(1)Who has selected your parents,for you to come to this world?. Why do you live? Catholic answer is God & to lead a happy life!. What are the other beliefs to these 2 questions,from other religions?
(2) What you mean by Ethics?. How you lead your life with Ethics?. Can you list out the Ethics you follow in your life?
(3)Concept does not vary but reality flows. Catholic CONCEPT is you have been created by God to lead a Happy life. Ur life flows with happy to unhappy movements (vice versa)(REALITY). In order to be happy both worldly & eternal,what are the ETHICS you should follow?
(4)What are 7 ETHICS of Catholicism?
(5) Ur view may be different to others,who is correct?. What are the Catholic treatment proposed,for matters going outside 7 ETHICS?
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Reflection for 12th Feb 2017, celebrating 6th Sunday mass of ordinary season,of cycle 1. Church invite us to analyze about Christian morality- what it is and what it is not. Jesus says in the Gospel" unless your holiness Surpasses that of the scribes and pharisees you shall not enter the kingdom of God. Today readings make us ask ourself: how much love is their in our observance of the commandments. Does Jesus having lived, suffered, and died out of love for us to make any difference in the way that we live?
In order to analyze how you lead your life as catholic, first we should know, how I am living in this world?. Can I live like an animal without clothes?. Is it acceptable to you and to society?. In order to find answer to these questions, first, we have to analyze the main difference between human and animal?
Humans will carry out action for a purpose, while animals action for purpose is not very clear. Human has to decide whether the purpose of action is good or bad. Human will act as animal, when he does things with bad motives. Hence to be more human you have to identify the ethics of your life.
Ethics Is a system of moral principles,which affects how people make decisions &lead their life. It concerned with what is good for individuals & society. It covers
(1)how to live a good life
(2)your rights & responsibilities
(3)language of right& wrong
(4)moral decisions what is good & bad.
Concepts of Ethics are derived from religions/cultures &infuse debates on topics like abortion,euthanasia,human rights & professional conduct.
There are 3 types of approaches to ethics
(1)META-deals with nature of moral judgments
(2)NORMATIVE- concern with the content of moral judgments & the criteria of what is right &wrong
(3)APPLIED-look at the controversial topics like war,animal rights &death penalty. These theories are useful in practice&decide how human beings behave. Out of Holy Trinity,father & son has given us basic ethical behavior, while Holy Spirit is enhancing that,in managing with paradigm changes due to technological advancements.
You can summarize 7 points as Catholic Ethics: they are
1)10 Commandments -
Thou shall have no other gods before Me/Thou shan't make idols/Thou shan't take the name of thy LORD God in vain/Remember Sabbath day,to keep it holy/Honour thy father&mother/Thou shan't murder/Thou shan't commit adultery/Thou shan't steal/Thou shan't bear false witness against thy neighbour/Thou shan't covet thy neighbours goods.
(2)7 SACRAMENTS-
Baptism/Communion/
(3)Avoid7VICES-Lust/Gluttony/
(4)Practice7CORPORAL MERCIES-
Feeding hungry/Giving drink to thirsty/Clothing naked/Welcoming strangers/Visiting sick&imprisoned/Burying death&
Practice 7 SPIRITUAL MERCIES-
Counseling doubtful/Instructing ignorant/Admonishing sinner/Comforting sorrowful/Bearing wrong patiently/Pray for living&dead
(5)Practice PARDONING
(6)LOVE
(7)Follow Church Rules(Ex: artificial/birth control/,Abortion,Euthanasia)
When you follow these 7 Ethics, concept of God creation, you will achieve, that is you are leading your life happily, following God's Will.
How to follow God's Will, which falls outside this 7 ethics:
There are many matters in your life, which might fall outside this 7 ethics. Under such circumstances, what to do?
