It is therefore an error to judge the morality of human Acts by considering only the intention that inspires them or the circumstances (environment, social pressure, duress or emergency, etc.) which supply their context. There are acts which, in and of Themselves, independently of circumstances and intentions, are always gravely illicit by Reason of their object; such as blasphemy and perjury, murder and adultery. One may not do evil so that good may result from it.

Sin creates a proclivity to sin; it engenders vice by repetition of the same Acts. This results in perverse inclinations which cloud Conscience and corrupt the concrete judgment of good and evil. Thus sin tends to reproduce itself and reinforce itself, but it cannot destroy the moral sense at its root.

God has not willed to reserve to himself all exercise of power. He entrusts to every creature the functions it is capable of performing, according to the capacities of its own nature. This mode of governance ought to be followed in social life. the way God Acts in governing the world, which bears witness to such great regard for human Freedom, should inspire the wisdom of those who govern human communities. They should behave as ministers of divine providence.

Man participates in the wisdom and goodness of the Creator who gives him mastery over his Acts and the ability to govern himself with a view to the true and the good.

The Law of the Gospel fulfills the commandments of the Law. the Lord's Sermon on the Mount, far from abolishing or devaluing the moral prescriptions of the Old Law, releases their hidden potential and has new demands arise from them: it reveals their entire divine and human truth. It does not add new external precepts, but proceeds to reform the heart, the root of human Acts, where man chooses between the pure and the impure, 22 where Faith, hope, and charity are formed and with them the other virtues. the Gospel thus brings the Law to its fullness through imitation of the perfection of the heavenly Father, through forgiveness of enemies and Prayer for persecutors, in emulation of the divine generosity. 23

The New Law practices the Acts of religion: almsgiving, Prayer and fasting, directing them to the "Father who sees in secret," in contrast with the desire to "be seen by men." 24 Its prayer is the Our Father. 25

The charity of Christ is the source in us of all our merits before God. Grace, by uniting us to Christ in active love, ensures the supernatural quality of our Acts and consequently their merit before God and before men. the saints have always had a lively awareness that their merits were pure grace.

Human virtues acquired by education, by deliberate Acts and by a perseverance ever-renewed in repeated efforts are purified and elevated by divine Grace. With God's help, they forge character and give facility in the practice of the good. the virtuous man is happy to practice them.

The human perSon is ordered to beatitude by his deliberate Acts: the passions or feelings he experiences can dispose him to it and contribute to it.

It is important for every perSon to be sufficiently present to himself in order to hear and follow the voice of his Conscience. This requirement of interiority is all the more necessary as life often distrActs us from any reflection, self-examination or introspection:

The dignity of the human perSon implies and requires uprightness of moral Conscience. Conscience includes the perception of the principles of morality (synderesis); their application in the given circumstances by practical discernment of Reasons and goods; and finally judgment about concrete Acts yet to be performed or already performed. the truth about the moral good, stated in the law of reason, is recognized practically and concretely by the prudent judgment of conscience. We call that man prudent who chooses in conformity with this judgment.

Conscience enables one to assume responsibility for the Acts performed. If man commits evil, the just judgment of conscience can remain within him as the witness to the universal truth of the good, at the same time as the evil of his particular choice. the verdict of the judgment of conscience remains a pledge of hope and mercy. In attesting to the fault committed, it calls to mind the forgiveness that must be asked, the good that must still be practiced, and the virtue that must be constantly cultivated with the Grace of God:

A human being must always obey the certain judgment of his Conscience. If he were deliberately to act against it, he would condemn himself. Yet it can happen that moral conscience remains in ignorance and makes erroneous judgments about Acts to be performed or already committed.

"Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." 62 A virtue is an habitual and firm disposition to do the good. It allows the perSon not only to perform good Acts, but to give the best of himself. the virtuous person tends toward the good with all his sensory and spiritual powers; he pursues the good and chooses it in concrete actions.

Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions, and guide our conduct according to Reason and Faith. They make possible ease, self-mastery, and joy in leading a morally good life. the virtuous man is he who freely practices the good. The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good Acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love.

Ministries should be exercised in a spirit of fraternal service and dedication to the Church, in the name of the Lord. 81 At the same time the Conscience of each perSon should avoid confining itself to individualistic considerations in its moral judgments of the person's own Acts. As far as possible conscience should take account of the good of all, as expressed in the moral law, natural and revealed, and consequently in the law of the Church and in the authoritative teaching of the Magisterium on moral questions. Personal conscience and Reason should not be set in opposition to the moral law or the Magisterium of the Church.

The Acts of Faith, hope, and charity enjoined by the first commandment are accomplished in Prayer. Lifting up the mind toward God is an expression of our adoration of God: prayer of praise and thanksgiving, intercession and petition. Prayer is an indispensable condition for being able to obey God's commandments. " (We) ought always to pray and not lose heart." 15

ContrActs are subject to commutative justice which regulates exchanges between perSons in accordance with a strict respect for their rights. Commutative justice obliges strictly; it requires safeguarding property rights, paying debts, and fulfilling obligations freely contracted. Without commutative justice, no other form of justice is possible.

The seventh commandment forbids Acts or enterprises that for any Reason - selfish or ideological, commercial, or totalitarian - lead to the enslavement of human beings, to their being bought, sold and exchanged like merchandise, in disregard for their perSonal dignity. It is a Sin against the dignity of persons and their fundamental rights to reduce them by violence to their productive value or to a source of profit. St. Paul directed a Christian master to treat his Christian slave "no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother, . . . both in the flesh and in the Lord." 193

The Church has painstakingly collected the records of those who persevered to the end in witnesSing to their Faith. These are the Acts of the Martyrs. They form the archives of truth written in letters of blood:

False witness and perjury. When it is made publicly, a statement contrary to the truth takes on a particular gravity. In court it becomes false witness. 275 When it is under oath, it is perjury. Acts such as these contribute to condemnation of the innocent, exoneration of the guilty, or the increased punishment of the accused. 276 They gravely compromise the exercise of justice and the fairness of judicial decisions.

Every word or attitude is forbidden which by flattery, adulation, or complaisance encourages and confirms another in malicious Acts and perverse conduct. Adulation is a grave fault if it makes one an accomplice in another's vices or grave Sins. Neither the desire to be of service nor friendship justifies duplicitous speech. Adulation is a venial Sin when it only seeks to be agreeable, to avoid evil, to meet a need, or to obtain legitimate advantages.

By the very nature of their profession, journalists have an obligation to serve the truth and not offend against charity in disseminating information. They should strive to respect, with equal care, the nature of the fActs and the limits of critical judgment concerning individuals. They should not stoop to defamation.

St. Luke in his Gospel often expresses wonder and praise at the marvels of Christ and in his Acts of the Apostles stresses them as actions of the Holy Spirit: the community of Jerusalem, the invalid healed by Peter and John, the crowd that gives glory to God for that, and the pagans of Pisidia who "were glad and glorified the word of God." 123

Contemplative Prayer is a union with the prayer of Christ insofar as it makes us participate in his mystery. the mystery of Christ is celebrated by the Church in the Eucharist, and the Holy Spirit makes it come alive in contemplative prayer so that our charity will manifest it in our Acts.

Promises must be kept and contrActs strictly observed to the extent that the commitments made in them are morally just. A significant part of economic and social life depends on the honoring of contracts between physical or moral perSons - commercial contracts of purchase or sale, rental or labor contracts. All contracts must be agreed to and executed in good Faith.

