629- What definition may be given to morality?
“Morality is the rule of good conduct; in other words, it is the ability to distinguish between good and evil. It is founded on the observance of God’s law. Humans behave correctly when they do everything for the good of all, for then they obey God’s law.”
630- How can we distinguish between good and evil?
“Good is everything that is in harmony with God’s law, whereas evil is everything that deviates from it. Thus, doing what is good conforms to God’s law, while doing evil infringes on it.”
631- Do humans have the means within them to distinguish between good and evil?
“Yes, when they believe in God and desire to know God, who has given them intelligence to discern one from the other.”
632- Since humans are prone to error, couldn’t they be mistaken in discerning good from evil and believe that they are doing what is good, when in reality they are doing what is evil?
“Jesus said, ‘Do unto others what you would want them do unto you’; that sums up everything. Obey it and you will never go wrong.”
633- The rule of good and evil, which may be called the rule of “reciprocity” or “solidarity”, does not apply to individuals’ own conduct regarding themselves. Can they find a rule and a safe guide for such conduct in natural law?
“When you eat too much, it harms you. Well then, that is God letting you know how much you really need, and when you exceed it, you are punished. The same applies to everything else. Natural law outlines for all humans the limit of their needs, and when they exceed that limit they are punished by suffering. If they would always listen to that voice that says ‘enough’, they would avoid most of the ills they accuse nature of.”
634- Why may evil be found in the very nature of things? I am speaking of moral evil. Couldn’t God have created humankind under better moral conditions?
“We have already told you: spirits are created simple and ignorant (see no. 115). God leaves men and women to choose their own path, and it is worse for them if they take the evil one – their pilgrimage will be all the longer. If there were no mountains, humans would not understand that they can ascend and descend; if there were no rocks, they would not understand that there are hard objects. The spirit must acquire experience, and to do so it must know good and evil. That is why there is a union of spirit and body.” (See no. 119)
635- The different social positions create needs that are not the same for everyone. Is natural law, therefore, not a uniform rule for everyone?
“Such different positions exist in nature itself and are in accord with the law of progress, but this fact does not invalidate the unity of natural law, which applies to everything.”
The conditions of a person’s existence change according to time and place; hence, the different needs and social positions corresponding to such needs. Since this diversity is in the very order of things, it conforms to God’s law, which nonetheless continues to be one in principle. It thus falls to reason to distinguish between real needs and fictitious or conventional needs.
636- Are good and evil absolute for everybody?
“God’s law is the same for everybody, but evil especially depends on the willingness one has for doing it. Good is always good and evil is always evil, whatever a person’s position may be. The difference is in the degree of responsibility.”
637- Are cannibals who yield to their instinct guilty when they eat human flesh?
“I have said that evil depends on the will. Well then, persons are guiltier the more they know what they should do.”
Circumstances give good and evil a relative seriousness. People frequently commit wrongs that are nonetheless reprehensible even if they result from the social position in which society has placed them; however, their responsibility depends on the means at their disposal for comprehending good and evil. Thus, the enlightened person who commits a simple injustice is guiltier in God’s sight than the primitive who obeys his or her natural instincts.
638- It seems that evil sometimes results from necessity. Such is, for example, the necessity in certain cases for destruction, even that of our fellow beings. In such cases, has there been a transgression of God’s law?
“Evil is no less evil by being necessary, but this necessity disappears as the soul purifies itself in passing from one existence to another. Then people become guiltier when they commit evil because they have a better understanding of it.”
639- The evil we commit frequently results from the position in which others have placed us. In such a case, who is more culpable?
“The responsibility for evil falls upon the one who has caused it. Thus, those who are led into evil by the position in which others have placed them are less culpable than those who have made them commit it. All will suffer the penalty not only for the evil they have done, but for the evil they have caused.”
640- Are those who do not do evil themselves, but who take advantage of the evil committed by others culpable to the same degree?
“It is as if they themselves had committed it; upon taking advantage of it, they participate in it. Perhaps they would have recoiled before the deed itself, but once it was done and they then took advantage of it, it was because they approved of it and would have committed it themselves if they could have or if they had been more daring.”
641- Is the desire for evil as reprehensible as evil itself?
“That depends. There is virtue in willingly resisting the desire for evil if one desires to commit it, especially when there is a possibility of satisfying the desire. However, if it is only because the opportunity did not present itself, the person is culpable.”
642- In order to be pleasing to God and to ensure our future situation, is it enough simply not to do what is evil?
“No. All must do good to the best of their abilities, for all will answer for all the evil that has resulted from the good they left undone.”
643- Are there persons who have no possibility of doing good because of their position?
“There are none who cannot do good; only selfish persons never find an opportunity for doing so. It is enough to come in contact with others in order to do good, and everyday life offers such a possibility to whomever is not blinded by selfishness. Doing good does not only mean being charitable, but also being as useful as possible whenever your help is needed.”
644- Aren’t the surroundings in which certain people live the main reason for many to involve themselves in vice and crime?
“Yes, but even then it is the result of a trial chosen by their spirit in the state of freedom. It wanted to expose itself to temptation in order to have the merit of resisting it.”
645- When individuals are immersed in an atmosphere of vice, doesn’t evil become an almost irresistible draw?
“Draw, yes; irresistible, no, because in the midst of such an atmosphere of vice you can nonetheless find great virtue. There are spirits who have the strength to resist, and who have, at the same time, the mission of exerting a good influence on their fellow beings.”
646- Does the merit of the good that one does depend on certain conditions; that is, are there different degrees of merit in doing good?
“The merit lies in its difficulty. There is no merit in doing good if there is no self-denial and if it costs nothing. God takes more notice of poor individuals who share their only piece of bread than of the rich who give only what is superfluous to them. Jesus told you this in the parable of the widow’s mite.”
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