Journal 4
1.      The Key idea of this, the fourth section of junior morality, is the foundation on which we base our beliefs, the key moral teachings of the Catholic Church.  We focused our study of Catholic teachings on what the Catechism has to say(Part Three: Life in Christ {1743-1876}).  We studied the "morality of Human Acts," "Moral Conscience," "The Virtues," and "Sin."  Through our study of these topics we have become more able to understand it is that we believe about our own moral standards, and I have come to better understand my own conscience, not as a set of moral codes but more an internal objective sense of what is or is not right action, speech, etc.
2.  a)  The lesson the I wish to remember the most would have to be the idea of how a catholic actually goes about educating his or her conscience.  The Catechism states "The education of the conscience is a lifelong task.  From the earliest years, it awakens the child to the knowledge and the practice of  the interior law recognized by conscience... The education of the conscience guarantees freedom and engenders peace of heart."(1784)  Like the Catechism I believe that one cannot suddenly aquire an informed conscience.  It takes years and years of personal experience, knowledge from authorities, and personal reasonning in order to develope a good conscience and even then one's conscience is not perfect.  But, you can always take steps closer to perfecting your conscience even if you may never get all the way there.
     b)  Secondly I want to remember the three factors in judging the morality of any human act: Object, Intent, and Circumstance.  Object has to do with the act itself.  Is the action taken immoral in and of itself?  Intent has to do with the person's state of mind and mental awareness, or knowledge of his or her doing of the action.  Even if the action itself is immoral, if the person does it unwillingly or in a wrong state of mind then he or she may not be morally responsible for his or her actions.  And finally circumstance has to do with the situation.  They are secondary and "contribue to increasing or diminishing the moral goodness or evil of human acts (for example, the amount of a theft)."(Catechism: 1754)  Also, if the person was acting out of fear or self-defense, the morality of the action changes.
     c)  Finally I want to remember Fr. Knapp's LISTEN method of moral decision making.  The steps of the LISTEN method are: Look for the facts, Imagine the possibilities, Search for insight outside of your own, Turn inward, Expect help from God, and Name your decision.  Through this process, and I think especially through turning inward and questioning how your conscience feels about the topic as well as searching for the opinions of other people and most importantly receiving help from God, you can make decisions, knowing that you have done all that you can in order to determine the morality of any specific action.
4.    Whenever I am not sure what to do in a certain situation do I end up acting accordin to my conscience?  Do I go against my conscience for my personal gain or to hurt others?  When I have a decision to make do I act as if the whole world were watching me?
5.    In order to actually gain something from this section of study I need to remember the LISTEN, OPTION, or 8 Step method.  I need to let my words or thoughts turn into actions.  I need to actually go through with each step, not skipping anything then next time I face a moral decision.  If I do that then I think there is no way my faith cannot grow as a result.  I must continue to exam my way of life in order to improve it and the lives of others that my decisions may affect, directly or indirectly.
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