Moral Theology in relation to the sources of revelation,

 

22. Moral Theology in relation to the sources of revelation, to different anthropologies, cultures and philosophies.

 

Introduction:In Christian theology, the moral character of human actions is determined by their relation to God’s will. Man’s actions are morally good if they agree with God’s will, and they are morally bad if they disagree with it. God’s will is not primarily expressed in a set of codified law and rules but concerns an inner calling and a summons to accomplish a risk within the universal plan of God for man and this world. This is discussed in the moral theology. It concerns how Christian should behave. Thus it becomes the theology of Christian life. Here is description of the relationship of moral theology with other distinctive subject matters and different function of the conscience.   

Definition of Moral Theology: Moral theology is that branch of theology which states and explains the laws of human conduct in reference to man’s supernatural destiny, the vision and fruition of God. As a science, it investigates the morality of human acts, that is, the moral good and the moral evil in conduct in relation to man’s ultimate end. Christian Moral Theology is the scientific exposition of the ethical teaching of the Gospel, or, more definitely, that theological discipline which sets forth the laws, rules, and precepts man must know and obey in order to attain his supernatural destiny.

Moral theology, also called Christian ethics, Christian theological discipline concerned with identifying and elucidating the principles that determine the quality of human behaviour in the light of Christian revelation. It is distinguished from the philosophical discipline of ethics, which relies upon the authority of reason and which can only call upon rational sanctions for moral failure. Moral theology appeals to the authority of revelation, specifically as found in the preaching and activity of Jesus Christ.

Part I: Moral Theology in relation to the sources of Revelation

i) Work for human being: The aim and intention of Moral theology to guide the people on the right and moral path. It decorates the lives of the people and leads all towards the salvation. Revelation helps to do the work of Moral theology for human being.

ii) Presupposed and Accept: Moral Theology presupposes Divine Revelation; it presupposes and accepts the proved conclusion of Dogmatic Theology. Revelation reveals the plan of God and moral theology try to give support on that plan.

iii) God and human being: Revelation revel the mysteries and Supreme attribute of God. Creation story, manifestation (Jesus Christ), Holy Spirit in Jesus Christ and Church.

iv) Law: Moral theology take its source of norm from this old and the new Testaments; Ecclesiastical traditions from apostolic times; the teaching of the church, as well in papal and councilor documents as in the ordinary preaching and teaching of its accredited pastors; the teaching of the fathers and the divines of the church. So, Revelation theology revel God’s law and moral theology receive it as it source.

v) Law for human being: Revelation revels all the laws are for the human beings. Revel law does not do not applied for human harm. Moral theology also applied it for the human welfare and guide people to the very goal, to ultimate goal.

vi) Making Judge: Moral Theology assumes the of a Divine Revelation, ecclesiastical tradition, and the supernatural order, whereas moral theology considers what is right or wrong, in so far as human reason unaided by Revelation can judge. Moral theology helps to accept the revelation.

vii) Discussion matter: The discussion matter of moral theology is Moral teaching of the Old and New Testament, nature of morality and ultimate end, notion of moral law, law of God in the Holy Scripture, natural moral law, human law, civil law, divine law, moral obligation, conscience, formation of conscience, moral value of human act, nature, distinction, source of sin, nature of conversion, nature of virtue, essences and universality of the call to perfection, pathways of holiness. Though moral theology discusses and deals all of these tropics for the human being but all of these are the revel matter of salvation. Revelation revel the truth of God and moral theology want to apply it.

 

 

Part II: Moral Theology with Anthropologies

i) Study of Man: Anthropology means ‘the scientific study of man’.  It tries to discover the origin human nature of man. It goes to the root, to the primitive age. Gradually this science gives a shape of historical development of human being. Moral theology also works for the human being. It discovers the origin of human being and finds that we are the best creation God. Moreover, all the subject of the moral theology is God.

ii) Deals with the life of human being: In the branch of anthropology we see that it deals with the physical, social, cultural, Linguistic anthropology. In the sphere of moral theology gives the moral guideline and show the moral obligation and responsibility to build the healthy community. Moral theology applied its moral values to enrich the cultural faith, tradition, morality. Morality becomes their part of life.

iii) Religion: Anthropology research and find out the religious teaching, making relation with the ultimate God. Anthropology finds their faith, region. Moral theology guides them toward God.

Part III: Moral Theology with cultures

Moral theology is the branch of Christian theology that focuses on the human response to the Christian revelation. It is studied in conversation with Scripture and tradition, as well as with other disciplines such as philosophy, religious studies, politics, law, medicine, and the social and behavioral sciences.

The moral teaching in Christian communities has varied in the different eras, regions, and confessional traditions in which Christianity has been professed. The Roman Catholic tradition has been inclined to emphasize the mediating role of ecclesiastical institutions in its approach to the moral authority of revelation. Protestant churches have often put great emphasis on the direct, or immediate, moral responsibility of the individual before God. The influence of the spiritual director for the moral welfare of the individual Christian has been a significant aspect of Eastern Christianity.

