HISTORY AND RENEWAL
OF THE CHRISTIAN
MORALITY
“Amidst the sound and fury of renewal
in the Church is Christ’s abiding presence”
Objectives
At the end of the module, the students are expected to:
Identify turning points and key personalities in the
history of the church that paved way for the formation
and renewal of Christian Morality;
Identify the changes introduced in each period and the
need for such changes;
Understand how these changes brought in the earlier
years of the church led to the formation of a modern
Christian Morality;
Introduction
Kenneth graduated recently from a college with a degree in Business Administration.
After several unsuccessful attempts at finding a job, he was accepted in an insurance company
where he was tasked with filing new insurance policies with tidying up the office equipment.
After three weeks on the job, Kenneth confided to his friend Alfred that he was not contented
with his job. He felt it was way below his actual ability and preparation. Alfred was visibly
unconvinced by Kenneth‟s complaint. However understandingly patted his friend‟s shoulder and
said, “You know, Kenneth, the world is a better place because Michelangelo didn‟t say „I don‟t
do ceilings.‟ You go through the Bible and Moses didn‟t say, „I don‟t do rivers.‟ Noah didn‟t say
„I don‟t do arks.‟ David didn‟t say, „I don‟t do giants.‟ Paul didn‟t say, „I don‟t do gentiles.‟
Jesus didn‟t say, „I don‟t do crosses.‟ Things turned out for the better because people dared to do
things they did not plan to do, and things that they would rather not do. New situations ask for
new ways of doing things. Changes in the lives of persons and communities challenge them to be
open to new things while keeping what is good in the old.”1
If you were Alfred, would you have given the same advice to Kenneth?
Have you had any experience showing that “Things turned out for the better because
people dared to do things they did not plan to do and things that they would rather not do?”
Exposition
Mark 2: 21-22
21
Jesus said, “No one sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak; otherwise, the
patch pulls away from it, the new from the old and the tear gets worse. 22 And nobody puts a new
wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the wine will burst the skins and the wine is lost and the
skins, too. No! New wine into fresh skins!”
Jesus was in the house of Levi, a tax collector, eating with other tax collectors and public
sinners. The teachers of the law, the Pharisees, questioned Him why he was eating with sinners
and tax collectors and why his disciples were not fasting. Jesus answered in images with the use
of new cloth and old cloak and new wine and old wineskins both of which cannot be put together
without destroying each other. Old situations which may have been the best ones for the former
situations cannot be applied to new situations. New situations must be responded with new
solutions by thinking out of the ones adapted in the present situation.
The spirit of the spiritual passage has always been recognized by the Church as a part of
her mission to be shepherd of God‟s people for all times and circumstances, always mindful of
the context of the men and women in the world, reflecting with them and seeking solutions to
their various problems and concerns. That is why the church has always been dynamic in
introducing changes in its teachings specially those which sets the guidelines into how we can
truly be Christians in the modern times – Christian Ethics.
1
Bausch, William J. "The Storyteller's Minutes." In A World of Stories for Preachers and Teachers, by William J.
Bausch, 215-216. Pasay City: Pauline's Publishing House, 2001.
Theological Discussion
I. EARLY CHURCH ETHICS
The creative liberty and fidelity in the apostolic Church is seen in the conflict that arose
because of the cultural diversities of the believers. First, the clash between the Jews born and
raised Judea and those coming from the Diaspora called for a creative solution by giving a
greater share in decision-making to representatives of the Hellenistic Jews and led to formation
of the seven ministry of deacons. Second is the leadership of Simon Peter in a most creative
charismatic role. Third, when Paul challenged the established Church when Peter had yielded to
the pressure of a conservative Jewish group. These conflicts were rooted from the continued faith
to the biblical approach by the church and therefore theology will always affirm and serve the
primacy of salvation truth. However, the main theme of the early church was the moral
transformation of man through God‟s redemptive love in Jesus as Paul teaches that God has
written his moral law in the hearts of all men, including the non-believers.2
The Church Fathers
1. The Early Church Fathers
It is said that our Christian theology was derived from Greek Philosophy. One of
it was the corruption of Paganism to Christianity and this was idealized by Plato.3
Moreover, the first who tried to synthesize this encounter was Justin and presents Christ
to Jews and Gentiles as Logos kay Nomos (the Word and the Law). With this idea, he
emphasizes that all people have some knowledge of God‟s love and law knowing that
everyone of us are using and interacting with God‟s creations and on His creation we find
this Logos.
