THEOLOGY 1

S01E01 | 1ST SEM | 2ND SHIFTING

UNIT IV: CALLED TO HOLINESS

4.1 FOLLOWING CHRIST JESUS AS THE PRIMORDIAL AND ESSENTIAL FOUNDATION OF CHRISTIAN
MORALITY
A. Obstacle to Following
Christ: Man as Dis gured
by Sin
What is a vice? Vice
- a settled habit caused by sinful action which disposes to further sinful action

It happens to us

- when we follow the inclination of our animal nature against the order of our
reason

- we were created to be men and women following our reason because our
reason is to be aligned with the reality that is created and sustained by God
who is truth, goodness and love itself
How does our temptation - We become enamored with vice and imprisoned to vice when we commit sin
lead to vice/s? routinely in one or two areas of our life. These are temptations we face.

Our temptations
- are all individualized according to our carnal dispositions (ex: others are more
tempted to gluttony, others to the sins of the esh, etc.)
What does St. Paul says According to St. Paul, vice is the condition refers to when he said
about vice? - “I do not do the good that I want to do, but the very evil that I hate.” (Romans
7:19

*The person stuck in a vice continues to sin and justi es that sin. But when you
are living in grace, grace frees you to see your vice clearly and to see that it
must go
What is sin? Sin
- inordinate action that discords with truth and goodness in its intention, object
and circumstances

- very sin for St. Thomas is an inordinate act

- an act that is not properly ordered nor lined up with the reality of truth and
goodness in its intuition, object and its circumstances
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 What is the “Con teor”?
What are the distinctions in
the ways that we sin?
What are sins of
commission?
What are sins of omission?
What are the gravity of sin?
What are mortal sins?
What are the (3) three
conditions for a sin to be
mortal?
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In general, sin is failure to live the Great Commandment to love God,
others and self
Con teor
- which we pray at the beginning of the Mass, o ers us a good description of
sin
- “I confess to Almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters (a
recognition that sin is not only an o ense against God but it also
wounds the Body of Christ and our church community), that I have sinned
through my own fault (I take responsibility for the wrong I have done), in
my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done (sins of commission) and
in what I have failed to do (sins of omission).”
Distinctions in the ways that we sin
- we can sin against God, our neighbor and ourselves
- some sins are sins of thought, some sines are sins of word, some are sins of
deed
Sins of Commission
- sins of action, whether in thought, word or deed
Sins of Omission
- sins of inaction, whether in thought, word, or deed
- ex: omitting to care for someone, like a child or against an elderly
- such sins constitute sin against God and against our neighbor
Gravity of Sin: Mortal and Venial Sin
- not all sins are equal
- St. Thomas agrees with the distinction of mortal and venial sin that the
Church still teaches today
Mortal Sins
- those sins that turn as directly away from God
- when we choose something serious with full intent and freedom in place of
God as our highest and best good
- takes away the very principle of order
- destroys/cuts o out relationship with God
- brings about the death of the soul
Three Conditions for a sin to be Mortal:
1. Grave matter
- Ten Commandments: “Do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do
not bear false witness, do not defraud, honor your father and your mother.”
2. Full knowledge
- it presupposes knowledge of the sinful character of the act, of its opposition
of God’s law
3. Complete consent
- it implies a consent su ciently deliberate to be a choice
- ex: we freely and under no duress choose to do evil
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What are venial sins? Venial Sins
- in a less serious matter, he does not observe the standard prescribed by the
moral law

- he disobeys the moral law in a grave matter but without full knowledge or
without complete consent
If we sin venially, does that No
mean we are turned away - we are not turned away from God when we sin venially

from God? - but we are just slightly o in some choice that doesn’t keep us way from God
but keeps us from going straightway to God

Example (for St. Thomas)

- every lie we speak are at least venial sins

- even if you lie because you are afraid to tell the truth or because you are
afraid to hurt someone else’s feelings

- you may have a good intention there, but the activity of lying is always wrong
for St. Thomas
Despite the character of All sins should be avoided for it weakens our relationship with God
venial sin, why is it important - ignoring venial sin is like ignoring a minor cancer that can become a serious
to still avoid it? one

- “Deliberate and unrepented venial sin disposes us little by little to commit

mortal sin.”

