The Human Person “Imago Dei”

The Human Person Imago Dei - Conceptual Knowledge

Human Act Dignity
Evaluative Knowledge

IMPAIRMENT To will To know IMPAIRMENT

S S
Freedom
Force Love for Reason Error
Excellence

Fear Good Truth Inattention

Passion Ignorance
God
Habit

Violence
Who
What
Object
Where
Intention Why
How
Circumstances
When
With what means
The Human Person Imago Dei - Dignity

Human as Imago Dei: Imago Dei means "image of God." It is a theological term that
refers to the symbolic relationship between God and humanity. The phrase is derived from
Genesis 1:27, which states, "God created man in his image...", which means that humans are
created in God's image, in their moral, spiritual, and intellectual core. Being made in the image
of God, the human individual possesses the dignity of a person who is not just something, but
someone. He is capable of self-knowledge and has his own will. Human dignity is one of the
fundamental values from which our development as a people must proceed authentic integral
development, the development that makes every person "more human" and seeks to promote the
good of the whole person and of every person.

Man cannot choose or act unless he knows which is a "better" good.

To know:

That a human being has the capacity to know. Every human person has conceptual
knowledge and evaluative knowledge. Conceptual knowledge refers to an understanding of
meaning; knowing that multiplying two negative numbers yields a positive result is not the same
thing as understanding why it is true.

Even with all this knowledge, there is still impairment to knowing the truth about God. It is error,
inattention, and ignorance. Error is

To will:

Every human being is gifted by God with free will. This means we are free to accept or
reject God’s invitation to share God’s life, and walk in the ways Jesus has shown us. The God we
encounter in freedom is the one who invites us to be partners with Father, Son and Holy Spirit in
the work of creation and salvation

Freedom for excellence:

 The freedom for excellence is the power to be the best human being we can be. Here the
rules, or what makes for a good human being, are the grounding for freedom. One who observes
these rules has the freedom to become excellent. Freedom is the means by which exercising both
our reason and our will, we act on the natural longing for truth, for goodness and for happiness
that is built in us human beings.

Freedom is the great organizing principle of moral life – and since the very possibility of a moral
life (the capacity to think and choose) is what distinguishes the human person from the rest of the
natural world.

 the freedom for excellence is the freedom to choose the good, to choose the virtuous option. 

. To "will" something, one has "to know" beforehand

Human Acts:

As human beings that are made in the image of God, it is our responsibility to act
morally. Every moral act consists of three elements: the objective act (what we do), the
subjective goal or intention (why we do the act), and the concrete situation or circumstances in
which we perform the act (where, when, how, with whom, the consequences, etc). For an
individual act to be morally good, the object, or what we are doing, must be objectively good.
Some acts, apart from the intention or reason for doing them, are always wrong because they go
against a fundamental or basic human good that ought never to be compromised. Direct killing of
the innocent, torture, and rape are examples of acts that are always wrong. Such acts are referred
to as intrinsically evil acts, meaning that they are wrong in themselves, apart from the reason
they are done or the circumstances surrounding them. The goal, end, or intention is the part of
the moral act that lies within the person. For this reason, we say that the intention is the
subjective element of the moral act. For an act to be morally good, one's intention must be good.
If we are motivated to do something by a bad intention—even something that is objectively good
—our action is morally evil. It must also be recognized that a good intention cannot make a bad
action (something intrinsically evil) good. We can never do something wrong or evil in order to
bring about a good. This is the meaning of the saying, "the end does not justify the means" The
circumstances of an action can contribute to the increasing or decreasing moral goodness or evil
of an act, but they cannont change to good an act that is morally evil. The circumstances involve
questions beginning with who, what, where, why, how, when, and with what means.

Insisting on the importance and true range of philosophical thought, the Church
promotes both the defence of human dignity and the proclamation of the Gospel
message. There is today no more urgent preparation for the performance of these tasks
than this: to lead people to discover both their capacity to know the truth (124) and their
yearning for the ultimate and definitive meaning of life. In the light of these profound
needs, inscribed by God in human nature, the human and humanizing meaning of
God’s word also emerges more clearly. Through the mediation of a philosophy which is
also true wisdom, people today will come to realize that their humanity is all the more
affirmed the more they entrust themselves to the Gospel and open themselves to Christ.

To say that a human being has the capacity to know the natural moral law ... All law finds its first
and ultimate truth in the eternal law” ...

 Some truths about God exceed all the ability of the human reason.

• When a person chooses to act according to what he knows is right - He acts freely

• Only man is capable of acting free - HUMAN ACTS

Summary:

A bad intention makes evil and act that might have been good. A good intention does
not make a bad act good.

Moral Object
To cheat or not to cheat.
Intention
“I am doing this to pass the test.”
Circumstances
I am copying from my boyfriend.

References:

 Genesis 1-3
 https://chermercado.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/cfc-cbcp.pdf
 https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P5R.HTM
 http://www.katapi.org.uk/MoralTH/Ch3.htm
 https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07648a.htm
 https://www.sfcatholic.org/bishopsbulletin/human-dignity-the-ultimate-gift-from-god/
 https://tifwe.org/what-the-image-of-god-means-for-our-dignity-and-work/
 https://www.cesapp.catholic.edu.au/__files/f/8207/MITIOG110808WEBPart2.pdf
 https://www.slideshare.net/espirituanna/human-acts