2. Clement of Alexandria
He was a well-educated man who influenced the early church ethics by working
on a summary of the teachings on various points about dogmatics and ethics. He proposes
the step-by-step system to perfection such as discipleship, righteousness, the all-
embracing reality of love as gift, goal and commandment and the relationship between
faith and freedom. According to him, the decision to follow Christ and to do well is not
based on the truth of those things, but on ones intention to do well. With this, the center
of Clement‟s teaching is the true knowledge of Jesus Christ as a Christian who lives the
true form of Gnosis.
3. Origen
For Origen, Christ is the center of history. The knowledge between the right and
wrong has been blurred, but can still be seen and according to him, Christ will make this
knowledge clear again because right ethical decisions are not impossible for man.
2
Harmel, Ronald. “Introduction to Christian Ethics” by Ronal Harmel, 35-40 . New Jersey: Paulist Press, 1989
3
http://www.platonism347.tripod.com
4. St. Basil
A true believer is seized by an intense desire to follow Christ. He was known for
his care of the poor and underprivileged. During his time, he established guidelines for
monatic life which focus on community life, liturgical prayer and manual labor.4 He
wanted the monarchism of the religious to become the inspiration of all Christians. 5
5. St. John Chrysostom
He embodies the prophetic tradition which made him to honor Christ the prophet,
Paul as his hero and emphasizes on faith and love in the discipleship of Jesus Christ.
Chrysostom is very positive about the importance of work for the Christian‟s personal
development and for service to fellow men. When John became a priest, he preached for
married people his view of marriage, as marriage is good and is not a hindrance to
perfection. His view emphasizes the concept of the Encyclical Deus Caritas Est by Pope
Benedict XVI that eros is not bad by itself, but combined with agape, it is good because it
creates a bond between man and woman which can last for life.
6. St. Ambrose
St. Ambrose is one of the great churchmen who combine salvation truth with
authentic knowledge of authority. He was able to unite the people again in the Catholic
faith with the same belief of Chrysostom.
II. PRE-TRENT CATHOLIC THEOLOGY
The Pre-Trent Catholic Theology was characterized by the unity of Dogmatic Theology
and Moral Theology. Dogmatic theology is a branch of theology dealing with the
theoretical truths of faith concerning God and His works.6 In this period, moral theology was just
a sub-concern of Dogmatic Theology. It was evaluated and associated always in relation to the
dogmas7 and did not actually have its own teachings and writings. Dogmas were then the
measure of how good or evil an act is.
Moral theology usually came in when there is a question about how sinful or evil is one
act in relation to the dogma and the Catholic Faith and was usually limited to the Sacrament of
Penance. To ensure uniform procedure or standard in the exercise of the sacrament, it became
necessary for the Catholic Church to create manuals for priests containing lists of different sins
and their species, their relative grievousness and importance and the penance to be imposed.
4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basil_of_Caesarea
5
Monachism or Monasticism is an institution in which individuals devote themselves, apart from others to the
cultivation of spiritual contemplation and religious duties
6
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14580a.htm
7
Dogmas are truths pertaining to faith or morals revealed by God, transmitted from the Apostles in the Scriptures or
by tradition, and proposed by the Church for the acceptance of the faithful.