"The Acts in marriage by which the intimate and chaste union of the spouses takes place are noble and honorable; the truly human performance of these acts fosters the self-giving they signify and enriches the spouses in joy and gratitude." 144 Sexuality is a source of joy and pleasure:

"A vow is a deliberate and free promise made to God concerning a possible and better good which must be fulfilled by Reason of the virtue of religion," 21 A vow is an act of devotion in which the Christian dedicates himself to God or promises him some good work. By fulfilling his vows he renders to God what has been promised and consecrated to Him. the Acts of the Apostles shows us St. Paul concerned to fulfill the vows he had made. 22

Human communities are made up of perSons. Governing them well is not limited to guaranteeing rights and fulfilling duties such as honoring contrActs. Right relations between employers and employees, between those who govern and citizens, presuppose a natural good will in keeping with the dignity of human persons concerned for justice and fraternity.

Research or experimentation on the human being cannot legitimate Acts that are in Themselves contrary to the dignity of perSons and to the moral law. the subjects' potential consent does not justify such acts. Experimentation on human beings is not morally legitimate if it exposes the subject's life or physical and psychological integrity to disproportionate or avoidable risks. Experimentation on human beings does not conform to the dignity of the person if it takes place without the informed consent of the subject or those who legitimately speak for him.

In times past, cruel practices were commonly used by legitimate governments to maintain law and order, often without protest from the Pastors of the Church, who Themselves adopted in their own tribunals the prescriptions of Roman law concerning torture. Regrettable as these fActs are, the Church always taught the duty of clemency and mercy. She forbade clerics to shed blood. In recent times it has become evident that these cruel practices were neither necessary for public order, nor in conformity with the legitimate rights of the human perSon. On the contrary, these practices led to ones even more degrading. It is necessary to work for their abolition. We must pray for the victims and their tormentors.

Pornography consists in removing real or simulated sexual Acts from the intimacy of the partners, in order to display them deliberately to third parties. It offends against chastity because it perverts the conjugal act, the intimate giving of spouses to each other. It does grave injury to the dignity of its participants (actors, vendors, the public), Since each one becomes an object of base pleasure and illicit profit for others. It immerses all who are involved in the illusion of a fantasy world. It is a grave offense. Civil authorities should prevent the production and distribution of pornographic materials.

Homosexuality refers to relations between men or between women who experience an exclusive or predominant sexual attraction toward perSons of the same sex. It has taken a great variety of forms through the centuries and in different cultures. Its psychological genesis remains largely unexplained. BaSing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual Acts as acts of grave depravity, 140 tradition has always declared that "homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered." 141 They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.

"Sexuality, by means of which man and woman give Themselves to one another through the Acts which are proper and exclusive to spouses, is not something simply biological, but concerns the innermost being of the human perSon as such. It is realized in a truly human way only if it is an integral part of the love by which a man and woman commit themselves totally to one another until death." 142

"Pray constantly . . . always and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father." 33 St. Paul adds, "Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all Prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance making supplication for all the saints." 34 For "we have not been commanded to work, to keep watch and to fast constantly, but it has been laid down that we are to pray without ceaSing." 35 This tireless fervor can come only from love. Against our dullness and laziness, the battle of prayer is that of humble, trusting, and persevering love. This love opens our hearts to three enlightening and life-giving fActs of Faith about prayer.

A morally good act requires the goodness of the object, of the end, and of the circumstances together. An evil end corrupts the action, even if the object is good in itself (such as praying and fasting "in order to be seen by men"). The object of the choice can by itself vitiate an act in its entirety. There are some concrete Acts - such as fornication - that it is always wrong to choose, because chooSing them entails a disorder of the will, that is, a moral evil.

