HUMAN PERSON AND HUMAN ACTS

Christian Moral life is simply

the call to become loving
persons,
In the fullness of life with
others in community before God,
in imitation of Jesus Christ.
The key to the moral life is the
human person, considered in the
light of both reason and faith.
HUMAN PERSON AND HUMAN ACTS
All aspects are under scrutiny of
Christian morality. The human
person with his/her intellect and
free will,
is the moral agent.
He is supporting the dramatic
scene of God’s loving history of
salvific acts.
Human Acts

Human Acts (actus humanus) are actions that

proceed from insight into the nature and
purpose of one’ s own doing and from consent of
free will; or shorter, they are acts which
proceed from insight and free will.

A human act is a thought, word, deed, desire or

omission which comes from a man acting with
full knowledge of what he is doing, who is
free to act or to refrain from action, and who
gives full assent to his will to act.

Other acts performed by man without full

knowledge, freedom and choice are simply
called ACTS OF MAN.
Acts of Man

Acts of man (actus hominis) are performed without

intervention of intellect and free will. They comprise
all spontaneous biological and sensual processes, like
nutrition, breathing, sensual impressions;

Acts performed by those who have not the use of reason,

like people asleep, lunatics, drunken people;

All spontaneous reactions which precede the activity of

the will, like first reactions of anger and sympathy;

Forced acts which, though affected with some insight and

cooperation of the intellect, are carried out against
man’ s personal decision and will.

Acts of man, therefore, are indeliberate, not free,

involuntary, not under our control and beyond the mind
and the will
CONSTITUENT PRINCIPLES OF HUMAN ACTS
KNOWLEDGE
The will can decide for something and
seek it only if it is first known, thus
Knowledge of the aspired object is
required.

FREEDOM
Consent of the free will is required,
which implies freedom from any external
or internal compulsion.

VOLUNTARINESS
Also know as the intention of the agent.