These practices constrained Moral theology but there were but some remarkable men
who brought renewal and creative theology during these periods:
1. Alexandre Hales, St. Bonaventure and Duns Scotus
They enriched the Church by “teaching of wisdom”. They studied Moral
Theology together with Dogmatic Theology with the mesage of salvation, the call to be
unifed with Christ, the gifts of faith and sacraments being presented in their own richness
as bearers of the fruits of love and justice in the world. 8
2. Albert The Great
Being the Universal Doctor, Albert the Great, a Dominican was recognized for his
extraordinary genius and extensive knowledge being a scientist, philosopher and
theologian. Despite of his many duties as a religious, as provincial of his order,
as bishop and papal legate, as preacher of a crusade, he was able to write a
veritable encyclopedia with treatise in sciences and nature and deep
knowledge of theology. He was one of the churchmen of that time who was also
concerned with the sciences for which he was honoured. 9
3. Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, as noted by Avery Dulles, was not the common doctor but a
controversial innovator, not a canonized saint but the purveyor of dangerous new brand
of philosophy and not a strong bulwark but a teacher widely suspected of heresy. It must
be noted that Aquinas rooted his teachings on philosophy and ethics with that of Aristotle
whom he considered as a master of theology and scientific method. And for these theses,
he was, at his death, condemned by the bishop of Paris and the Archbishop of
Canterbury. Aquinas, instead of presenting sterile apologetics in relation to the teachings
of Aristotle which was considered a temptation to abandon faith, engaged in dialogues
and worked out new synthesis without abandoning what was good in the teachings of
Augustine. Being well versed in the bible, he gave a new whole vision of faith as his
moral teachings integrated at its very heart the law of Spirit which gives life in Jesus. He
was also the innovator of systematic moral theology by introducing philosophical
speculations in line with the knowledge of salvation and through a pastoral mind. 10
III. THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (1545 – 1565)
A new life was breathed into the Catholic Church through the Council of Trent as the
church faced calls for the reformation initiated by Martin Luther, an Augustinian Monk. Between
1514 and 1518, he was spiritually troubled about salvation. He began to doubt Church‟s
8
Harmel, Ronald. “Introduction to Christian Ethics”by Ronal Harmel, 40 . New Jersey: Paulist Press, 1989
9
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01264a.htm
10
Harmel, Ronald. “Introduction to Christian Ethics”by Ronal Harmel, 40-41. New Jersey: Paulist Press, 1989
teachings. The selling of indulgences11 by John Tetzel, a Dominican Friar, aroused Luther‟s
indignation. In 1517, Luther posted his famous “Ninety-five Theses” on the door of the church of
Wittenburg, attacking the selling of indulgences. This was his public declaration of war against
Rome. 12
The success of this Protestant revolt jolted the papacy into action. The Church initiated a
movement, the Counter-Reformation, which was carried by a council13.
The Council of Trent was called by Pope Paul III meeting at irregular intervals from 1545
to 1563. Among the achievements included the recognition of the pope as an infallible head of
the church, the condemnation of the protestant claim that the bible is the only guide to man‟s
salvation, the reaffirmation of the validity of the mass and the sacraments and a prescribed highly
standards of conduct for the clergy. More importantly, the Council realized the separation of
Dogmatic Theology and Moral Theology.
The Council of Trent gave Moral Theology its own identity becoming a distinct science.
The Catechism, the official document issued by Rome about the Council of Trent, showed how
the bishops at Trent understood the meaning of moral living that is following the
commandments. They did not however attempt to speculate on how persons make moral
decisions nor did the offer accounts in what we call today as moral development. There were
also offenses which they called sin which has also to be confessed in order to be forgiven. 14
The Council of Trent, in other words, through the Catechism, envisioned only a law as a
guide for moral living. They were more act-oriented and followed the classicists‟ worldview
wherein laws are understood as fixed and unchangeable. They also followed deductive method in
which they started from presupposition that we have a clear and thorough grasp of reality with it
the natural law through the goodness of evilness of an act was deduced.
IV. THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL
The Second Vatican Council introduced the following changes:
TRENT MANUALS VATICAL RENEWAL
Act-oriented Person-oriented
Law-oriented Holistic
Classicists World View Historical Conciousness
Deductive Method Empirical and Inductive
11
An indulgence is salvation for a soul in purgatory or an exemption from church rules. It is granted by the Church
in exchange for a pious deed for a sum of money.