Moral theology has at times seemed to have been restricted in its scope to a consideration of those thoughts, works, and actions that are viewed as offensive to God and spiritually harmful to human beings—that is, an enumeration of sins. It was thus seen as a negative complement of ascetical and mystical theology, which both presuppose a more positive orientation of the individual toward God. Many moral theologians, however, have believed that it is more faithful to the spirit of the New Testament and of early theology not to separate moral teaching from the religious anthropology that is implicit in the message of the Gospels. This approach has been reflected in the traditional Eastern Christian emphasis on the divinization of man through his association with Jesus Christ and in the Protestant concern with the moral power of justification. Medieval and post-Reformation Roman Catholic moral theology tended to separate moral teaching from dogmatic theology.

The significance of the relation of moral teaching to divine revelation lies in the problem of determining the nature of the particular “highest good” that characterizes any ethical system. Without such a determination of the nature of this good, one could easily have the impression that morality is simply obedience to a set of rules or laws the observance of which has been labeled, more or less arbitrarily, good. In the light of revelation, sin is seen as a deterioration of the fundamental disposition of a person toward God, rather than as a breaking of rules or laws. Virtue is viewed as the habitual capacity of a person to respond freely and consciously to situations in a manner that reflects and intensifies his conformity to Jesus Christ.

The diverse approaches to moral theology through the centuries have varied greatly in their recourse to logical reasoning and in the degree of their acceptance of general moral principles that are considered universally applicable. Contemporary moral theology must confront a variety of problems, including the scope of individual responsibility in large corporate institutions, the effects of human activities on the natural environment, the demands of social justice, the developments in genetics and other biological sciences, and the use of sophisticated technology in warfare.

Part IV: Moral Theology with Philosophies

i) For human being: Philosophy means the study of wisdom. This wisdom is used for the human being, by the human being. The meaning of being a person, the meaning of life, body-soul-related issues, concept of the individual, inters subjectivity, freedom, death, etc. Philosophy anthropology is the aftermath of an increasing specialization in the human sciences. Moral theology does its all moral activities and advice for the human being.

ii) Speaks on God: This branch of Theology presupposes the existence of God, the fact of a supernatural human destiny, the possibility of attaining it by human acts with the help of divine grace, the freedom of the will, the existence of a teaching infallible church. Philosophy treats abstract realities and raises problems and questions that go beyond the observable phenomena. It raises some fundamental queries including our belief in the existence of God and the meaning of our own existence. Moral Theology also deals with God and takes all the laws from God’s revelation. Sometime Moral theology tries to find out the answer of the philosophical question.

iii) United with Ultimate goal: Philosophy discovered the presence of God in the creation and in the life of human being too. Philosophy always asks question, ‘who’, what, which, whom… This way once he fined that everything is going on in well by the supernatural power that is God. The source of everything is God, philosophy always search for Ultimate God. Moral theology show the moral way such as- following laws, growing the virtue, conversion from sin. Thus it helps to meet with the ultimate God.

iv) Philosophy of Mind: Philosophy is the study of the mind, attempting to ascertain exactly what the mind is, how it interacts with our body, the existence of other minds, the working of the mind, and so on. Moral theology guides this mind toward good by giving some moral norms.

v) Intellect, will, reasons: Philosophy deals with intellect will, reasons, knowledge. Moral theology also use intellect, well and reason to give any moral decision.

vi) Philosophy of Religion, Philosophy of God: Philosophy of God answers questions such as, ‘is there a God’, can the existence of God be proved or disproved, is it reasonable to have religious knowledge, etc. It also looks into the nature and attributes of God. It analyses the role of religious experience in one’s life and the difference which the existence or non-existence of God creates in one’s life. The relationship of God towards the world and the human beings come under the purview of philosophy of God. Among many other things, it deals with the different models or concepts of God present in the various culture of the world today and at various times. In this position moral theology present the religion’s responsibility for all the religion. Advise people to see the light of God in the creation and in human being.

vii) Moral Theology gives Light: Philosophical enquiry is one of the central elements in the intellectual history of many civilizations. Ideas rule the world! A good philosophy that reflects on our politics and economics can have a favorable impact on the life of people everywhere. Though philosophers are pictured as people who always sit in dark rooms, they bring to light our implicit longings about God, world and ourselves! Philosophy provides a focus through which we can examine our own functions, behaviors and aspirations through a meaning-making process. On the other hand moral theology show the light gives the moral value to the politician, economist and to all. Moral theology shows the light to the philosopher so that philosopher may discover the ultimate reality.  

viii) True knowledge: Philosophy grows and this process in turn becomes a good training-ground for critical thinking which frees us from the bondage of our own prejudices, emotions and irrational inclinations. We reach a stage where true knowledge becomes a source of energy. Here Moral theology guides out mind, conscious to the true knowledge.

Conclusion: Catholic moral theology is a major category of doctrine in the Catholic Church, equivalent to a religious ethics. Moral theology encompasses Roman Catholic social teaching, Catholic medical ethics, sexual ethics, and various doctrines on individual moral virtue and moral theory. It can be distinguished as dealing with "how one is to act", in contrast to dogmatic theology which proposes "what one is to believe".