- we know the truth of this statement as we consider how a gradual neglect of

a relationship can eventually lead to a separation like divorce
How the proliferation of sin The Proliferation of Sin
can lead to capital sins? - sin creates proclivity to sin

- it engenders vice by repetition of the same acts

Capital Sins
- they are called “capital” because they engender other sins, other vices

- the list comes from the writings of St. John Cassian and St. Gregory

- 7 capital sins: pride, avarice (greed), envy, wrath, sloth, lust and gluttony
What are the sins that cry to Sins that cry to heaven

heaven? - the blood of Abel

- the cry of the oppresses in Egypt

- the sin of the Sodomites

- the cry of the foreigner, the widow and the orphan

- injustice to the wage earner

How is sin a personal act? Sin is a personal act
- we have responsibility for the sins committed by others when we cooperate
in them:

- by participating directly and voluntarily in them

- by ordering, advising, praising or approving them

- by not disclosing or hindering them when we have an obligation to do so

- by protecting evil doers

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What are the structures of Structures of Sin
sin? - also called as institutionalized sin (ex: unjust political and economic laws that
favor one segment of the population over another)

- sin gives rise to social situations and institutions that are contrary to the
divine goodness

- structures of sin are the expression and e ect of personal sins

- they lead their victims to do evil in their turn

- in an analogous sense, they constitute a social sin

B. Nature of Grace
What is conversion? Conversion
- in the Synoptics, John the Baptist calls people to conversion and repentance

- Greek word: Metanoia

- Jesus proclaims: “I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” (Luke
5:32)

“Metanoia”
- total change or turn of heart

- turning away from sin and turning towards God

- an experience of being in love with God without reservations

- reorientation of one’s life to Christ who is made the center and model of
one’s life
How is Christ our model? Christ our Model
- Jesus asks us to follow him and imitate him along the path of love, a love
which gives itself completely to the brethren out of love for God: “This is my
commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:12)

The word “as”

- requires imitation of Jesus and of his love, of which the washing of feet is a
sign. Jesus’ way of acting and his words, his deeds and his precepts
constitute the moral rule of Christian life

- also indicated the degree of Jesus’ love and of the love with which his
disciples are called to love one another

After saying

- “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”
(John 15:12)

- Jesus continues with words which indicate the sacri cial gift of his life on the
Cross, as the witness to a love “to end” (John 13:1)

- “Greater love has no man than this , that a man lay down his life for his
friends.” (John 15:13)

*This is what Jesus asks of everyone who wishes to follow him:

- “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross
and follow me.” (Matthew 16:24)
How can we respond to our Call to Holiness
calling to holiness? - by asking us to follow him, Jesus is inviting all of us to become saints, no
less

- Holiness of Sanctity can be achieved by following Jesus faithfully in our daily

life, in all its trials and challenges “taking up our crosses daily”

- Holiness is loving God and loving our neighbor

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Why conversion does not
happen overnight?
Does the Holy Spirit and
Grace aids in the
conversion?
How does prayer aids in our
conversion?
4.2 THE SPIRIT CONFIGURES THE HUMAN PERSON TO CHRIST JESUS
A. The Spirit as the Source
and Means of Moral Life:
Guided by the Spirit
How is the Holy Spirit, the
source and means of moral
life?
How can we live by the
Spirit?
Added Information:
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Conversion does not happen overnight
- it is a particular act
- a lifelong process
- a daily event
Yes
The Holy Spirit and Grace
- conversion is God’s gift
- it happens through help of the Holy Spirit
However, God also needs our cooperation
- “God who created us without us will not save us without us.” (Saint Augustine
of Hippo)
Conversion and Prayers
- for us to grow in grace, we need to pray always especially to the Holy Spirit
- we need to train ourselves to listen to his promptings in our conscience and
to obey his guidance in our life
- in every moment of life, let us say: “Come, Holy Spirit!”
-
The Holy Spirit: Source and Means of Moral Life
- God is love and love is his primary gift, containing all others, through the Holy
Spirit
- in Baptism, he restores in us the divine likeness lost due to sin and makes us
children of God
- in our daily life, the Holy Spirit helps us to grow in holiness and enter more
deeply in the life of the Trinity
Living by the Spirit
- by this power of the Spirit, God’s children can bear much fruit
- he who has grafted us onto the true vine will make us bear “the fruit of the
Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness and self-control.”
“We live by the Spirit”
- the more we renounce ourselves, the more we “walk by the Spirit”
Courage
- regulates fear and con dence
Temperance
- regulates bodily pains and pleasures
Generosity
- helps us give and spend money well
How does the Holy Spirit
helps in our pursuit of the
virtues?
What does Aristotle tells
about virtue?
What are the (2) types of
virtue?
How can we become a truly
virtuous person?
B. Theological Virtues
What are moral virtues
according to St. Thomas?
Does moral virtue subdue
our passions?
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The Holy Spirit and the Virtues
- Christ’s gift of salvation o ers us the grace necessary to persevere in the
pursuit of virtues
- everyone should always ask for this grace of light and strength, frequent the
sacraments, cooperate with the Holy Spirit and follow his call to love what is
good and shun evil
For Aristotle
- virtue is a state of character which makes a man good and makes him do his
work well
Moral virtues allow us to feel emotions
- at the right times
- towards the right objects
- with the right motives
- in the right way
Virtue is characterized by what is mean or immediate
Mean
- depends on agents and circumstances
- some actions and feelings have no mean, they are always wrong (the act of
murder and the emotion of spite)
- We become virtuous through the constant repetition or practice of good
actions
- A truly virtuous person nds the practice of virtue pleasant and natural
- Hence, it is a character that is both external and internal
- We need moral guides to help who would help us attain an excellent life
Moral Virtues According to St. Thomas
- moral virtue disposes us to act well and it requires more than simply knowing
what the right thing and good thing to know is
- ex: we need to have our passions in line. If we know the right thing to do but
we are scared to do it, we won’t do it. If we know the right thing to do but do
it with excessive anger, we won’t do it morally
No
- moral virtue moderates our passions so that we can act according to reason
for the true good
- moral virtues do not subdue our passions
Passions are good (St. Thomas)
- the more virtuous a person is, the more they feel and the more they feel
rightly
- because the virtuous person is not afraid of his or her feelings
- the more perfect the virtue is, the more passionate the person becomes
What is virtue? Virtue (St. Thomas from St. Augustine)
- is a good quality of the mind by which we live righteously of which no one
can make bad use, which God works in us and without us

