it we know what we must do and what we must avoid.  God has given this light or law at the creation’.  (St Thomas Aquinas)  (CCC, 1955).

The Catholic Church’s approach to morality starts from the premise that all beings have within themselves, by their very nature, principles whereby they bring about actions proper to themselves, and also direct them to their proper ends.  Through the exercise of right reason, assisted by grace and revelation, human beings are capable of knowing these principles and ends of their nature, which comprise natural law.

For example, the natural law written in our bodies, psychology, and reason makes it clear that in the context of sexual love between married couples, ‘the transmission of life is inscribed in nature and its laws stand as an unwritten norm to which all must refer’.  (CDF, Dignitas Personae, 6).  It is for this reason that the Catholic Church warns that contraception is harmful to the dignity and purpose of human sexuality.

Furthermore, natural law also makes it clear that the fundamental right to life, of the unborn child, and the sick and elderly, ‘are based on the natural law inscribed on human hearts and present in different cultures and civilisations’.  (Pope Benedict XVI, Address to the General Assembly of the United Nations [18 April 2008]).

Its is important to recognise during this time of thinly disguised self-serving rationalisations about the moral life that natural law establishes absolute moral norms about what-must-be-done that not even God can grant dispensation.  (St Thomas Aquinas).  General principles of natural law include:

v  You are to love the Lord your God and love your neighbour.

v  Good is to be done and pursued, and evil is to be avoided.

v  Evil is to be done to no one.

v  Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you.

During times like these when the killing of the unborn is presented as a moral good ,torture of prisoners is justified as a necessary evil and the use of human pesticide to stop conception is held up as a human right it is important to emphasise the negative precepts of the natural law:

The "negative precepts" of the natural law are universally valid.  They oblige each and every individual, always and in every circumstance.  It is a matter of prohibitions which forbid a given action "semper et pro semper," [Always and in each instance] without exception, because the choice of this kind of behaviour is in no case compatible with the goodness of the will of the acting person, with his vocation to life with God and to communion with his neighbour.  It is prohibited--to everyone and in every case--to violate these precepts.  (Pope John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, 52).

 

The Old Testament

The moral law declared in revelation is the same law as that which we recognise in the precepts of natural law through the exercise of right reason: 

‘The Old Law is the first stage of revealed Law.  Its moral prescriptions are summed up in the Ten Commandments.  [The Decalogue]  The precepts of the Decalogue lay the foundations for the vocation of man fashioned in the image of God; they prohibit what is contrary to the love of God and neighbour and prescribe what is essential to it.  The Decalogue is a light offered to the conscience of every man to make God's call and ways known to him and to protect him against evil: God wrote on the tables of the Law what men did not read in their hearts’.  (CCC, 1962).

The Ten Commandments are expressed as negative precepts, that is things ,actions which we must avoid if we are to be true to our nature as human beings and if we are to participate in the life and love of the Holy Trinity.

I am the LORD your God,

who brought you out

of the land of Egypt,

out of the house of bondage.

You shall have no other gods before me

You shall not take

the name of the LORD your God in vain

Observe the sabbath day,

to keep it holy

Honour your father and your mother

You shall not kill.

Neither shall you commit adultery.

Neither shall you steal.

Neither shall you bear false witness

against your neighbour.

Neither shall you covet your neighbour’s wife . . .

You shall not desire . . .

anything that is your neighbour’s. (Deuteronomy 5:6-21).

 

Our observance of the Ten Commandments is essential because they belong to ‘the permanent structural elements’ of human beings.  The divine imperative informing these commandments is therefore what we already knew or could have known for ourselves as required for our good.  (A. MacIntyre).

 

The natural law, made explicit and unequivocal by revelation, is essentially teleological because it informs us, about what kinds of actions we need to perform (positive precepts) and about what kinds of actions we need to avoid (negative precepts) ‘if we are to achieve our own final end and good’.  As John Paul II puts it, ‘To ask about the good, in fact, ultimately means to turn towards God, the fullness of goodness’ (Pope John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, 9).

The binding force of the moral law of the Old Testament rests on both it making clear natural law, which can be grasped by reason, and on the positive declaration of the divine will, which is the source of their special obligation, sanction and greater precision.  (B. Haring).

‘The Ten Commandments belong to God's revelation. At the same time they teach us the true humanity of man. They bring to light the essential duties, and therefore, indirectly, the fundamental rights inherent in the nature of the human person.  The Decalogue contains a privileged expression of the natural law:

“From the beginning, God had implanted in the heart of man the precepts of the natural law.  Then he was content to remind him of them.  This was the Decalogue” (St Irenaeus).  (CCC, 2070).’