"The Word of God, which is the power of God for salvation to everyone who has Faith, is set forth and displays its power in a most wonderful way in the writings of the New Testament" 96 which hand on the ultimate truth of God's Revelation. Their central object is Jesus Christ, God's incarnate Son: his Acts, teachings, Passion and glorification, and his Church's beginnings under the Spirit's guidance. 97

Besides the proper name of "Holy Spirit," which is most frequently used in the Acts of the Apostles and in the Epistles, we also find in St. Paul the titles: the Spirit of the promise, 21 The Spirit of adoption, 22 The Spirit of Christ, 23 The Spirit of the Lord, 24 and the Spirit of God 25 - and, in St. Peter, the Spirit of glory. 26

Anointing. the symbolism of anointing with oil also signifies the Holy Spirit, 30 to the point of becoming a synonym for the Holy Spirit. In Christian initiation, anointing is the Sacramental sign of Confirmation, called "chrismation" in the Churches of the East. Its full force can be grasped only in relation to the primary anointing accomplished by the Holy Spirit, that of Jesus. Christ (in Hebrew "messiah") means the one "anointed" by God's Spirit. There were several anointed ones of the Lord in the Old Covenant, pre-eminently King David. 31 But Jesus is God's Anointed in a unique way: the humanity the Son assumed was entirely anointed by the Holy Spirit. the Holy Spirit established him as "Christ." 32 The Virgin Mary conceived Christ by the Holy Spirit who, through the angel, proclaimed him the Christ at his birth, and prompted Simeon to come to the temple to see the Christ of the Lord. 33 The Spirit filled Christ and the power of the Spirit went out from him in his Acts of healing and of saving. 34 Finally, it was the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead. 35 Now, fully established as "Christ" in his humanity victorious over death, Jesus pours out the Holy Spirit abundantly until "the saints" constitute - in their union with the humanity of the Son of God - that perfect man "to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ": 36 "the whole Christ," in St. Augustine's expression.

By a "life perfectly and entirely consecrated to [such] sanctification," the members of these institutes share in the Church's task of evangelization, "in the world and from within the world," where their presence Acts as "leaven in the world." 471 "Their witness of a Christian life" aims "to order temporal things according to God and inform the world with the power of the Gospel." They commit Themselves to the evangelical counsels by sacred bonds and observe among themselves the communion and fellowship appropriate to their "particular secular way of life." 472

Already dedicated to him through Baptism, the perSon who surrenders himself to the God he loves above all else thereby consecrates himself more intimately to God's service and to the good of the Church. By this state of life consecrated to God, the Church manifests Christ and shows us how the Holy Spirit Acts so wonderfully in her. and so the first mission of those who profess the evangelical counsels is to live out their consecration. Moreover, "Since members of institutes of consecrated life dedicate Themselves through their consecration to the service of the Church they are obliged in a special manner to engage in missionary work, in accord with the character of the institute." 474

Communion in charity. In the sanctorum communio, "None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself." 487 "If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it." 488 "Charity does not insist on its own way." 489 In this solidarity with all men, living or dead, which is founded on the communion of saints, the least of our Acts done in charity redounds to the profit of all. Every Sin harms this communion.

"Seated at the right hand of the Father" and pouring out the Holy Spirit on his Body which is the Church, Christ now Acts through the Sacraments he instituted to communicate his Grace. the Sacraments are perceptible signs (words and actions) accessible to our human nature. By the action of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit they make present efficaciously the grace that they signify.

In this Sacramental dispensation of Christ's mystery the Holy Spirit Acts in the same way as at other times in the economy of salvation: he prepares the Church to encounter her Lord; he recalls and makes Christ manifest to the Faith of the assembly. By his transforming power, he makes the mystery of Christ present here and now. Finally the Spirit of communion unites the Church to the life and mission of Christ. The Holy Spirit prepares for the reception of Christ

Given all these testimonies, Christ's Resurrection cannot be interpreted as something outside the physical order, and it is impossible not to acknowledge it as an historical fact. It is clear from the fActs that the disciples' Faith was drastically put to the test by their master's Passion and death on the cross, which he had foretold. 502 The shock provoked by the Passion was so great that at least some of the disciples did not at once believe in the news of the Resurrection. Far from showing us a community seized by a mystical exaltation, the Gospels present us with disciples demoralized ("looking sad" 503 ) and frightened. For they had not believed the holy women returning from the tomb and had regarded their words as an "idle tale". 504 When Jesus reveals himself to the Eleven on Easter evening, "he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen." 505