- lives in the human soul, it lives in the mind and the will, in our thinking and in
our choosing

- confers on us, when we have it, the ability to think rightly on what we should
do but the ability to do it

- it is one thing to know the right thing to do, it is another thing to do it and to
do it well. That is what virtue gives.

What are the theological The Theological Virtues

virtues? - are infused in us by God

- these virtues elevate our powers of intellect and will so that by acts of these
virtues (believing, hoping and loving) we can, by grace, reach beyond our
natural goods, to possess our supernatural good, our theological good, God
himself
What is Aquinas’ method of Aquinas’ Method of Inquiry of Theological Virtues
inquiry of theological - in terms of their subject, object, proper act
virtues?
VIRTUE OF FAITH
What is faith? Faith
- the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Heb
11:1)

- faith is a habit of the mind, whereby eternal life is begun in us, making the
intellect assent to what is not apparent (Aquinas)

- “I believe whatever the son of God has said, Adoro Te Devote”

What are objects of faith? Object of Faith:

Material object of faith

- God himself

Formal object of faith

- God as rst truth revealing himself to the world

- those truths about God himself that he has revealed to us

In conclusion

- the object of faith, therefore, is the true God and truths of God (collected and
summarized by the Church in the articles of faith)

- by assenting to the articles of faith, the believer comes to possess God’s

truth and thus, God himself
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What are the threefold
dynamic of faith?
What is the subject of faith?
What is the act of faith?
How does faith marks the
beginning of eternal life in
us?
Other concepts to faith
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Various ways in which the act of faith ends and rests in God.
Threefold dynamic of faith:
1. Believing in a God (Credere Deum)
- we believe that there is a God
2. Believing God (Cruder Deo)
- we believe in God as the trustworthy witness of his truth
3. Believing unto God (Cruder in Deum)
- we believe in faith in God, unto union with him in the knowledge that he
establishes with us
Subject of Faith (where the virtue is infused in us)
- faith is infused in and perfects that human power concerned with truth: the
intellect
- faith elevates and perfects the functioning of human resin so that the human
agent, without seeing or proving their reality, can apprehend, understand and
judge to be true, the articles of faith
- choosing to assent to the articles of faith as true, involves a graced active
belief, which brings us to Aquinas’ description of the act of faith
Act of Faith
- belief is the act that is proper to faith
- by believing, we a rm the truth of a proposition without seeing or
demonstrating its truth
- belief holds con dently and rmly to the truth of the proposition
- this con dence arises from the testimony of another or an expert in the
matter
- by believing God and what he says, the believer shares intimately in the
knowledge of God
*In the light of faith, seeing is not believing but believing is seeing
- ex: seeing God and what he sees, because he tells us what he sees
- In faith, therefore, the believer comes to know what God knows which marks
the beginning of eternal life in us. By participating in God’s eternal knowing
- Faith is only for this world, once the believer enters heaven belief in God’s
truth gives way to vision of God’s truth. That which was once merely believed
is now known face to face.
Interior act of faith
- belief
Exterior act of faith
- confession or profession
Sins against belief (interiorly)
- unbelief, heresy, apostasy
Sins against belief (exteriorly)
- blasphemy
 What are the (2) two gifts of Two gifts of the Holy Spirit that perfect the act of faith:
the Holy Spirit that perfect
the act of faith? 1. The gift of understanding