 

The New Testament

‘The Law of the Gospel fulfils the commandments of the Law.  The Lord's Sermon on the Mount, far from abolishing or devaluing the moral prescriptions of the Old Law, [Ten Commandments] releases their hidden potential and has new demands arise from them: it reveals their entire divine and human truth.  It does not add new external precepts, but proceeds to reform the heart, the root of human acts, where man chooses between the pure and the impure, where faith, hope, and charity are formed and with them the other virtues.  The Gospel thus brings the Law to its fullness through imitation of the perfection of the heavenly Father, through forgiveness of enemies and prayer for persecutors, in emulation of the divine generosity. ‘ (CCC, 1968)

Since Jesus is the Son of God, and God’s fully authorised and final envoy (Mt 10:40; 12:41; Lk 12:23; 16:16) He proclaims the will of God in a new, authoritative and radical way.  Jesus understands Himself as the only authentic interpreter of the Ten Commandments (Mt 5:20-48).  Consequently, Jesus rejects the ‘precepts of men’ and the ‘traditions of men’ (Mk 7:7) that adopted a legalistic and minimalist approach.

Furthermore, Jesus restores the perfection of moral law with all the original imperatives of the natural law (Mt 19:5ff).  He establishes the permanent value of the Decalogue (Mt 5:17), while at the same time going beyond external observance to interior disposition, insisting that the commandments are observed at the roots, not just at the surface.  As we see in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, he releases the hidden potential of the Ten Commandments and has new demands arise from them. (Ratzinger).  For example:

‘You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not murder'; and 'whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.'  But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, 'You fool,' you will be liable to the hell of fire’. (Mt 5:21-22).

You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell.  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell. (Mt 5: 27-30).

Pope John Paul II writes that by interiorizing the demands of God’s commandments and bringing out their fullest meaning, particularly the commandment of love of neighbour, Jesus shows that the commandments are more than a minimum limit not to be gone beyond, but an invitation to perfection, at the heart of which is love:

‘Thus the commandment "You shall not murder" becomes a call to an attentive love which protects and promotes the life of one's neighbour.  The precept prohibiting adultery becomes an invitation to a pure way of looking at others, capable of respecting the spousal meaning of the body: "You have heard that it was said to the men of old, 'You shall not kill; and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment'.  But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment...  You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery'.  But I say to you that every one who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Mt 5:21-22,27-28).’  (Pope John Paul II, Veritatis Splendour, 15).

Therefore, wanting to change human hearts, the new law of Jesus is expressed more through counsels than precepts, while presupposing the Ten Commandments.  For example, the Beatitudes contained in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5:3-12; Lk 6:20-30) are not normative in the strict sense, but express Jesus’ fundamental attitudes in relationship to human goods.  (Melina).

 

‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.

Rejoice and be glad,

for your reward is great in heaven.’ (Matthew 5:3-12).

 The Beatitudes are ‘general moral truths, which mediate between the principles of natural law and the specific moral norms of the Christian’, teaching humility, detachment, mildness, hunger and thirst for justice, mercy, simplicity, love for peace, and self –giving love, even in persecution.  (Melina).

Jesus’ fundamental attitude, expressed through the Beatitudes, achieves its ultimate expression in the so-called dual commandment of love (Mk 12:29-31; Mt 22: 37-40; Lk 10:25-28).

"Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?"  He said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.'  This is the greatest and first commandment.  And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself.'  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (Mt 22:36-40).

Jesus’ held an extraordinary understanding of love, that went beyond those near to us, (Lk 10:25-37) even including our enemies (Lk 6:27-36).

‘The New Law is called a law of love because it makes us act out of the love infused by the Holy Spirit, rather than from fear; a law of grace, because it confers the strength of grace to act, by means of faith and the sacraments; a law of freedom, because it sets us free from the ritual and juridical observances of the Old Law, inclines us to act spontaneously by the prompting of charity…(CCC, 1972)’.

 

The Moral Tradition of the Catholic Church

Drawing on these three divine sources of moral truth the Catholic Church has developed a consistent approach to the whole range of ethical issues facing the modern world.  The following are a selection of moral doctrines from the Catechism of the catholic Church:

 

You shall not kill

 

Abortion

‘Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognised as having the rights of a person -- among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life…Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law: You shall not kill the embryo by abortion and shall not cause the new-born to perish.’  (CCC 2270-2271).

 

Euthanasia

‘Those whose lives are diminished or weakened deserve special respect. Sick or handicapped persons should be helped to lead lives as normal as possible.

Whatever its motives and means, direct euthanasia consists in putting an end to the lives of handicapped, sick, or dying persons. It is morally unacceptable.

Thus an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder gravely contrary to the dignity of the human person and to the respect due to the living God, his Creator.  The error of judgment into which one can fall in good faith does not change the nature of this murderous act, which must always be forbidden and excluded.’  (CCC, 2276-2277).

 

 

Suicide, including assisted suicide

Suicide contradicts the natural inclination of the human being to preserve and perpetuate his life.  It is gravely contrary to the just love of self.  It likewise offends love of neighbour because it unjustly breaks the ties of solidarity with family, nation, and other human societies to which we continue to have obligations.  Suicide is contrary to love for the living God.  If suicide is committed with the intention of setting an example, especially to the young, it also takes on the gravity of scandal.  Voluntary co-operation in suicide is contrary to the moral law.  (CCC 2281-2282).