You cannot live alone. You are living in a interdependent society. Each human's character changes physically and mentally with time. These changes for each human character is not uniform. Your Ethics are such that you have to live independently, lead a happy life, while you associate ever changing society. This is a challenge. Specially in married life, both individuals are changing both physically and mentally, with time. These changes are not uniform. Hence how to lead a happy life, associating with ever changing individuals?. One of the main catholic ethic is pardoning: It is easy to pardon, when you don't judge others. Gossiping leads unnecessary judging others. When you train your self not to judge others, avoid gossiping and utilize your time, engage in a useful activity such as gardening,fishing,cooking, helping others, it will be easy to maintain your ethics.
When you develop ethics, it will be easy to love your society. Then every action of your's are based on Love. That is why Jesus main message is to love thy neighbor. This will allow you to carry out your actions happily and you lead a happy life.
Foreign support:
Third world countries always rely on the foreign aids from develop countries. Until you became adult, you always depend upon your parents. Similarly, as a individual adult human, can you live alone? You don't know what is happening inside your body! You don't know 100% outcome your action!. Under such scenario, you need spiritual support: you need the support of saints and holy mary. Why Jesus the God's son has born like a baby?. Why He should not have parachuted like an adult?. Just to show us we need 3rd party support like saints. Hence it is very easy to be happy with the support of saints and Holy Mary, they will intercede with God, to lead a happy life.
Take cana incident! Why Holy mary only observed wine is depleted, when Jesus is there? Here the wine resembles happiness
Why Jesus asked them to fill water? HE should have made wine out of nothing?. Here water represent 7 ethics of catholism!.
Follow 7 ethics in your life; hand over your worries to mary and saints; carry out actions happily: then God will guaranty your happiness.
Tday's readings:
Book of Ecclesiasticus ( Si15:15-20) says"He never commanded any one t be Godless"
Paul to corianthans says(1 cor 2:6-10) "God's predestined wisdom to be for our glory,before the ages began"
Matthew 5:17-37 says" Jesus clarifies our ideas about true morality, which is obedience to God's law out of motive of love"
Reflection: it is clear already in the old testament, that it is not our misdeeds, which accuse us before God, but our hearts fractured and divided as they are. Consistent with Israelis teaching, Jesus insisted that we go deeper than our external deeds. The important question is what is going in our hearts, the source of inner thoughts and motivations? The teachings are presented in using various examples, presented sometimes in great simplicity,other times with irony and wit.
n conclusion: what is morality for you? If it is just a rigid, slavish, fear inspired, loveless. Mechanical obeying of rules and laws, it is plain ethics. One does not have to be christian to be merely ethical. With Ethics alone, you will hardly satisfy God desire for your holiness. Jesus want morality- Christian Moralty- like one human family- since all humans belongs to one father God. Christian morality is a free, personal, loving responsiveness to HIM who is divine love and goodness in person.
What is characteristics about genuine Christian is their wholeheatedness n their responsiveness to what Jesus is to them and what HE has done for them. Saints become saints not because that they are more ethical than ordinary people but because that they are more in love. Christians morality tells us that we are to live and act from a motive deepest love for our God.
Morality after the mind of Christ also involves relationship with our neighbor." If you bring your gift to the altar and there recall your brother has anything against you, leave your gift there at the altar, go first and be reconciled with your brother and then come and offer your gift. Strong words: reconciliation with one's neighbor even takes precedence over worship of God. WE CANNOT BE RIGHTLY RELATED TO GOD UNLESS WE ARE RIGHTLY RELATED TO OUR NEGHBOR"
Let us summerise what church want us to reflect today in 7 points:
1)Morality is understanding difference between right&wrong& living according to that understanding
(2)ethics is the philosophy of how that morality guides Ur&societies behaviour.These2 are closely related,with morality being the foundation
(3)all human belongs to one family,hence Ur interdependent to society
(4)hence basic morality of catholism is love another
(5)how much Love is there in Ur observance of Ethics?
(6)Reconciliation with your neighbor is precedent over worship of God(if U bring gift to altar&recall,your brother against you,leave gift&1st reconciled with him)
(7)to be rightly related to God,1st rightly related to your neighbor!
Thank you
God bless you!
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