LOVE OF GOD

Group 11:
Danica Oliveros
Mae Payen
Renz Christian Canon
Rose MArie Bisenio
Virgilio Stephen Dela Rama
 Love of God is a duty to God. The Filipino does not find
difficult to understand. the practice of religion is not only second
nature to Filipinos, it is the spiritual psychic of the Filipino to be
religious.
It is on account of his nature that man is said to be religious.
An essential aspect of man’s rationality is his religiousness. This
explains why anthropology has not encountered a human society
without some form of religious worship.
THE MEANING OF RELIGION

Religion
- Comes from the latin word “re-ligare”, or to bind back.
Religio or religion implies a bond, a relationshio or fellowship
between man and God. Old testament, such as bond is referred to
as covenant, such as the covenant of Noah and God, between
Abraham and God.
THE MEANING OF RELIGION (as defined by ethics)

Religion
- duty of man to bind himself in worship of God. This duty is
natural because it is the yearning of man’s rational soul.
- this duty is not derived from any religious or ecclesiastical
law but frim natural law.
- can also be taken subjectively as the act or habit inclining a
person to render worship to God. It is the act of knwoing, loving,
and serving God in fulfillment of the natural duty of worship.
WORSHIP OF GOD
- is the proclamation of the glory of God. It is the acceptance
of the intellect and will - of mind and heart - of God’s dominion
over the created universe. The highest goal of man, the noblest of
his actions, is the recognition and the hallowing of God’s name in
thought and in deed in the world (Bernard Haring: v. III p. 13)
WORSHIP OF GOD
-Worship of God is internal when it consist of acts of intellect
and will, such as in making an act of faith or, in mental prayer in
praise of God.
-Worship of God is external when it consists of commanded
acts honoring or paying homage to God, such as fasting, kneeling
down in prayer, or in giving alms to the poor.
- it is private when it is done by the individual by his own
pivate initiative.
- iy is public when it is done in participation with other men in
communal adoration or homage of God, such as processions of
images or offerings of sacrifice in religious services,
1. THE DUTY OF KNOWING GOD
Man has a natural tendency to worship God. this implies that he has a
natural capacity of knowing God. We say “natural” because man, by his
own intellectual powers, discovers the presence of God as Creator and
Supreme Lawgiver. It is said that we accept God’s existence as a matter of
faith.
Francis Reilly argues that religious belief in God is true if it fits, rather
than contradicts, rational knowledge of nature and human person. In the
realm of conduct, he cites that the distinction between what is objectively
good and objectively evil points to the existence of a law, which thought
clarified by men, is “not simply made by human thinker, no matter how
wise” (God;s questionable Existence, Manila:NAtional Bookstore, p984,
p.26)
2. THE DUTY TO LOVE GOD

We cannot love what we do not know. But knowing God does

not necessarily lead to love of God. One may know someone and
still be detached from him. A philosopher who can prove that
there is God may not necessarily be in love with God.

Paul Tillich speaks of Love of God in the platonic term of eros

the drive toward reunion with things and persons in their essential
goodness and with the good itself. But since the good itself and
God are identical, the love toward the good itself is, in religious
language, love toward God (Morality and Beyond, p.56).
3. THE DUTY TO SERVE GOD

If to love God is to obey God’s will, then our moral acts sum
up our services to God. We cannot offer God anything else, but
our life – made clean and worth of Gods Infinite Goodness. It is
in the sense, that religion is concerned with the sanctification of
souls, with self protection.

All moral acts are tendencies or movements towards God. All

immoral acts are tendencies away from God. In this sense, all
good acts are religious.
 Certain action are, however, properly called acts of religion or
acts of worship. These are:
1. Devotion which is the readiness of the will to perform acts
of divine worship, such as prayer and fasting among others.
2. Prayer which is the elevation of the mind to God in praise
of Him, in gratitude to him, or in communion with Him.
3. Adoration which is the submission of the mind and will to
the glory of God.
4.Sacrifice which is the offering of body and soul to God in
recognition of His domination over the created universe.
INSTITUTIONAL RELIGION

A group of believers, subscribing to the same faith, practices,

rituals and discipline constitutes a sect or church. In this sense,
there are many religious, distinguished from one another by their
respective creed. The creed of an organized church is basis for its
communal practices.
“FREEDOM OF RELIGIOUS WORSHIP”

Our Constitution provides for the “freedom of religious

worship” This does not mean that we are free to choose to have or
not to have, to practice or not practice, our faith. It means simply
that the State may not interfere with the religious liberties of the
people. It means that the State may not regulate, promote,
prohibit, or discriminate against people on account of their
religious beliefs.
RELIGION: THE SEARCH FOR ULTIMATE
MEANING
The duty to worship God is the same as the natural yearning to
find the ultimate meaning of life. It is the yearning of the human
spirit to discover its origin, its being, and its purpose. The
different religious system are expressions of man’s search for
meaning, and they are relevant to the extent that they unravel the
mystery of life.
Ethics does not concern itself with investigating the claims of
religious. But, obviously some are outright fabrication ensnaring
gullible people with profit as motive. Such aggrupation's are
plainly business enterprises disguised as religion.
RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE

There is always an occasion when people wage a “holy war”

either in defense of their faith or for the promotion of their
beliefs. In a lesser magnitude, but no less deplorable, is the
tendency to mock another person’s faith. We refer to him as
“heathen”. “idolatrous”, or “superstitious”, implying that we are
the only truly blessed.
THE ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT

The Ecumenical movement evolving in the Christian churches

today is not mere religious tolerance, It is a positive step towards
unity and harmony among the churches having common roots in
the teaching of Christ. The Second Vatican Council gives us the
meaning and direction of ecumenism:

“ecumenical movement” indicates the initiatives and activities

planned and undertaken, according to the various needs of the
Church and opportunities offer, to promote Christian unity.