 

War

The fifth commandment forbids the intentional destruction of human life. Because of the evils and injustices that accompany all war, the Church insistently urges everyone to prayer and to action so that the divine Goodness may free us from the ancient bondage of war…"Every act of war directed to the indiscriminate destruction of whole cities or vast areas with their inhabitants is a crime against God and man, which merits firm and unequivocal condemnation." A danger of modern warfare is that it provides the opportunity to those who possess modern scientific weapons especially atomic, biological, or chemical weapons -- to commit such crimes. (CCC,2307- 2314).

 

You shall not commit adultery

 

Lust

Lust is disordered desire for or inordinate enjoyment of sexual pleasure.  Sexual pleasure is morally disordered when sought for itself, isolated from its procreative and unitive purposes. (CCC, 2351).

 

Masturbation

‘By masturbation is to be understood the deliberate stimulation of the genital organs in order to derive sexual pleasure. "Both the Magisterium of the Church, in the course of a constant tradition, and the moral sense of the faithful have been in no doubt and have firmly maintained that masturbation is an intrinsically and gravely disordered action." "The deliberate use of the sexual faculty, for whatever reason, outside of marriage is essentially contrary to its purpose." For here sexual pleasure is sought outside of "the sexual relationship which is demanded by the moral order and in which the total meaning of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love is achieved." (CCC, 2352).

 

Sex outside marriage

‘Fornication is carnal union between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman. It is gravely contrary to the dignity of persons and of human sexuality which is naturally ordered to the good of spouses and the generation and education of children. Moreover, it is a grave scandal when there is corruption of the young’. (CCC, 2353).

 

Adultery

Adultery refers to marital infidelity. When two partners, of whom at least one is married to another party, have sexual relations -- even transient ones -- they commit adultery. Christ condemns even adultery of mere desire. The sixth commandment and the New Testament forbid adultery absolutely. The prophets denounce the gravity of adultery; they see it as an image of the sin of idolatry. (CCC, 2380).

 

Divorce

Divorce is a grave offence against the natural law. It claims to break the contract, to which the spouses freely consented, to live with each other till death. Divorce does injury to the covenant of salvation, of which sacramental marriage is the sign. Contracting a new union, even if it is recognised by civil law, adds to the gravity of the rupture: the remarried spouse is then in a situation of public and permanent adultery…(CCC, 2384).

 

Contraception

‘…every action which, whether in anticipation of the conjugal act, or in its accomplishment, or in the development of its natural consequences, proposes, whether as an end or as a means, to render procreation impossible" is intrinsically evil…’(CCC, 2370).

Relying on these principles, sons of the Church may not undertake methods of birth control which are found blameworthy by the teaching authority of the Church in its unfolding of the divine law.  All should be persuaded that human life and the task of transmitting it are not realities bound up with this world alone.  Hence they cannot be measured or perceived only in terms of it, but always have a bearing on the eternal destiny of human beings.  (Gaudium et Spes, 51).

 

Pornography

‘Pornography consists in removing real or simulated sexual acts from the intimacy of the partners, in order to display them deliberately to third parties. It offends against chastity because it perverts the conjugal act, the intimate giving of spouses to each other. It does grave injury to the dignity of its participants (actors, vendors, the public), since each one becomes an object of base pleasure and illicit profit for others. It immerses all who are involved in the illusion of a fantasy world. It is a grave offence. Civil authorities should prevent the production and distribution of pornographic materials.’  (CCC, 2354).

 

Prostitution

‘Prostitution does injury to the dignity of the person who engages in it, reducing the person to an instrument of sexual pleasure. The one who pays sins gravely against himself: he violates the chastity to which his Baptism pledged him and defiles his body, the temple of the Holy Spirit.  Prostitution is a social scourge. It usually involves women, but also men, children, and adolescents (The latter two cases involve the added sin of scandal.).  While it is always gravely sinful to engage in prostitution, the imputability of the offence can be attenuated by destitution, blackmail, or social pressure. (CCC, 2355)’.

 

Rape

Rape is the forcible violation of the sexual intimacy of another person. It does injury to justice and charity. Rape deeply wounds the respect, freedom, and physical and moral integrity to which every person has a right. It causes grave damage that can mark the victim for life. It is always an intrinsically evil act. Graver still is the rape of children committed by parents (incest) or those responsible for the education of the children entrusted to them. (CCC, 2356).

 

Homosexuality

‘Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered." They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.’

‘The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial.  They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity.  Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided. These persons are called to fulfil God's will in their lives and, if they are Christians, to unite to the sacrifice of the Lord's Cross the difficulties they may encounter from their condition. Homosexual persons are called to chastity.’ (CCC, 2357-2359).

If you would like to learn more about the faith of the Catholic Church, we invite you to enrol on the Diocese of Lancaster's online Catholic Certificate in Religious Studies, which uses the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a key text.

http://vle.dles.lancsngfl.ac.uk/

Contact the Education Department to get details about how to enrol.  01524 841190 or email: educationservice@lancasterrcdiocese.org.uk 

 

 Written by Deacon Nick Donnelly