The Lord’s Prayer Our Father Who art in Heaven Hallowed be thy name Thy kingdom come Thy will be done On earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our trespasses As we forgive those who trespass against us And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil. Amen.

Lesson Four: Conscience

What is Conscience? Conscience is the ability to know and judge if something is right or wrong. We can know God’s natural law (do good and avoid evil) through conscience.

Well-formed vs. Malformed Consciences A person’s conscience is not infallible. If one has a well-formed conscience, then one will be better able to discern right from wrong. But if one has a malformed conscience, then one will often confuse the two.

Original Sin Most basically, it’s the lack of sanctifying grace in the soul. III. ORIGINAL SIN Freedom put to the test 396 God created man in his image and established him in his friendship. A spiritual creature, man can live this friendship only in free submission to God. The prohibition against eating "of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil" spells this out: "for in the day that you eat of it, you shall die."276 The "tree of the knowledge of good and evil"277 symbolically evokes the insurmountable limits that man, being a creature, must freely recognize and respect with trust. Man is dependent on his Creator, and subject to the laws of creation and to the moral norms that govern the use of freedom.

Original Sin Man's first sin 397 Man, tempted by the devil, let his trust in his Creator die in his heart and, abusing his freedom, disobeyed God's command. This is what man's first sin consisted of.278 All subsequent sin would be disobedience toward God and lack of trust in his goodness. 398 In that sin man preferred himself to God and by that very act scorned him. He chose himself over and against God, against the requirements of his creaturely status and therefore against his own good. Constituted in a state of holiness, man was destined to be fully "divinized" by God in glory. Seduced by the devil, he wanted to "be like God", but "without God, before God, and not in accordance with God".279 399 Scripture portrays the tragic consequences of this first disobedience. Adam and Eve immediately lose the grace of original holiness.280 They become afraid of the God of whom they have conceived a distorted image - that of a God jealous of his prerogatives.281

Actual Sin Actual sins are sins that we commit by an act of the will. We can sin by thought or by deed – commission. What is an example of each? We can sin by failing to do the right thing in thought or deed – omission. What is an example of each? James 4:17, “So for one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, it is a sin.” We judge sins by what they are. An action can be moral, immoral, or amoral. What are examples of each?

Intrinsically vs. Conditionally Some sins are “intrinsically” immoral. They are always and everywhere wrong and sinful. E.g. Murder, adultery Some sins are “conditionally” immoral. They are sometimes and somewhere wrong and sinful, but not always so. E.g. Israelites eating shellfish, or Catholics eating meat on Friday during Lent. Can you think of some sins in each category?

Venial Sin and Mortal Sin For a sin to be mortal: It must be serious matter. We must know it is wrong. We must freely choose to do it. For a sin to be venial: It must be less serious matter, though we may have knowledge and free will. It may be serious, but we are without full knowledge of its seriousness and/or we do not fully consent to the action.

CCC 1855 Mortal sin destroys charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God’s law; it turns man away from God, who is his ultimate end and his beatitude, by preferring an inferior good to him. Venial sin allows charity to subsist, even though it offends and wounds it. “If anyone sees his brother committing what is not a deadly sin, he will ask, and God will give him life for those whose sin is not deadly….All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin which is not deadly.” – 1 John 5:16-17

Hierarchy of Desires Concupiscence is the word given to disordered desires. Sin is the word given to the actions in fulfillment of those desires. James 1:14-15: “Rather, each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire conceives and brings forth sin, and when sin reaches maturity it gives birth to death.”

Venial sin is when the will incorrectly chooses created goods (imagine choosing to stay up late to play video games rather than to get necessary sleep). Mortal sin is when the will incorrectly chooses created goods over the Creator (one knowingly, and with full ability, chooses to do what is wrong, in spite of God’s commandments).

Homework Define “Words to Know” Activity Book, p. 4

The Lord’s Prayer Our Father Who art in Heaven Hallowed be thy name Thy kingdom come Thy will be done On earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily bread And forgive us our trespasses As we forgive those who trespass against us And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil. Amen.