- gives the believer a spirit taught insight into the essence of the articles of
faith

- allows the deliver to develop a vision of God in faith puri ed of unnecessary

earthly imagery and analogies

2. The gift of knowledge

- gives the believer a spirit taught judgement regarding the truth of created
things in view of God

VIRTUE OF HOPE
What is hope? Hope
- is a graced con dence that God will give eternal life to me and to those
whom I love because he is omnipotent and merciful

- leans on God’s help amidst the experience of human inability and

insu ciency

Does the virtue of hope
builds on the passion of
hope?
- we believe and trust that eternal life is made available to us because Christ
has done the primordial sin and unlocked the gates of heaven for us
Yes
- by hope we are moved to pursue an arduous good which we apprehend as
possible to obtain

- hope in this sense is just a movement of the irascible power. That power
which supplies the appetitive energy for di cult goods

- but beyond a mere bodily response, hope has spiritual dimension and so it is
appropriate to locate it in the will
How does the virtue of hope Hope, understood as a theological virtue, concerns our ultimate end, eternal life
concerns our ultimate end? with God.

- here the moral virtues are insu cient. We do not, of our power, have the
wherewithal to conceive of this good, much less to pursue it well

- so, God has infused the theological virtue of hope, raising our minds and
hearts to him so that we can respond generously to his o er of beatitude

In conclusion

- hope if the rst work of God and it principally concerns the end
How is hope the virtue of Hope is the virtue of the “Already but Not Yet”
“Already but Not Yet”?
Already

- hope has an orientation to ful llment won for us in Christ

- it is rooted in the revelation of God and the promise of salvation

- it imparts a kind of certitude (reliability) owing from the certitude of faith

Not Yet

- it is given during the time of non-ful llment

- hope steels our nerves to withstand temptations against the vigilance and
perseverance
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 Does hope endure as does No
charity? - as with faith, there is an inherent imperfection with hope since it approaches
God from a distance and cannot yet lay hold of its object

- and so, hope will not endure as does charity. In heaven, there will simply be
no need for hope as the souls of the just will possess God without fear of
loss or diminishment
What are the sins against Sins against hope:
hope?
Presumption

- the cavalier (lack of concern/indi erent) assurance that God will save me
regardless of whether or not I consent and cooperate with his grace

- the presumptuous man refuses to make use of the means that God appoints
for salvation

- ex: persevering prayer or sacramental confession

Despair

- the denial that God’s promises apply to me or a fear that he will deny pardon
event to the repentant

- sets aside the uncertainty of the way in favor of the certainty of the damned

What is the gift of the Holy
Spirit with hope?
“One must cultivate a hope that is humble enough, ready to pray and at
the same time, magnanimous (generous) enough to wait cooperatively for
the ful llment of its prayer.” (Joseph Pieper)
Gift of the Holy Spirit with Hope: The Fear of the Lord
- Aquinas distinguishes what is meant by fear. The fear under consideration is
a disposition that in its initial stages (servile fear) fears God’s punishment and
its mature stages fears to o end God in any way or be separated from him
( lial or chaste fear)

- this fear perfects hope by imparting to the soul a supernatural sensitivity for
what aids us and what hinders us in our pursuit of the vision of God

- as we ascend by many movements to the vision of God, we must be

encouraged lest (in case) we lose heart in pursuit of this great and arduous
good. For there is nothing so di cult to attain nor anything so worthy of the
e ort as the unfailing vision of God. For our help is in the name of the Lord
VIRTUE OF CHARITY
What is charity? Charity
- the seat of charity in the human person: the will

- charity perfects the human power concerned with loving : the will
What are the two-fold Two-Fold Dynamic of Love:
dynamic of love?
1. Love of Concupiscence

- we love some good for their own sake

- the love with which we love the goods that keep us alive and help us to grow
in virtue

