LIFE IN CHRIST

The Dignity of the Human Person

MAN: THE IMAGE OF GOD

What are we and what place should morality hold in our lives? (added 09.29.03)

We are the image of the invisible God, who has given us three things which destine us to transcend the material world in pursuit of the eternal happiness which he has promised, and only he can provide. These three things are soul, intellect, and free will, none of which animals possess. Essential to our pursuit of God is our pursuit of holiness, of right living. Every one of us is absolutely bound to follow the natural, moral law as heard in our consciences. However, because we are stained by original sin, we are inclined to evil in our decisions and error in our thinking, even in our consciences. Fortunately, the Christian receives a new, supernatural life in his or her soul, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which enables him or her to come ever closer to perfectly fulfilling the moral life, a goal which will only be finally realized in the glory of heaven.

"The intellectual nature of the human person is perfected by wisdom and needs to be, for wisdom gently attracts the mind of man to a quest and a love for what is true and good. ...Always summoning him to love good and avoid evil, the voice of conscience when necessary speaks to his heart: do this, shun that. ...For its part, authentic freedom is an exceptional sign of the divine image within man. ...Christ...fully reveals man to man himself and makes his supreme calling clear." - Vatican II, Gaudium et spes, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, 15-22

1701-1709; In Brief 1710-1715