12
Zaide, Gregorio. “World History” by Gregorio Zaide, 155-160. Quezon City: All-Nations Publishing Co., 2006
13
A council is a gathering of bishops and theological experts, summoned by the pope, to discuss and resolve issues
and controversies faced by the church and the community.
14
https://perswww.kuleuven.be/~u0010542/history/brief5.html
The Act-oriented approach was replaced by a person-oriented approach during the
Second Vatican Council. The fundamental focus now is the person who tries to live like Christ.
Moral Theologians now look at the person as a whole, his motivation, his moral development
and the context and circumstances of the act. It is no longer solely based on a law that is fixed
and unchangeable but on the person, the act itself and the circumstances surrounding the act; thus
providing a more holistic judgment as the morality of an act.
As modern science abandoned the classicist‟s worldview, so as the church adopted
historical consciousness by agreeing that dynamism, changes and development are but processes
in order to derive the truth.
Instead of deductive method, the church advocated empirical and inductive methods in
which laws can never make us draw conclusions. This approach calls the church to the
understanding that acts are made by human beings who are subject of the different complexities
in life. Instead of producing laws that are fixed, the Catholic Church, viewing the need for an
inductive method which gives attention into the personal and the concrete aspects of an
experience, now simply provides guidelines for Christian living, a way of guiding the individual
persons into being in communion with God which eventually is the end goal of Theology.
Church Teachings
Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium Et Spes)
To carry forward the work of Christ under the lead of the befriending Spirit, the
Church has always had the duty of scrutinizing the signs of the times and of
interpreting them in the light of the Gospel. Thus, in language intelligible to each
generation, she can respond to the perennial questions which men ask about this
present life and the life to come, and about the relationship of the one to the other.
We must therefore recognize and understand the world in which we live, its
explanations, its longings, and its often dramatic characteristics.
Gaudium et Spes clearly upholds that it is the responsibility of the church to always
scrutinize the signs of times and interpret the same in light of the Gospel. The Church can never
simply be left sleeping but must always be watchful and ready to guide its flock to its
supernatural end, that is communion with God, at all times and in all circumstances. She must be
able adopt to the current conditions of her flock and must never be constricted in the things
which it promulgates at the present but rather it must continue to seek and reflect the truth and
the good through the signs of times presented to her in light of the Gospel and with the aid of the
Spirit.
Synthesis
Moral Theology began as a sub-branch of Dogmatic Theology. It was always interpreted
in the light of Catholic Dogmas and was limited to the Sacrament of Penance. During the
Council of Trent, Moral Theology became a separate science which was law-oriented and act-
oriented. It followed the classicists‟ worldview and the deductive method or reasoning. During
the Second Vatican Council, the Church shifted Moral Theology into a holistic approach having
for its focus the person in relation to the act and the circumstances surrounding the act. It also
recognized that dynamism and change will always be a part of knowing what is true; thus, it gave
emphasis on historical consciousness. Empirical and inductive methods were also recommended
shifting from a law-oriented morality to a morality which provides guidelines for a Christian to
reach his ultimate end in light of the Gospel and by reason.
Activity
Read and pray the Prayer for the Universal Church below. What does the prayer envision
for the Catholic Church?
God our Father, in your care and wisdom
You extend the Kingdom of Christ to embrace the world
to give all men and women redemption.
May the Catholic Church be the sign of our salvation.
May it reveal to us the mystery of your love and
May that love become effective in our lives.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son,
Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God forever and ever.
Write your own prayer for the Church of the Philippines as it faces new moral obstacles
such as the Reproductive Health Bill.
Reflection
1. Explain why constant there is a need for constant reflection on the signs of times and
their interpretation in the light of the Gospel in our everyday lives and in the pastoral task
of the Church.
2. The Church understands herself as a community in constant need of renewal. In your
opinion, in what are or areas of Christian Ethics should the Church seek renewal and
conversion?
3. What can you contribute in this on-going process of renewal and conversion?
THES004: Moral Theology
N1 9:00-10:30AM
Manchus, Rhymart
Manondo, Emegene
Mier, Ludel Maiello
