Christian morality consists in striving for love and happiness in a relationship with God in Jesus Christ. The relationship is a grace from God that naturally strengthens his family as we develop good relationships with all our siblings: everything we do to others we do to God, who loves each as his children (see Matthew 25:40,45; 1 John 5:1).
Sin is the rejection of love that enslaves us to the flesh as it hurts our relationship with God. Adam and Eve rejected God’s covenant of love to seek happiness independent of God (see Mulieris Dignitatem 9). In fact all sin—all immorality—rejects God’s love to pursue happiness independent of God: to say or do whatever we like (see CCC 1747). But this leads to “slavery of sin” (see CCC 1733) that uses “freedom as an opportunity for the flesh” (Galatians 5:13).
Freedom is key. Actions are good or evil only if they are free. We don’t punish an asteroid for killing someone by slamming into the earth. Nor do we punish a man-eating shark, although we may kill it to prevent future attacks. We punish murderers and hold them responsible because they are free human beings.
“The morality of acts is defined by the relationship of man’s freedom with the authentic good” (St. John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor 72). An impulse or reflex action is only evil when freely chosen, as when we deliberately let a habit lead us to sin. For example, if drinking leads to surfing the Internet and to compulsive pornography then choosing to drink would be sinful. Likewise, if watching football leads to angry and violent outbursts, then turning on the football game would be sinful. Having a sinful dream in the middle of sleep is not freely willed and therefore is not a sin. So we are only responsible for our actions if they are free (see CCC 1734). Ignorance (as in a child), duress and manipulation, fear and other psychological or social factors can reduce or even eliminate our ability to freely choose (see CCC 1746), leading us into doing what we do not want to do (see Romans 7) and reducing our responsibility.
Sinful Disobedience
If obedience (ob + audience = to be near + hearing) means to get close to someone so as to hear, disobedience is to distance ourselves from a person in order not to hear or respond to his needs or wishes. A child often does this with his parent, not listening to mom or dad by focusing on TV or other electronics, perhaps when asked to do homework or some chore. This hurts the relationship between them because the child’s not listening says to a parent: “What you are saying is not important, because you are not important to me.” Ouch!
Parents can do the same by ignoring each other or their children. Perhaps a child asks a parent for some help or attention while the parent is in a phone conversation. The child feels hurt because his parent’s action tells him: “What you are saying to me is not important, because you are not important.” Perhaps one spouse does this with the other, using TV to distance himself from the other who wants and needs to talk.
Sin does this with God. It disobeys by not listening to God .
To be continued…