Veritatis Splendor - "The Splendor of Truth"

meditations in honor of the fifteenth anniversary of John Paul II's encyclical letter

A few times a week, I'll be posting a new reflection on a section of this encyclical on my blog, The Weight of Glory. This page will serve as a "table of contents" for the blog posts. Please join the discussion by adding your comments and insights.

August 2008

Introduction (8/6/08)

Jesus Christ, the True Light that Enlightens Everyone (8/10/08)

The Purpose of the Present Encyclical (8/14/08)



Chapter I: "Teacher, What Good Must I Do...?" (Mt 19:16)
Christ and the Answer to the Question About Morality

"Someone came to him...." (Mt 19:16) (8/16/08)

"Teacher, what good must I do to have eternal life?" (Mt 19:16) (8/18/08)

"There is only one who is good" (Mt 19:17) (8/20/08)

"If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments" (Mt 19:17)

"If you wish to be perfect" (Mt 19:21)

"Come, follow me" (Mt 19:21)

"With God all things are possible" (Mt 19:26)

"Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Mt 28:20)

Chapter II: "Do Not Be Conformed to This World" (Rom 12:2)

The Church and the Discernment of Certain Tendencies in Present-Day Moral Theology

Teaching what befits sound doctrine (cf. Tit 2:1)

"You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free" (Jn 8:32)

I. Freedom and Law

"Of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat" (Gen 2:17)

"God left man in the power of his own counsel" (Sir 15:14)

Blessed is the man who takes delight in the law of the Lord (cf. Ps 1:1-2)

"What the law requires is written on their hearts" (Rom 2:15)

"From the beginning it was not so" (Mt 19:8)

II. Conscience and Truth

Man's sanctuary

The judgment of conscience

Seeking what is true and good

III. Fundamental Choice and Specific Kinds of Behavior

"Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh" (Gal 5:13)

Mortal and venial sin

IV. The Moral Act

Teleology and teleologism

The object of the deliberate act

"Intrinsic evil": it is not licit to do evil that good may come of it (cf. Rom 3:8)

Chapter III: "Lest the Cross of Christ Be Emptied of Its Power" (1 Cor 1:17)

Moral Good for the Life of the Church and of the World

"For freedom Christ has set us free" (Gal 5:1)

Walking in the light (cf. 1 Jn 1:7)

Martyrdom, the exaltation of the inviolable holiness of God's law

Universal and unchanging moral norms at the service of the person and of society

Morality and the renewal of social and political life

Grace and obedience to God's law

Morality and new evangelization

The service of moral theologians

Our own responsibilities as Pastors



Conclusion

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