For a moment Jesus discloses his divine glory, confirming Peter's confession. He also reveals that he will have to go by the way of the cross at Jerusalem in order to "enter into his glory". 295 Moses and Elijah had seen God's glory on the Mountain; the Law and the Prophets had announced the Messiah's sufferings. 296 Christ's Passion is the will of the Father: the Son Acts as God's servant; 297 The cloud indicates the presence of the Holy Spirit. "The whole Trinity appeared: the Father in the voice; the Son in the man; the Spirit in the shining cloud." 298

On the threshold of the public life: the baptism; on the threshold of the Passover: the Transfiguration. Jesus' baptism proclaimed "the mystery of the first regeneration", namely, our Baptism; the Transfiguration "is the Sacrament of the second regeneration": our own Resurrection. 300 From now on we share in the Lord's Resurrection through the Spirit who Acts in the Sacraments of the Body of Christ. the Transfiguration gives us a foretaste of Christ's glorious coming, when he "will change our lowly body to be like his glorious body." 301 But it also recalls that "it is through many persecutions that we must enter the kingdom of God": 302

From the beginning of Jesus' public ministry, certain Pharisees and partisans of Herod together with priests and scribes agreed together to destroy him. 317 Because of certain Acts of his expelling demons, forgiving Sins, healing on the sabbath day, his novel interpretation of the precepts of the Law regarding purity, and his familiarity with tax collectors and public Sinners 318 --some ill-intentioned perSons suspected Jesus of demonic possession. 319 He is accused of blasphemy and false prophecy, religious crimes which the Law punished with death by stoning. 320

To God, all moments of time are present in their immediacy. When therefore he establishes his eternal plan of "predestination", he includes in it each perSon's free response to his Grace: "In this city, in fact, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place." 395 For the sake of accomplishing his plan of salvation, God permitted the Acts that flowed from their blindness. 396 "He died for our Sins in accordance with the Scriptures"

Forming "as it were, one mystical perSon" with Christ the head, the Church Acts in the Sacraments as "an organically structured priestly community." 36 Through Baptism and Confirmation the pRiestly people is enabled to celebrate the liturgy, while those of the Faithful "who have received Holy Orders, are appointed to nourish the Church with the word and Grace of God in the name of Christ." 37

The ordained ministry or ministerial priesthood is at the service of the baptismal priesthood. 38 The ordained priesthood guarantees that it really is Christ who Acts in the Sacraments through the Holy Spirit for the Church. the saving mission entrusted by the Father to his incarnate Son was committed to the apostles and through them to their successors: they receive the Spirit of Jesus to act in his name and in his person. 39 The ordained minister is the Sacramental bond that ties the liturgical action to what the apostles said and did and, through them, to the words and actions of Christ, the source and foundation of the sacraments.

Since it is ultimately Christ who Acts and effects salvation through the ordained minister, the unworthiness of the latter does not prevent Christ from acting. 76 St. Augustine states this forcefully:

The Beatitudes reveal the goal of human existence, the ultimate end of human Acts: God calls us to his own beatitude. This vocation is addressed to each individual perSonally, but also to the Church as a whole, the new people made up of those who have accepted the promise and live from it in Faith.

The Decalogue, the Sermon on the Mount, and the apostolic catechesis describe for us the paths that lead to the Kingdom of heaven. Sustained by the Grace of the Holy Spirit, we tread them, step by step, by everyday Acts. By the working of the Word of Christ, we slowly bear fruit in the Church to the glory of God. 25

As long as Freedom has not bound itself definitively to its ultimate good which is God, there is the possibility of chooSing between good and evil, and thus of growing in perfection or of failing and sinning. This freedom characterizes properly human Acts. It is the basis of praise or blame, merit or reproach.

Freedom makes man responsible for his Acts to the extent that they are voluntary. Progress in virtue, knowledge of the good, and ascesis enhance the mastery of the will over its acts.

