Catholic moral reasoning does not solely rely on the sources and norms of the Catholic Church in order to obtain friendship with God. While the sources and norms serve as the primary ways to achieve and know friendship with God there are different aids that are available to help one pursue one’s proper ends. The aids are broken into external and internal. There are also obstacles that stand in the way or interrupt one’s pursuit of the good; these are called vices. With the help of the external and internal aids, along with the pursuit of virtue one can overcome vice and reach one’s proper end.
The External Aids
The first external aid in Catholic moral reasoning is human society. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church “the human …show more content…
The Church is the most important external aid because it offers sure theological guidance, provides sacramental vivification, offers models of holiness, and it allows us to participate in Christ’s mission, which is the purpose of Catholic Moral Reasoning. The Church offers sure theological guidance by providing us with Scripture and Tradition, which are the respectively the primary and secondary sources and norms of Catholic moral reasoning. The Church provides sacramental vivification or the more one participates in the sacraments instituted by Christ and His Church the more one is able to participate in friendship with Christ. The Church’s seven sacraments are baptism, confirmation, reconciliation, anointing of the sick, matrimony, holy orders, and the Eucharist. Each of the sacraments allows the possibility of life in different ways; baptism gives life, confirmation fortifies life, reconciliation and anointing of the sick restores life, matrimony creates new life, holy orders ministers life, and the Eucharist, which is the most direct and important, sustains and nourishes life. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states “the sacraments make the Church, since they manifest and communicate to men, above all in the Eucharist, the mystery of communion with the God who is love, One in three persons. The Church also offers models of holiness which include saints and those in our …show more content…
“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s sprit dwells in you?” The second aid is more accessible to Christians because in baptism the Holy Spirit enters the person and the baptized become a temple of the Holy Spirit. When a human is baptized the Holy Spirit indwells in that person and imparts gifts to them. These gifts can include healing, words of prophecy, speaking in tongues, wisdom, counsel etc. There are many gifts of the Holy Spirit. Not everyone has the same gifts and the gifts are imparted when you are baptized. However, one can ask for a gift and it is possible to receive it. Fruits are also obtained from the Holy Spirit like patience, kindness, self-control, gentleness, joyfulness, and peacefulness. In order to cultivate these fruits one must be cooperative with the Holy Spirit. These gifts are meant for the sanctification of ourselves and
The External Aids
The first external aid in Catholic moral reasoning is human society. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church “the human …show more content…
The Church is the most important external aid because it offers sure theological guidance, provides sacramental vivification, offers models of holiness, and it allows us to participate in Christ’s mission, which is the purpose of Catholic Moral Reasoning. The Church offers sure theological guidance by providing us with Scripture and Tradition, which are the respectively the primary and secondary sources and norms of Catholic moral reasoning. The Church provides sacramental vivification or the more one participates in the sacraments instituted by Christ and His Church the more one is able to participate in friendship with Christ. The Church’s seven sacraments are baptism, confirmation, reconciliation, anointing of the sick, matrimony, holy orders, and the Eucharist. Each of the sacraments allows the possibility of life in different ways; baptism gives life, confirmation fortifies life, reconciliation and anointing of the sick restores life, matrimony creates new life, holy orders ministers life, and the Eucharist, which is the most direct and important, sustains and nourishes life. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states “the sacraments make the Church, since they manifest and communicate to men, above all in the Eucharist, the mystery of communion with the God who is love, One in three persons. The Church also offers models of holiness which include saints and those in our …show more content…
“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s sprit dwells in you?” The second aid is more accessible to Christians because in baptism the Holy Spirit enters the person and the baptized become a temple of the Holy Spirit. When a human is baptized the Holy Spirit indwells in that person and imparts gifts to them. These gifts can include healing, words of prophecy, speaking in tongues, wisdom, counsel etc. There are many gifts of the Holy Spirit. Not everyone has the same gifts and the gifts are imparted when you are baptized. However, one can ask for a gift and it is possible to receive it. Fruits are also obtained from the Holy Spirit like patience, kindness, self-control, gentleness, joyfulness, and peacefulness. In order to cultivate these fruits one must be cooperative with the Holy Spirit. These gifts are meant for the sanctification of ourselves and