Love And Moral Behavior Analysis
Thoughts on The Relationship of Love and Moral Behavior…
“The yearning for happiness, the desire to achieve a fully satisfying life, is forever deeply rooted in the human heart. The realization of this desire depends mainly on our (moral) behavior, which agrees, but sometimes clashes with that of others. For Christians Holy Scripture is not only a source of revelation on which to ground one’s faith, it is also an indispensable reference point for morality”. (The Bible and Morality Biblical Roots of Christian Conduct- Pontifical Biblical Commission - www.vatican.va)
I will focus in Paul’s letter to the Romans and its effect on Augustine’s conversion, to reflect on the Relationship of Christ’s Love and our Moral Behavior.
Ref. Paul letter to …show more content…
We could rightly state that turning to God from sin is the mark of his conversion. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). Repentance involves a change of thinking, feeling, and behaving; is a gift that God grants by His sovereign grace (Acts 3:16; 5:31; 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:25). Augustine accepts responsibility for his sin, he calls out in faith to God for salvation, and he proves his repentance and faith by his actions. Perfectly reflected by Augustine in Ama et quod vis fac – Love and do what you want (St Augustine)
Ref. Our Moral Behavior: as in Augustine’s time, we continue to struggle with the abysm between our “closed customary morality” (established by the laws of our society - always changing and adapting to our natural desires), our natural desires and the teachings of Love (agape) for self and others in Roman Catholic Morality …show more content…
We read the multiple occasions when Jesus’ challenged those law-abiding Pharisees (closed morality) to listen and change their ways because the Kingdom of God (basileia - God’s authority) is here. He showed them through his actions (miracles) that he is the Messiah, who will deliver them from the realm of Sin and the domain of Satan by his Spirit (The Finger of God) -
• and to us, Scriptural and theologically, our Catholic moral life begins with a loving relationship with God, a covenant love made possible by the sacrifice of Christ. The Catechism of the Catholic Church summarizes the elements of our Christian morality: Made in the image of God, Responsible for our Practice of Freedom, Understanding of Moral Acts, accepting the Reality of Sin and Trusting in God’s Mercy, responsible for the Formation of a good Conscience, seeking to cultivate and practice of virtue through Grace; with moral guidance from the Commandments, the Sermon of the Mount, the Precepts of the Church, and other rules to show how Love may be applied in real
“The yearning for happiness, the desire to achieve a fully satisfying life, is forever deeply rooted in the human heart. The realization of this desire depends mainly on our (moral) behavior, which agrees, but sometimes clashes with that of others. For Christians Holy Scripture is not only a source of revelation on which to ground one’s faith, it is also an indispensable reference point for morality”. (The Bible and Morality Biblical Roots of Christian Conduct- Pontifical Biblical Commission - www.vatican.va)
I will focus in Paul’s letter to the Romans and its effect on Augustine’s conversion, to reflect on the Relationship of Christ’s Love and our Moral Behavior.
Ref. Paul letter to …show more content…
We could rightly state that turning to God from sin is the mark of his conversion. “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt. 3:2; 4:17). Repentance involves a change of thinking, feeling, and behaving; is a gift that God grants by His sovereign grace (Acts 3:16; 5:31; 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:25). Augustine accepts responsibility for his sin, he calls out in faith to God for salvation, and he proves his repentance and faith by his actions. Perfectly reflected by Augustine in Ama et quod vis fac – Love and do what you want (St Augustine)
Ref. Our Moral Behavior: as in Augustine’s time, we continue to struggle with the abysm between our “closed customary morality” (established by the laws of our society - always changing and adapting to our natural desires), our natural desires and the teachings of Love (agape) for self and others in Roman Catholic Morality …show more content…
We read the multiple occasions when Jesus’ challenged those law-abiding Pharisees (closed morality) to listen and change their ways because the Kingdom of God (basileia - God’s authority) is here. He showed them through his actions (miracles) that he is the Messiah, who will deliver them from the realm of Sin and the domain of Satan by his Spirit (The Finger of God) -
• and to us, Scriptural and theologically, our Catholic moral life begins with a loving relationship with God, a covenant love made possible by the sacrifice of Christ. The Catechism of the Catholic Church summarizes the elements of our Christian morality: Made in the image of God, Responsible for our Practice of Freedom, Understanding of Moral Acts, accepting the Reality of Sin and Trusting in God’s Mercy, responsible for the Formation of a good Conscience, seeking to cultivate and practice of virtue through Grace; with moral guidance from the Commandments, the Sermon of the Mount, the Precepts of the Church, and other rules to show how Love may be applied in real