Page 1 Service Learning #2: The Moral Life “Every human act is a moral act”. The wise words of St. Thomas Aquinas, the Dominican theologian and philosopher from the thirteenth century. My decision to write this paper on time is a moral act. A human being deciding to take another person’s life is a moral act. Moral acts can be right or wrong. When I am doing my service learning hours at Oleta Park I am doing a right moral act because I am helping the environment. A company that purposely dumps chemical waste into the ocean is doing a disservice to the environment, which is a wrong moral act. Morals acts are part of theological ethics. The word theological comes from the Greek word telos which means end. The full definition is a movement towards the achievement of the end that coheres with human flourishing and an eternal union with God (Presmanes). Theological ethics helps us decide what kind of person we want to be in life. Do you want to be a person that is remembered for being kind and generous or do you want to be remembered as a cruel and selfish person? The second component of theological ethics is the concept of immanent activity, what we do is what we become. According to Aquinas, you do not become a cheater if you cheat on a test once; you become a cheater when you do it becomes a continuous pattern. I am not an environmental aware person by performing my service learning one time. That will happen when I do my service multiple times. The final component of theological ethics is that ordinary life provides the individual with the opportunity for moral development. Doing simple activities such as going to school can help moral development. You can have respect for your teacher and classmates by not talking loudly to the person next to you during the lecture. You are developing your moral side without even knowing it! Page 2 In addition to theological ethics, there are two types of virtues according to St. Thomas Aquinas: cardinal and theological virtues. Cardinal virtues which consist of prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude are the hinges on the door that is the growth in the moral life (Presmanes). The cardinal virtue I believe connects to my service learning is justice. Justice is the ability to moderate the rights and needs of others with our own self interest, to give to others what is their due (Presmanes). By spending time helping the native plants in the park eliminating plants that are detrimental to their developing, I am giving them the justice they deserve. I am giving them the opportunity to live on for generations. The theological virtues, faith, hope, and charity, are the unity of God. The three virtues are connected. Faith leads to hope and hope leads to charity, the mother of all virtues. Having hope is crucial with my service learning. I have to believe that all the hard work I am putting into removing non-native plants will help the native plants long term. Also, that God will help the plants as well. Remember to think about the decisions you make in your daily life. They can have a positive or negative effect on yourself and the people around you. Try to become the best morally right person that you can be. Help someone in need and be friendly and kind to people. Hopefully, you would want to be remembered as a morally right person instead of a morally wrong one. Remember, every human act is a moral act. Page 3 Works Cited Presmanes, Jorge . "The Moral Life: Covenant, Conscience, and Conversion." Faith Seeking Expression Religious Beliefs and Traditions.. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt Pub Co, 2012. 88-92. Print.
