Christian Morality

When speaking of faith and of the Credo, we should understand that the great reason for which we ought to believe all the truths of religion is that God Himself has revealed them by Jesus Christ His Son, who teaches them to us with infallible truth by the ministry of His Church.

The principle of morality is no less divine; and the reason for which we should faithfully observe the commandments of God, and of His Church, practise Christian virtues and live according to the rules of the Gospel, is that God Himself so wills it, and that this supreme holy will is made known to us most clearly through Jesus
Christ and His ministers.

The word morality means the moral law; in Latin, morum lex.

To be moral or righteous, is simply to live in accordance with that law which comes from God and which is the expression of His will; to be immoral or unrighteous, is to follow the natural inclinations in preference to the will of God, and to be ruled by the passions, and not by the divine law. Conscience is that inward light which reveals to us our duty, which reproaches us when we transgress, and applauds our obedience when we have the courage to listen to the voice of God, and to prove ourselves true Christians.

But just as there is, in this world, false or counterfeit money which is easily mistaken for good unless it is closely examined, so is there a false morality, which is very prevalent, and which entirely results from ignorance and unbelief; a counterfeit morality which does not suffice for the accomplishing of the will of God, and yet which many people content themselves with practising.

Ironically, it has been called the morality of the reasonable, the progressive, the enlightened - but it is very different from true Christian morality. Those who possess it, falsely imagine that they have all that is needed; and this deceiving tranquility is often the greatest obstacle to their return to the true service of God.

There is nothing more convenient nor more elastic than is this false morality. We might even add that there is nothing more immoral, or, at least, that there is nothing more powerless to render a man truly virtuous.

It might be summed up in two negative commands: Thou shalt not kill. - Thou shalt not steal. Two very desirable and praiseworthy requirements unquestionably, but such as do not go a great way, seeing that, beyond the cells of a prison, nearly all mankind, both bad and good, could quite conscientiously claim this remarkable title to the esteem of their fellow citizens. This mysterious moral law goes no farther, but leaves everything else wrapped in a vague uncertainty, which must be peculiarly soothing to those who are drawn by inclinations toward some action of doubtful morality.

It is true that it commands its devoted followers to be good fathers & mothers, good sons and daughters, good husbands and wives, and good citizens; but if we enter upon the question of the daily duties of life, and rules of conduct, morals, and temper, or methods of subduing vice, evil habits, selfish instincts, it has not a word to say; it forbids nothing and tolerates everything.

Having this law for his only rule of life, a man might be a gambler, a drunkard, and a profligate; he might be passionate, quarrelsome, and selfish, a spendthrift, or a miser, at will; he might be utterly destitute of love of anyone except himself, and devoured by idleness, pride, or sensuality.

Who does not see the hollowness of such a morality, and how impossible it is to find in such indeterminate maxims the necessary power to subdue the rebellion of the passions? It is, in fact, nothing but a deception, which enables men to do evil without burdening their consciences too heavily. Unfortunately for them, God is more
exacting, and who can say that He is wrong?

That pure Christian morality, which He Himself has given us, is the law by which He will hereafter judge us; and it is no more within our power to modify it than it is in our power to change the course of the stars, or to alter the laws of nature.

Very different from the morality of the rationalist is that Christian morality resting entirely upon the religion of which it is the practice. Its foundation, to which it refers everything, is the love and service of Our Lord Jesus Christ; the Gospel, with its divine maxims, is its code, and it teaches us first the necessity of penance, of self-renunciation, of brotherly love, of humility and gentleness, of purity of heart, and chastity; of detachment from the world, of obedience to God and to His Church; in one word, the practice of the Christian life and Christian virtues.

It must be acknowledged that there is some difference between this rule of conduct, and the unmeaning maxims of the good father or mother, the good son or daughter, the good husband or wife, and the good citizen. The most that such maxims as these are capable of, as was wittily said by St. Francis of Sales, is to save us from being needy, and to gain us the esteem of those who neither look below the surface nor scrutinize too closely.

As it is absolutely necessary for the salvation of our souls that we obey the law of God and live in accordance with His will, it is most important, it is even necessary, to have a clear knowledge of Christian morality in order to be able to practise it. Let us, therefore, study it together in all its principal teachings, and live our lives as God wills.
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Adapted from The Faith That Never Dies, or
The Priest of God in the Catholic home: How to Live an Ideal Christian Life as a True Follower of Christ
(© 1900 by J.C. Curtin)