Feb 3 Tue
How can I know if what I intend to do is good or bad?
Your freedom makes you morally responsible for your choices. When you act deliberately, you become the author of your actions. These freely chosen acts, arising from conscience, hold moral weight.
A human act's morality—its goodness or badness—depends on whether it draws you closer to your ultimate goal, which is God and eternal happiness.
The question in the young man’s conversation with Jesus: “What good must I do to have eternal life?” shows the essential connection between the moral value of an act and man’s final end. Jesus, in his reply, confirms the young man’s conviction: the performance of good acts, commanded by the One who “alone is good,” is the indispensable condition of and the path to eternal happiness; “If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
As we see, there is more in goodness than conforming to nature and doing whatever you wish. The good you must choose is related to unfolding your potentials; not only ‘being’ good, but also ‘doing’ good.
To accomplish a good act, you make use of your freedom to pursue an authentic good. This good is established as such by God.
The agreement between the action and the norms of morality must take place at two levels:
- The act itself (the Object) can bring you closer to God.
- You actually ordain it to God (your Intention is right).
Thus, the two elements of action, its ‘Object,’ and your ‘Intention,’ must be good. The ‘Circumstances,’ though accidental, could also be important.
When you choose to do something, your will chooses a course of action—a moral Object—to achieve an end. The Object chosen is the good toward which you deliberately direct yourself. It is what the action by its own nature tends to, independently of your intention. It answers the question: “What are you really doing?” Studying, working, relaxing, or robbing a bank.
What you do must also agree with the norms derived from eternal law: natural law, and legitimate human laws.
These laws must be properly applied to the specific case through a judgment of your reason called conscience.
The purpose you intend (or intention) must also be good (I study to know), even if you are not fully aware of it then.
Circumstances are the accidental moral conditions that contribute to increasing or diminishing the moral goodness or evil of an already existing action. I study despite my headache (increase); I give alms with useless leftovers.
To find out the goodness of an action, you must ascertain that the elements (object and intention), called principles or sources of morality, are good. If one of these is bad, the whole action will be bad; for instance, giving alms (good) to appear generous (bad) would be immoral; equally robbing a bank to build a church.
You must also consider the circumstances to increase its goodness.
Image: Our Lady of La Vang (Vietnam).