- we love these goods for the bene t that they o er us

2. Love of Benevolence (friendship)

- we love some good not for our sake but for another sake

- this is the love that constitutes friendship

- it regards the other as another self

- wills the good of the other for his sake

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 How does grace elevates
both love towards God?
How does Aquinas sees the
virtue of charity through the
lens of friendship?
What is the object of
charity?
What is the act of charity?
Does charity helps in the
perversion and divination of
sin?
What are the duration of the
theological virtues?
How to exercise the virtue of The Exercise of the Virtue of Charity
charity?
Internal e ects of charity
- joy, peace and mercy
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Grace elevates both love (concupiscence and benevolence) towards God
- hope elevates the love of concupiscence such that we can live God himself
as nal end and good for me
- charity elevates the love of benevolence such that we love God himself for
his own sake as a friend, not for our sake
- Aquinas sees the whole reality and work of the virtue of charity through the
lens of friendship
- Aquinas produces a theology of charity that re ects deeply on Christ’s words
to his disciples at the last supper: “No longer do I call you servant…I have
called you friends” (John 15:15)
Object of Charity, Materially and Formally
- God as our best friend befriending us. Charity is nothing other than our loving
response to the friendship o ered to us by God
- every other good thing that can be loved for God’s are. In charity we love
God as well as what he loves, which is everything that he has made,
especially other persons
- thus, in charity, we love God for God’s sake and we love neighbor for God’s
sake
Act of Charity
- the act produced by the virtue of charity is the love of God for his sake above
all things
- charity does not introduce the preferential love of God into the world but
rather it elevates this preferential love written into the very fabric of creation
and into the very heart of men unto a union of real friendship with God
- therefore, because everything naturally inclines to higher good more than
lower goods…every creature, including the human creature, naturally loves
God more than itself
Yes
- In man, therefore, charity rescues this love from the perversion of sin and
divinizes it unto a real union of love with God, not only as he is our highest
good in cause but because he is our best friend
- That is why, unlike faith and hope which passes away when one reaches
heaven, charity endures in beatitude
Faith
- gives way to vision
Hope
- gives way to possession
Charity
- abides in perfection
External e ects of charity
- bene cence, almsgiving, fraternal correction
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What are the sins against
charity?
What is the gift of virtue that
perfects charity?
C. Cardinal Virtues
What is prudence?
How can we become
prudent?
What is justice?
What is temperance?
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Sins against charity:
In general
- hatred
Against joy
- sloth, envy
Against peace
- discord, contention, schism, war, strife, sedition
Against bene cence
- scandal
Wisdom is the gift of virtue that perfects charity
- peacemaking is the work of charity perfected by wisdom
- with wise charity, the Christian orders himself toward peace from which inner
charitable peace, he can work for peace with others and among others
- borrowed by St. Thomas from Cicero
Prudence
- an intellectual virtue that perfects the practical reason. It is right reason about
things to do be done (recta ration agibilium)
- the most important moral virtue, it’s the charioteer of virtue
- it directs all the virtues (ex: prudence determine the courageous thing to do
in this moment is or what the temperate thing to do is and to enjoy at this
moment. It says what is the just thing to do at this moment
- it is prudence which tells the virtues how to be themselves
We become prudent
- by learning from our elders, from those who have lived ling enough to learn
from their mistakes and so more time to grow in prudence
- by experience, by living life, by being self-re ective, by making choices and
seeing how they turn out and looking back and trying to gure out how we
could have done that di erently
*The moral life is not something that we engage alone, it is something we
engage in the community.
Justice
- the perpetual and constant perpetual will to render each one his due
- giving what is due to God (religion) and to fellowman
- justice and mercy always go together: “The Lord is merciful and just.” (Psalm
116:5)
Temperance
- virtuous moderation of sense pleasure (pleasure of the esh, food or drink),
all of which can be good when experienced in accord with reason
- the virtue of temperance is in between intemperance, which is simply a
pursuit of pleasure, one after another and insensibility or frigidity or
unwillingness to experience pleasure
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What is fortitude? Fortitude
- stable disposition to do the right thing in the face of fear

- that virtue which you need to get the good things in your life
- keeps us shrinking away from great di culties but also keeps us from
rushing in to foolishness

- it is right between being a coward and being a fool on the other

What are the ways to acquire Ways to acquire human virtue
human virtue? - all of us have heard the saying “practice makes perfect”, through frequent
repetition of a particular act, we will acquire virtuous behavior

- as we seek to grow in virtue, we will need the help of the Holy Spirit and
when possible, fellowship with people who are also seeking to live a virtuous
life
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