The Morality of the

Human Act and Sin

Introduction: Three Rational Principles of the Moral
Life
Freedom: Makes a person a moral agent
(actor)
Conscience: Gives us the capacity to
discover God’s will as written in our souls
Law: Does not limit freedom, but allows it
to function properly
Explain the ff:
Right moral conduct perfects
the human being, and wrong
moral conduct degrades him.
Man is responsible for his actions
because he possesses an intellect
and a will. He can think and
choose deliberately.
The responsibility makes sin
possible; but it also makes
holiness possible.
 The human act vs.
the acts of a human
An act carries with it moral consequences when
the agent exercises his intellect and will in
performing the act. These are human acts.
An act is not moral (amoral) when it is
accomplished without knowledge or deliberation.
These are the acts of a human.
 Determining whether an act
is good or evil.
Human acts can be morally evaluated.
An act is human if it is freely chosen in
consequence of a judgment of conscience.
They are judged to be good or evil.
There is a distinction, although it is slight,
between the morality of an act and the
culpability of the actor.
 The morality of human acts
depends on:
The object chosen;
The end in view or the intention;
The circumstance.
These are the sources of the morality of
human acts.
 The object chosen
It is a good toward which the will deliberately directs
itself.
Called the finis operis, literally “the end of the work.”
The goal of the action, not the physical activity of the act.
When the will chooses an object toward which the act is
directed, the intellect has made a judgment about
whether this act is in conformity with the true good.
There are objective norms of morality that express the
rational order of good and evil.
The what of an act.
 The intention or end
Resides in the acting subject. Also called the finis
operantis (the end of the worker).
The end (object) is the first goal of the intention and
indicates the purpose pursued in the action.
The intention is the movement of the will towards the
end.
The intention aims at the good anticipated from the
action undertaken.
The Why of an act.
Object and Intention in relationship
In determining the morality of an action it is the
object of the action, not the intention of the
agent that is of primary importance.
A good intention does not make behavior that is
intrinsically disordered (in its object), good.
However, a bad intention makes a good act evil.
 Circumstances
These are secondary elements of the moral act
which contribute to increasing or diminishing the
moral goodness of evil of human acts.
Circumstances can also diminish or increase the
actor’s responsibility for an act.
***Circumstances cannot change the moral quality
of an act in itself.***
 Good acts and Evil acts
A morally good act necessitates that all three
elements (object, intention, circumstance) be
good.
An evil end can corrupt a good object.
Act whose object is evil can never be a good
even if the intention and circumstances are
good. This is because choosing an evil object
entails a disorder of the will.
 Situation Ethics
It is therefore wrong to judge the morality of an act by
simply considering the intention which inspire the act or
the circumstances which supply the context of the act.
There are acts which in and of themselves are
intrinsically evil by reason of their object and can never
be justified by intention or circumstance.
One may not do evil so that a good can result.
This type of moral thinking is called Situation Ethics and
has been condemned by Pope John Paul II in Veritatis
Splendor.
 Sin
Sin is an offense against reason, truth, and right
conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and
neighbor caused by perverse attachment to certain
goods.
It is any utterance, deed, or desire against the eternal
law. It is an offense against God.
At the heart of sin is disobedience, a revolt against God
through the will.
Sin is diametrically opposed to the obedience of Jesus.
The root of sin is in the free will. Sin wounds charity in
the heart.
 Kinds of Sin
Distinguished according to their objects, or according to
the virtues they oppose, or according to the
commandments they violate.
They can be classified according to whom they offend:
God, neighbor, oneself.
They can be divided into spiritual and carnal.
They can also be divided into sins of thought, word,
deed, or omission.
 Gravity of Sin
All sin is serious!
There are two main distinctions according to gravity:
Mortal and Venial.
Mortal sin destroys charity in the heart and necessitates
sacramental reconciliation with God.
Venial sin offends and wounds charity, but allows it to
subsist. Venial Sins weaken charity and manifest a
disordered affection for created goods.
Deliberate and unrepentant venial sins disposes us to
committing mortal sin.
 Conditions for a mortal sin
Three conditions must be met.
1. Grave Matter: specified by the 10
Commandments
2. Full Knowledge of the sinful character of the
act.
3. Full Consent sufficiently deliberate of a
personal choice
Unintentional ignorance can diminish or even remove the
culpability for a grave offense. (invincible ignorance)
No one should be ignorant of the principles of the moral
law which are written into the heart of man. (vincible
ignorance)
Feelings and passions can diminish the voluntary and
free character of the offense; external pressures or
pathological disorders can also mitigate culpability for an
action.
Sin committed through malice (deliberate choice of an
evil) is the gravest sin.
 Mercy and Forgiveness
There are no limits to the mercy of God, but anyone
who deliberately refuses to accept his mercy by
repenting, rejects the forgiveness of his sins and
the salvation offered by the Holy Spirit.
Such hardness of heart can lead to final
impenitence and eternal loss.
“Where sin increased, Grace overflowed all the
more.” Rom 5:20
 The Proliferation of Sin
Sin creates a proclivity to sin.
Sin engenders vice by repetition of the same acts.
Vices are called capital sins because they engender
other sins and other vices.
The seven deadly sins are: pride, avarice, envy, wrath,
lust, gluttony, sloth.
Sin gives rise to social situations and institutions that are
contrary to the divine goodness.
“Structures of sin” are the expression and effect of
personal sins. The constitute social sin because they
lead their victims to do evil in their turn.
 Cooperation in Sin
Sin is a personal act, but we do have
responsibility for sins committed by other when
we cooperate with them by:
A. participating directly and voluntarily in them;
B. ordering, advising, praising, or approving
them;
C. not disclosing or not hindering then when we
have an obligation to do so;
D. protecting evil-doers.
 Fortifying oneself against Sin
The practice of Virtue.
Prayer, in particular asking for the grace to
overcome temptation (Our Father).
The Eucharist, which has as one of its effects
the protection against committing Mortal sin.
Removing from one’s life those things or
persons that lead one into sin.