Elementary |
DISCOVER
With these three doctrinal teaching pages , the building blocks of the lessons , children will :
• Learn Catholic doctrine , tradition , and practices to help build Catholic identity .
• Be inspired by a related Saint or holy person who models the way of discipleship .
• Enjoy engaging activities to check comprehension .
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Faith-Filled People
Alphonse de Liguori
Saint Alphonse is a Doctor of the Church and the founder of a religious community called the Redemptorists . He was a poet , musician , and author . His writings on the moral life include practical answers to questions about moral decisions for daily living . He is the patron saint of confessors and teachers of moral theology . His feast day is August 1 .
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Christian Morality
Each day we juggle many choices . The decisions we make , as disciples of Jesus , to live a holy and moral life are called moral decisions . Our life is a response to God ’ s invitation and to the grace he gives us as we make our journey . Here are some guide for our journey :
The natural law , the laws written on our hearts . For example , “ Do good and avoid evil ” and “ Treat others as you want them to treat you .”
The Bible , especially the Great Commandment and the Ten Commandments
The life and teachings of Jesus Christ and the teachings of the Church
Knowing what determines the morality , that is , the goodness or evil of human acts , will also help us make wise moral decisions . Three things determine the morality of an act . They are :
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The Object . The object of the act is what we do . It is the good or the bad we do or say . Some things are good in themselves , such as praying . Other things such as murder are evil in themselves . Many evil acts , such as lying , cheating , and stealing , are prohibited by the Ten Commandments .
The Intention . The intention is what the person doing the act wants , or desires to do . Intention is the purpose for doing or saying something . A good intention cannot change an evil act into something good . For example , if a person steals something to give it to someone else as a gift , the act of stealing is still wrong , even if the person had a good intention .
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The Circumstances . The circumstances of the act are those things that surround the decision . Circumstances do not change the goodness or evil of an act . They can make something we do or say better or worse . For example , if a person steals out of fear or ignorance , the act is still evil and wrong , but they may not be as responsible for the act .
A morally good act requires all three aspects : the goodness of the object , a good intention in doing the act , and its circumstance .
Sin : Turning Away from God
Activity Discuss with a group examples of circumstances
The Cardinal that might Virtues make , such it diffi as cult prudence for people , help to us choose make good to do moral decisions something which they are know necessary is right to . Role live a play holy one and of moral the life . The decisions situations we make you , discuss however . , are not always easy . Sometimes we come close to doing what we know is against God ’ s Law and choose not to do it . At other times , we give in to temptation and choose to do something that we know is wrong .
We sin when we deliberately turn away from God and his love . In doing so , we offend him . To help us understand more clearly what sin is about , the Church speaks about capital sins , mortal sins and venial sins .
Capital Sins . These are sins that lead to other sins . There are seven capital sins ( read Proverbs 6:16 – 19 ; Matthew 15:18 – 20 ). They are usually listed as pride , greed , envy , anger , lust , gluttony , and sloth , or laziness . Each of these capital sins has a corresponding capital virtue to help resist the temptations of these sins . The capital virtues are humility , loving kindness , patience , chastity , temperance , generosity , and diligence ( read Galatians 5:19 – 26 ).
Mortal Sins . These are serious offenses against God that break our relationship with him ( read Mark 10:17 – 22 ). If we die in this state of separation from God , we remain separated from him forever by our own choices . Being forever separated from God is what we call Hell . When we are aware of being in a state of mortal sin , we are to seek God ’ s grace and forgiveness in the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation .
Venial Sins . These are less serious offenses against God . Because all sins turn our hearts away from God ’ s love , we should seek forgiveness of all sins , including venial sins ( read 1 John 5:16 – 17 ).
How does the virtue of patience help us resist the sin of anger ? How does the virtue of humility help us resist the sin of pride ? Discuss with a partner .
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FAITH FOCUS How do you choose to make a good decision ?
FAITH VOCABULARY conscience The gift of God that is part of every person that guides us to know and judge what is right and wrong .
morality Refers to the goodness or evil of human acts ; the morality of human acts depend on the object , intention , and circumstances of the action .
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Conscience
Our life is filled with so many things that compete for our attention . We juggle facts and ideas to make our decisions . How do we know what is good and what is evil ?
Every human being has another “ voice ” that constantly calls for our attention . It is our conscience . Our conscience helps us to judge what is right and what is wrong . We have the responsibility to train our conscience , and obey our well-formed conscience . The better we train , or form , a good conscience , the better we will be at making decisions that help us live as followers of Jesus Christ .
People can have a conscience that does not correctly judge something to be good or evil . Such a conscience is called an erroneous conscience . An erroneous conscience provides someone with information that leads to decisions that are against God ’ s Law . When a person deliberately chooses not to work at forming a good conscience , that person is responsible for his or her erroneous conscience . That means that the person is also responsible for the wrong caused by actions that are due to erroneous conscience . However , if a person has never been taught what is right , or is not mentally able to choose , then that person cannot be held accountable for the evil he or she does .
Activity
What To Do ?
Solve this dilemma . Your friend approaches you with the answers to an upcoming test . What do you do ?
1 . What is your fi rst response ?
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2 . What will you do ?
3 . Why would you do it ?
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4 . What might be the consequence of your decision ? |
Catholics Believe
Magisterium
The Church has the responsibility to guide us to make moral decisions . Guided by the Holy Spirit , the Church fulfills this responsibility to make sure she is faithful to the teachings of the Apostles on faith and morality . We call this teaching office of the Church , the Magisterium .
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• Grow in their knowledge of God ’ s Word with integrated Scripture quotes . |
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You make many moral decisions each day . Some are easy to make ; others are more difficult . The Holy Spirit is always with you to teach you and to guide you in making good moral decisions . Forming a good conscience will help you make wise and morally good choices . |
CONSCIENCE BUILDERS |
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Look over this list of conscience builders . Mark a
next to the actions you use to help
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build , or form , a good conscience . |
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DECIDE |
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Read Sacred Scripture . Pray to the Holy Spirit . Study and follow the teachings of the Church . Learn from the stories of people of faith , like Saint John Bosco . Seek the advice of people of faith whom I trust . |
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A I Follow Jesus |
How might using these conscience builders help you make good moral decisions ? |
This section summarizes the lesson , provides an integration activity , and inspires faith in action by inviting the child to make a faith choice . |
MY FAITH
CHOICE
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This week I will practice the cardinal virtue of prudence and make good moral decisions thoughtfully and responsibly . I will
Pray ,“ Holy Spirit , be my Advocate and guide me in making good decisions . Amen .”
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