Virtue Ethics
I wanted to share with you guys a great article out there by William E. May (he's a professor at the John Paul II Institute of Marriage and Family in Washington, DC) on virtue ethics that is easy to read and brings it all together. The article is called "The 'New' Evangelization, Catholic Moral Life in Light of Veritatis Splendor and the Family." This might be of particular interest to those of you who were involved in the brief discussion on virtue ethics in the comment box last week and were confused (this was related to my post of excerpts from Karol Wojtyla on Ethics).
Here is an excerpt of from the article I'm referring to that just helps clarify how both the Ten Commandments, which tend to be seen in a more deontological way, and the Beatitudes, relate to the moral life:
Catholic moral life and the commandments, in particular, the commandment to love even as Jesus loves
But how do we become conformed to Christ; how do we hold fast to his very person? We do so by keeping his commandments, and first of all the precepts of the Decalogue. John Paul II emphasizes that the “different commandments of the Decalogue are really only so many reflections on the one commandment about the good of the person, at the level of the many different goods which characterize his identity as a spiritual and bodily being in relationship with God, with his neighbor, and with the material world” (no. 13). Indeed, “the commandments of which Jesus reminds the young man [who asks him what he must do to gain eternal life] are meant to safeguard the good of the person, the image of God, by protecting his goods….The commandments thus represent the basic condition for love of neighbor, at the same time they are proof of that love. They are the first necessary step on the journey to freedom” (no. 13). [1]
The commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves, which is at the heart of the precepts of the Decalogue, had been given to the Chosen People of old (cf. Dt 6:5; Lv 19:18). But, as the Holy Father reminds us, Jesus has given us a new commandment. We are to love one another as Jesus, who gave himself for us on the cross, loves us (cf. Jn 15:12) (no. 20). Commenting on this new commandment, the Pope writes: “Jesus’ way of acting and his words, his deeds and his precepts constitute the moral rule of Christian life. Indeed, his actions, and in particular his Passion and Death on the Cross, are the living revelation of his love for the Father and for others. This is exactly the love that Jesus wishes to be imitated by all who follow him….Jesus asks of everyone who wishes to follow him: ‘If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me’ (Mt 16:24)” (no. 20).
Moreover, the vocation to perfect love “is not,” the Pope declares, “restricted to a small group….The invitation, ‘go, sell your possessions and give the money to the poor,’ and the promise, ‘you will have treasure in heaven,’ are meant for everyone, because they bring out the full meaning of the commandment of love of neighbor, just as the invitation which follows, ‘Come, follow me,’ is the new, specific form of the commandment of love of God” (no. 18).
Catholic moral life, the Sermon on the Mount, and the Beatitudes
To follow Jesus and to love even as he has loved us by giving himself for us on the cross requires us to shape our lives in light of Jesus’ great Sermon on the Mount and of the Beatitudes found in it. John Paul II, following an ancient Christian tradition, [2] declares that the Sermon on the Mount is the “magna charta of Gospel morality” (no. 15). Jesus calls us to be perfect, and the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount “speak of basic attitudes and dispositions in life.” The Beatitudes are “promises from which there also indirectly flow normative indications for the moral life. In their originality and profundity they are a sort of self-portrait of Christ, and for this very reason are invitations to discipleship and to communion of life with Christ” (no. 16).
The Beatitudes, consequently, are not optional for the Christian. They describe the dispositions and attitudes that ought to characterize followers of Christ. The Beatitudes, rooted in the new command to love as Jesus loves, can be considered, as Germain Grisez has proposed, “modes of Christian response.” They designate characteristics of Christians that inwardly dispose them to do only what is pleasing to the Father. They specify ways of acting that mark a person whose will, enlivened by the love of God poured into his or her heart, is connaturally inclined to act with confidence, born of his or her Christian hope, that complete human fulfillment is realizable because of Christ’s redemptive work. [3]
Here is an excerpt of from the article I'm referring to that just helps clarify how both the Ten Commandments, which tend to be seen in a more deontological way, and the Beatitudes, relate to the moral life:
Catholic moral life and the commandments, in particular, the commandment to love even as Jesus loves
But how do we become conformed to Christ; how do we hold fast to his very person? We do so by keeping his commandments, and first of all the precepts of the Decalogue. John Paul II emphasizes that the “different commandments of the Decalogue are really only so many reflections on the one commandment about the good of the person, at the level of the many different goods which characterize his identity as a spiritual and bodily being in relationship with God, with his neighbor, and with the material world” (no. 13). Indeed, “the commandments of which Jesus reminds the young man [who asks him what he must do to gain eternal life] are meant to safeguard the good of the person, the image of God, by protecting his goods….The commandments thus represent the basic condition for love of neighbor, at the same time they are proof of that love. They are the first necessary step on the journey to freedom” (no. 13). [1]
The commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves, which is at the heart of the precepts of the Decalogue, had been given to the Chosen People of old (cf. Dt 6:5; Lv 19:18). But, as the Holy Father reminds us, Jesus has given us a new commandment. We are to love one another as Jesus, who gave himself for us on the cross, loves us (cf. Jn 15:12) (no. 20). Commenting on this new commandment, the Pope writes: “Jesus’ way of acting and his words, his deeds and his precepts constitute the moral rule of Christian life. Indeed, his actions, and in particular his Passion and Death on the Cross, are the living revelation of his love for the Father and for others. This is exactly the love that Jesus wishes to be imitated by all who follow him….Jesus asks of everyone who wishes to follow him: ‘If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me’ (Mt 16:24)” (no. 20).
Moreover, the vocation to perfect love “is not,” the Pope declares, “restricted to a small group….The invitation, ‘go, sell your possessions and give the money to the poor,’ and the promise, ‘you will have treasure in heaven,’ are meant for everyone, because they bring out the full meaning of the commandment of love of neighbor, just as the invitation which follows, ‘Come, follow me,’ is the new, specific form of the commandment of love of God” (no. 18).
Catholic moral life, the Sermon on the Mount, and the Beatitudes
To follow Jesus and to love even as he has loved us by giving himself for us on the cross requires us to shape our lives in light of Jesus’ great Sermon on the Mount and of the Beatitudes found in it. John Paul II, following an ancient Christian tradition, [2] declares that the Sermon on the Mount is the “magna charta of Gospel morality” (no. 15). Jesus calls us to be perfect, and the Beatitudes of the Sermon on the Mount “speak of basic attitudes and dispositions in life.” The Beatitudes are “promises from which there also indirectly flow normative indications for the moral life. In their originality and profundity they are a sort of self-portrait of Christ, and for this very reason are invitations to discipleship and to communion of life with Christ” (no. 16).
The Beatitudes, consequently, are not optional for the Christian. They describe the dispositions and attitudes that ought to characterize followers of Christ. The Beatitudes, rooted in the new command to love as Jesus loves, can be considered, as Germain Grisez has proposed, “modes of Christian response.” They designate characteristics of Christians that inwardly dispose them to do only what is pleasing to the Father. They specify ways of acting that mark a person whose will, enlivened by the love of God poured into his or her heart, is connaturally inclined to act with confidence, born of his or her Christian hope, that complete human fulfillment is realizable because of Christ’s redemptive work. [3]
posted by DP | 9:06 AM
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