Catechism index

1801 IN BRIEF Conscience can remain in ignorance or make erroneous judgments. Such ignorance and errors are not always free of guilt.
1802 IN BRIEF The Word of God is a light for our path. We must assimilate it in faith and prayer and put it into practice. This is how moral conscience is formed. Previous - …
1803 THE VIRTUES "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 …
1804 I. The Human Virtues 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 …
1805 I. The Human Virtues Four virtues play a pivotal role and accordingly are called "cardinal"; all the others are grouped around them. They are: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. "If anyone loves righteousness, [Wisdom's] labors are …
1806 I. The Human Virtues Prudence is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it; "the prudent man looks where he is …
1807 I. The Human Virtues Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward …
1808 I. The Human Virtues Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral …
1809 I. The Human Virtues Temperance is the moral virtue that moderates the attraction of pleasures and provides balance in the use of created goods. It ensures the will's mastery over instincts and keeps desires within the …
1810 I. The Human Virtues 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 …
1811 I. The Human Virtues It is not easy for man, wounded by sin, to maintain moral balance. Christ's gift of salvation offers us the grace necessary to persevere in the pursuit of the virtues. Everyone should …
1812 II. The Theological Virtues The human virtues are rooted in the theological virtues, which adapt man's faculties for participation in the divine nature: 76 for the theological virtues relate directly to God. They dispose Christians to …
1813 II. The Theological Virtues The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused …
1814 II. The Theological Virtues Faith is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he …
1815 II. The Theological Virtues The gift of faith remains in one who has not sinned against it. 80 But "faith apart from works is dead": 81 when it is deprived of hope and love, faith does …
1816 II. The Theological Virtues The disciple of Christ must not only keep the faith and live on it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it: "All however must be prepared to …
1817 II. The Theological Virtues Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, …
1818 II. The Theological Virtues The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man; it takes up the hopes that inspire men's activities and purifies them …
1819 II. The Theological Virtues Christian hope takes up and fulfills the hope of the chosen people which has its origin and model in the hope of Abraham, who was blessed abundantly by the promises of God …
1820 II. The Theological Virtues Christian hope unfolds from the beginning of Jesus' preaching in the proclamation of the beatitudes. the beatitudes raise our hope toward heaven as the new Promised Land; they trace the path that …