Its Nature and Meaning

A Case Of Nick:
Nick made an appointment with his new boss to
discuss the problems he and his construction
workers were having with the inferior building
materials they were receiving. Were
overcharging our customers for these materials
that wont last more than 2 years, he said. As
expected, his boss fired Nick for being unable to
adjust to the new management and not getting
with the program. Fifty years old and out of
work, still paying off a house and two kids
college educationNick had to deal with one
face of evil.
Understanding Catholic Morality (Willems,1997)

Deviousness
and
deliberate
harm done
to another.

Adam and
Eve's
"original
sin
sinful acts
perpetrated
during life
while on
earth.

Conservative
Protestant
Sin and salvation,
denominations have
as viewed by different traditionally
religions:placed
salvation from sin
firmly into the
hands of the
individual.

Many Eastern religions view

sin as an error caused by
inadequate knowledge.
Many teach the concept of
Karma.
KARMA. The nature of a person's
next reincarnation will be
determined by their accrued
Karma at the time of their
death.

THE DEFINITION OF SIN

Sin is an offense
against reason,
truth, and right
conscience.
(CCC1849)

It has been
defined as "an
utterance, a
deed, or a
desire contrary
to the eternal
law.
121CCC

Sin sets itself

against God's
love for us

Sin is thus "love

of oneself even to
contempt of
God."124
God."

Contemporary Face of evil

Desperate
Starving
look of
children
men and
women
looking for
Political decisions=bargaining that gives
jobs
people personal power

Contemporary Face of evil

Structures of
evil in offices
Social ills
(police,
education,
Political systems that favor
law,
the powerful and sacrifice
medicine,
the powerless religion

THE reality of sin

1.Acts of individual
persons
2.Systemic ways
through structures
of evil

THE reality of sin

1. Love is absent
2. Power and domination are
primary motivations for
actions
3. Relationships are reduced
to sexual satisfaction
4. Injustice succeeds and
persons are devalued.

THE reality of sin

At root, sin is
spiritual in nature
and reflects the lack
of personal
relationship of love
with God, self, and
others.

THE GRAVITY OF SIN:

MORTAL AND VENIAL SIN
Mortal sin destroys charity in
the heart of man by a grave
violation of God's law
Venial sin allows charity to
subsist, even though it
offends and wounds it.

For a sin to be
mortal, three
conditions must
together be met:
1. object is grave
matter and
which is also
2. committed
with full
knowledge
3. and deliberate
consent.
consent

Gravity of Sin

Grave matter is specified by the

Ten Commandments
The gravity of sins is more or less
great: murder is graver than theft.
One must also take into account
who is wronged: violence against
parents is in itself graver than
violence against a stranger.

THE PROLIFERATION OF SIN

Sin creates a proclivity to sin; it

engenders vice by repetition of
the same acts.
=perverse inclinations=cloud
conscience and corrupt the concrete
judgment of good and evil.

7 Capital Sins
They are called "capital"
because they engender
other sins, other vices.
They are pride,

avarice, envy, wrath,

lust, gluttony, and
sloth or acedia.

Sin is a personal act.

Moreover, we have a
responsibility for the
sins committed by
others when we
cooperate in them:
1.by participating
directly and voluntarily
in them;

2. by ordering,
advising,
praising, or
approving them;
3. by not disclosing
or not hindering
them when we
have an
obligation to do
so;
4. by protecting
evil-doers.

When life
puts us at a
crossroad,
which path
must you
take?
Good or evil?
Right or wrong?

redeemed human nature

Activity:
1.
2.
3.

List down your sins of omission.

Mark the consistent weakness you
find in yourself with red ink.
What must be done to overcome
your evident weakness?

HEADSTAR
T
1. Sin sets itself against God's love
for us and turns our hearts away
from it. CCC 1850

2. Sin is a moral responsibility that

causes a damage or total
rupturing of our love relationship
with God in Jesus. Ian Knox

References:
Willems, Elizabeth, Understanding Catholic Morality, The
Crossroad Publishing Company New York, 1997.
Episcopal Commission on Catechesis and Catholic Education
(ECCCE)(1994). Catechism of the Catholic Church. Word and
Life Publications: Manila.
Ian Knox. Theology for Teachers, 2nd edition. Novalis: Ottawa,
Canada. 1994.

Drawings:
Namalata, Lorenz