Right to Truth and Reputation

Justice and 8th Commandment

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Values involved

Truth- is the agreement of the mind (words, actions) with reality. Honor- is the good esteem that a person has from others. We need honor and truth as a personal being and in our social dealings.

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THE VALUE OF TRUTH

Compendium, 521. What is ones duty toward the truth? Every person is called to sincerity and truthfulness in acting and speaking. Everyone has the duty to seek the truth, to adhere to it and to order ones whole life in accordance with its demands. In Jesus Christ the whole of Gods truth has been made manifest. He is the truth. Those who follow him live in the Spirit of truth and guard against duplicity, dissimulation, and hypocrisy.

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Reasons for truthfulness

Truth is something SACRED reality. The devil is the Father of all lies. God is truth. Man has the faculty of SPEECH (of communicating), and these are meant by nature to be the MEANS of EXTERNALLY MANIFESTING OUR INNER THOUGHTS. The SOCIAL nature of man requires truthful communication. The PERSONAL PERFECTION provided by social life is only possible in an atmosphere of truth.
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Virtue of Sincerity

Sincerity (veracity) the virtue which inclines one always to speak and act according to the truth. It involves:

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Virtues Related to the Truth

SIMPLICITY, of acting consistently with what we believe, as opposed to

DUPLICITY, acting in a way that we hide our true motives (e.g., kind, in order to manipulate).

FIDELITY, or living up to the word we promised (the truth of our future intent)

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Compendium523. What is forbidden by

the eighth commandment? (first part)

The eighth commandment forbids: false witness, perjury, and lying, the gravity of which is measured by the truth it deforms, the circumstances, the intentions of the one who lies, and the harm suffered by its victims; ()

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About Lying

Lying is saying the opposite of what is being thought (locutio contra mentem). CCC 2482 "A lie consists in speaking a falsehood with the intention of deceiving."

"You are of your father the devil, . . . there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks according to his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies." (Jn 8:44)

CCC 2483 By injuring man's relation to truth and to his neighbor, a lie offends against the fundamental relation of man and of his word to the Lord.
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Kinds of Lies

Jocular lies are those that are told merely to give amusement or pleasure, as a tall tale.

NOT a lie true joke, drama, convention, mental reservation, extreme social situations of injustice

Profitable lies are said in order to gain some benefit.

NOT a lie - polite expressions that are used to avoid frictions in daily conversation, whether conventional or not. (e.g., He is busy at the moment, may mean, He doesnt want to talk to you).

Harmful lies cause damage to the listener, such as giving the wrong time so that the other will miss the train
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More Lies

Hypocrisy. To act out a lie, or to feign to be better than what we are in reality. Perjury or False Testimony- lie done in a public or official forum

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Every real lie is intrinsically evil. Lying goes against:

the natural purpose of language, human relationships, good of the listener, and also the good of the liar himself, who may end up living in an unreal world of lies.

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Secrets and Principle of Privacy

Compendium 524. What is required by the eighth commandment? The eighth commandment requires respect for the truth accompanied by the discretion of charity in the field of communication and the imparting of information, where the personal and common good, the protection of privacy and the danger of scandal must all be taken into account; in respecting professional secrets which must be kept, save in exceptional cases for grave and proportionate reasons; and also in respecting confidences given under the seal of secrecy.
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More Issues Related to the Right to Privacy

limits of communication

-sacramental seal: absolutely inviolable

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Definition of and types of secret

Act of knowing a hidden fact with the obligation of not revealing it. i) A natural secret is a fact whose publication would be reasonably opposed by the concerned person. ii) A promised secret is a fact that a person has promised to keep hidden but was already known before making the promise. iii) An entrusted secret is a fact that was known only after having promised not to reveal it, and with that explicit condition.

explicit (If you promise not to tell anybody, Ill tell you)
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Principles involved in right to know and to communicate (1)

Principles governing the revelation of secrets:

Generally speaking, prying into anothers secrets or private life is not lawful. Everyone should observe an appropriate reserve concerning peoples private lives. Those who are in charge of communications should maintain a fair balance between the requirements of the common good and respect for individual rights. A natural secret binds under grave sin. A promised secret binds under venial sin (unless it is also a natural secret). In itself, an entrusted secret binds under grave sin. The obligation is stricter than for natural secrets.

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Principles involved in right to know and to communicate (2)

A secret may be rightfully revealed in the following cases:

It is urgently necessary for the common good. The keeper of the secret needs it, provided that the evil to be avoided is considerable and greater than the harm that the revelation would cause to the concerned person. It is necessary for the welfare of a third party, who could otherwise suffer great harm. It is necessary for the welfare of the person who told the secret, and whom it concerns. His opposition to the revelation is not reasonable.
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Compendium523. What is forbidden by

the eighth commandment? (part 2)

The eighth commandment forbids: () rash judgment, slander, defamation and calumny which diminish or destroy the good reputation and honor to which every person has a right; flattery, adulation, or complaisance, especially if directed to serious sins or toward the achievement of illicit advantages. A sin committed against truth demands reparation if it has caused harm to others.

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Honor and Reputation (fame)

Honor is the external recognition of someones excellence, which may be manifested in words, deeds, or other external signs. Reputation is the common opinion about the goodness of somebody. Honor and Reputation are natural rights
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Offences against honor and reputation

Contumely is unjustly dishonoring somebody in his presence. (a.k.a., insult or affront) Defamation means unjustly tarnishing anothers reputation (a.k.a., denigration)

Unjust, hence no defamation in revealing a hidden crime so that the culprit may be prosecuted. simple defamation or detraction: hidden but true defects slander or calumny if false defects

Defamation is a mortal sin that can become venial if the act is not perfect or the damage caused is small.
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Other offences against right to truth and honor

Rash judgment is the firm assent of the mind to the guilt of another without sufficient reason.

Rash doubts, rash suspicions, and rash opinions belong to the same species The rash judgment reflects the ill will that moves the intellect to assent without sufficient evidence (cf. Eccl 10:3).

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More offences against truth and honor

Flattery, adulation, or the act of giving excessive compliments, generally for the purpose of ingratiating oneself with the subject or to encourage another in malicious acts. Adulation is a grave fault if it makes one an accomplice in anothers vices or grave sins. Adulation is a venial sin when it seeks only to be agreeable, avoid evil, meet a need, or obtain legitimate advantages.

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More offences against truth and honor

Complaisance, in negative meaning, is over eagerness to please Boasting or bragging can be an offense against truth if what is claimed is false. Also against humility Irony (a.k.a., sarcasm) that is aimed at disparaging someone by maliciously caricaturing an aspect of his behavior or character

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Virtue of Prudent Silence

The virtue of DISCRETION can be defined as the virtue of keeping prudent silence

PRYING as in eavesdropping, unjust interrogation, reading others correspondence. REVEALING CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION Unjustly USING confidential information

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Falsehood spreads like wildfire

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Care for speech

James 3: 2-6: For we all make many mistakes, and if any one makes no mistakes in what he says he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body also. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses that they may obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 5 So the tongue is a little member and boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire.

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THE END

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Possible extra slides

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Virtues Related to the Truth & 8th Commandment

Charity with neighbor in the area of speech. This involves:

-Fraternal correction -Simplicity in dealings -Humility

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Virtues Related to the Truth and 8th Commandment

Witnessing to vouch for the truth (an act of justice that establishes the truth CCC 2472).

-The supreme witnessing is martyrdom to vouch for the faith with our very life.

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More Issues Related to the 8th Commandment

Right to Privacy:

-limits of communication -sacramental seal -natural secret -professional secret -meddling

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