Answering Life’s Questions
Life’s Questions
“Why?” “Why?” “Why?” I have three boys who are now teenagers, but I can remember the days of them asking “why” about everything.
It is in our nature as humans to want to know about and explore the world around us to find answers to life’s questions. There are some deep, common questions that people search for answers to: Who am I? What was I created to do? How do I make good choices? These questions must be answered through the lens of faith using a moral compass formed in Catholic teaching.
The desire to know God is written on our hearts. In the depths of our soul, we yearn to know God fully and know His truth (CCC 27). Moral Theology aims to help answer life’s big questions with Divine Revelation and Faith.
What is Moral Theology?
Theology is the study of God and all things in relation to God. Natural theology uses reason alone to understand God. Sacred Theology is a study of God with reason enlightened by faith. This is an essential component of answering questions about our essence and purpose.
The truths that enlighten our faith are Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition. Sacred Scripture is the Word of God found in the Bible. Sacred Scripture shapes our understanding of the human condition in relation to God by tracing the ways that God reveals Himself to man throughout Salvation History.
Sacred Tradition includes the oral and written preaching from apostles. These teachings are given to us by the teaching authority of the Church, the Magisterium, made up of the Pope and bishops. They are entrusted with guarding and transmitting the faith.
Divine Revelation
“All Scripture is inspired by God and useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16).
Scripture is our main source of moral theology. When the Word became flesh, (John 1:14) God revealed who we are and we are called to be in Jesus. The Gospels help us view Jesus as a “model of a moral life.”
In his book, An Introduction to Moral Theology, William May provides an overview of how God prepared His people in the Old Testament for what He would reveal in the New Testament, through Jesus Christ. In the Old Testament, God revealed how His people should live a moral life through covenants. The Ten Commandments required “loyalty towards God” first and loving relationships with His people second. The Old Covenant was sealed with the blood of bulls which represented the life of the animal and the sacrifice expected to follow God fully. Love requires sacrifice (May, pp. 31-33).
Holiness in the Old Testament required “justice and mercy, concern for the poor and the weak, personal integrity and fidelity” (May, p. 34). The Old Covenant was God’s way of preparing his people for the “fulfillment of His promises in Jesus.” The old covenant is “fulfilled” and “perfected” in Jesus. In Christ, we become “co-redeemers” and our purpose is revealed. Through baptism, we are invited into a new life with Christ as adopted children of God and brothers and sisters in Christ. We must seek Him, follow His commandments, and imitate Him.
When we hear the phrase, “Word of God,” we often think of the Bible. However, the Word of God is also a person.
“And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
The Word of God is Jesus.
Sacred Theology is a matter of faith in the Word of God. This also means that it is Jesus Himself who illuminates our understanding of who we are, what we are created to do, and how we are to make good choices.
Jesus is the answer.
In John Paul II’s encyclical, Veritatis Splendor, he begins with a reference to John’s Gospel that Christ is the “true light that enlightens everyone” (John 1:9). Everyone is looking for answers to big questions in life: Who am I? What was I created to do? How do I make good choices? Jesus gave God a face and revealed the mystery of God.
We are called to be holy and bring the light of Christ into the world. Being obedient to living in the light of Christ is difficult since we are tempted and weak. He is the model by which we must measure our choices.
As a teacher of the faith, I am entrusted with guiding students in moral choices everyday. Matthew Gutowski encourages that moral theology must be rooted in Scripture. The study of Sacred Scripture provides a wealth of examples for moral theology.
Before diving into discussions of morality, Gutowski gives sound advice.
The message must be delivered with a positive and loving demeanor.
There should be a heavy reliance on what is revealed in Sacred Scripture.
A Christocentric approach with reliance on graces from the Holy Spirit is essential.
Be personal.
There must be an emphasis on Christ’s commandment to love.
The world is in a dire position where it doubts the teachings of the Church and rejects its fundamental doctrines (CCC 37). We need faith and divine revelation considering the condition in which we find ourselves. The belief in “faith alone” without consideration of moral action is becoming a worsening issue. Christians are called to a life of holiness which reflects that of Christ. Faith brings certainty about what God wants for us. We should accept that the certainty of which we arrive at truth through faith is greater than the truth we can arrive at with our own power.
Here are the Bibles I recommend for teens and links to the books I mentioned in this blog:
The Great Adventure Bible (Leatherlike) or in Paperback
Introduction to Moral Theology by William May
Morality: The Catholic View by Servais Pinckaers, O.P.
