Basis of Morality

For a religious person to behave morally involves knowing the difference between right and wrong and choosing to do what is right

Explain two ways that a failure to behave morally can have consequences for the members of a major world religion

• Failure to behave morally will damage a person's relationship with the Catholic Church and God
• Failure to behave morally will have a negative consequence on members of their religion

Examine the role the idea expressed above plays in how a morally mature person decides what is right and wrong

• A morally mature person knows the difference between right and wrong and chooses to do what is right
• Moral mature people are at a point beyond self interest
• For every moral decision they make, they consider the consequences not only for themselves but also for others and the rest of the world
• A morally mature person knows that they have the responsibility to make the moral decision that will have a positive consequence for all
• Their decisions are influenced by their inner beliefs, their religious faith and their conscience

Outline what is involved in another two stages of the process a person would go through in making a moral decision

• Be aware of your values
• Our values are what we believe is important in life eg. honesty
• Values are a critical factor in moral decision making
• A person will make decisions according to what he or she values
• The ability to know the difference and judge what is right and wrong in a particular situation is your conscience
• Do what is right and not what is wrong
• Then make a decision

Conscience

A person's conscience helps him/her to judge and know the difference between right and wrong in a certain situation

Discuss how a person's conscience can develop as he/she grows to moral maturity

• The development process of a person's conscience begins in childhood when parents teach their children moral behaviour
• It continues as children grow older and parents, teachers, priests and ministers give advice when difficult decisions have to be made
• Gradually, a young person begins to have a deeper understanding, not only of what is right and wrong, but why something is right or wrong
• The home, the school and the church have a vital role in helping people to develop a healthy and informed conscience

Outline what the term "conscience" means

• Conscience is the ability to know and judge what is right and wrong in a particular situation
• The word conscience means to know
• Conscience is an in-built ability that we all possess
• It is what helps us to figure out what is right and wrong, good and bad
• Conscience is our ability to use out knowledge in order to judge what is right and wrong
• It is our moral senses of what we ought to do
• We rely on our conscience to guided us to make the right decision

Explain how a person's religious faith could influence his/her conscience

• From a religious perspective, conscience is not a simple little voice that advises us from the inside nor is it a guilty feeling that we get about things from time to time
• Such ideas make it appear that our conscience is a thing that is somehow apart and separate from us
• In fact, our conscience is not separate from us.
• It is at the very core of our being, an essential part of who we are
• It is that deep part of us that is directed towards goodness and truth
• A person of faith would say that our conscience is a gift from God
• It is God's words printed in one heart, urging us to do good and avoid evil

Apart from religious faith, explain one other factor the could influence a person's conscience

• Another factor that could influence a person's conscience is their relationship with their family
• The family is the first place where a child learns to differentiate what is considered right and wrong
• Children are guided by their parents to make decisions correctly based on their moral values in the hope that this will continue in their child's adulthood life

Describe one way in which a person's conscience can develop as he/she grows older

• The development process of a person's conscience begins in childhood when parents teach their children moral behaviour
• It continues as children grow older and parents, teachers, priests and ministers give advice when difficult decisions have to be made
• Gradually, a young person begins to have a deeper understanding, not only of what is right and wrong, but why something is right or wrong
• The home, the school and the church have a vital role in helping people to develop a healthy and informed conscience