Freedom makes man a moral subject. When he Acts deliberately, man is, so to speak, the Father of his acts. Human acts, that is, acts that are freely chosen in consequence of a judgment of Conscience, can be morally evaluated. They are either good or evil.

The morality of human Acts depends on: - the object chosen; - the end in view or the intention; - the circumstances of the action. The object, the intention, and the circumstances make up the "sources," or constitutive elements, of the morality of human acts.

This presence of Christ in the minister is not to be understood as if the latter were preserved from all human weaknesses, the spirit of domination, error, even Sin. the power of the Holy Spirit does not guarantee all Acts of ministers in the same way. While this guarantee extends to the Sacraments, so that even the minister's sin cannot impede the fruit of Grace, in many other acts the minister leaves human traces that are not always signs of fidelity to the Gospel and consequently can harm the apostolic fruitfulness of the Church.

In the ecclesial service of the ordained minister, it is Christ himself who is present to his Church as Head of his Body, Shepherd of his flock, high priest of the redemptive sacrifice, Teacher of Truth. This is what the Church means by saying that the priest, by virtue of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, Acts in perSona Christi Capitis: 23

Celebrated worthily in Faith, the Sacraments confer the Grace that they signify. 48 They are efficacious because in them Christ himself is at work: it is he who baptizes, he who Acts in his Sacraments in order to communicate the grace that each sacrament signifies. the Father always hears the Prayer of his Son's Church which, in the epiclesis of each sacrament, expresses her faith in the power of the Spirit. As fire transforms into itself everything it touches, so the Holy Spirit transforms into the divine life whatever is subjected to his power.

This is the meaning of the Church's affirmation 49 that the Sacraments act ex opere operato (literally: "by the very fact of the action's being performed"), i.e., by virtue of the saving work of Christ, accomplished once for all. It follows that "the Sacrament is not wrought by the righteousness of either the celebrant or the recipient, but by the power of God." 50 From the moment that a sacrament is celebrated in accordance with the intention of the Church, the power of Christ and his Spirit Acts in and through it, independently of the perSonal holiness of the minister. Nevertheless, the fruits of the sacraments also depend on the disposition of the one who receives them.

In the celebration of the Sacraments it is thus the whole assembly that is leitourgos, each according to his function, but in the "unity of the Spirit" who Acts in all. "In liturgical celebrations each perSon, minister or layman, who has an office to perform, should carry out all and only those parts which pertain to his office by the nature of the rite and the norms of the liturgy." 15

Beneath the changes in discipline and celebration that this Sacrament has undergone over the centuries, the same fundamental structure is to be discerned. It comprises two equally essential elements: on the one hand, the Acts of the man who undergoes conversion through the action of the Holy Spirit: namely, contrition, confession, and satisfaction; on the other, God's action through the intervention of the Church. the Church, who through the bishop and his priests forgives Sins in the name of Jesus Christ and determines the manner of satisfaction, also prays for the Sinner and does penance with him. Thus the sinner is healed and re-established in ecclesial communion.

Among the penitent's Acts contrition occupies first place. Contrition is "sorrow of the soul and detestation for the Sin committed, together with the resolution not to sin again." 50

Certain particularly grave Sins incur excommunication, the most severe ecclesiastical penalty, which impedes the reception of the Sacraments and the exercise of certain ecclesiastical Acts, and for which absolution consequently cannot be granted, according to canon law, except by the Pope, the bishop of the place or priests authorized by them. 68 In danger of death any priest, even if deprived of faculties for hearing confessions, can absolve from every Sin and excommunication. 69

The circumstances, including the consequences, are secondary elements of a moral act. They contribute to increaSing or diminishing the moral goodness or evil of human Acts (for example, the amount of a theft). They can also diminish or increase the agent's responsibility (such as acting out of a fear of death). Circumstances of Themselves cannot change the moral quality of acts themselves; they can make neither good nor right an action that is in itself evil.