CLE Reviewer

Grade 11
SY 2018 – 2019

I. Church
 The Church is founded by Christ on the apostles to perpetuate (to continue) His saving act here on
earth.
 We are the church, the people of God. We are the apostles of today as fulfil the mission of
proclaiming the Good News to all so that all will be saved.
 The Church is the sign and instrument of communion with God and one another.
- The mission of the Church is to lead all people to God (to make God known and loved) and to one
another in this earthly and eternal life.

Romans 12:4-5 – Though many members in one body of different functions but one body in Christ.

Being part of the body...

1. We support and help one another.
2. We work together in creating just and loving society.
3. Be living witnesses of God’s love.
4. We proclaim the Good News of salvation to everyone.

II. Magisterium, Encyclicals and Exhortations

 The magisterium of the Catholic Church is the church's authority or office to establish teachings
They are under the premise with the correct and true teachings (infallible) of the faith.

 What is an Encyclical?
- It is also known as “papal encyclical” as it is written by the pope.
- It always contains the teachings of the Church on different social issues concerning faith and morality
which defends the dignity of human person.

 What is an Apostolic Exhortation?

- It is a type of communication from the Pope or bishops of the Roman Catholic Church.
- It addresses to a particular community of people to undertake a particular activity.

III. Principle of Subsidiarity and Participation

*Both principles are under the 10 themes of CST.
 Community and Participation (Common Good)
- It is the attainment of what is good not only for the few individuals but for the entire community or
society.
 Participation is a principle that all peoples have a right to participate (to get involved) in the
economic, political and cultural life of society and in the decisions that affect their community.

 Role of Government and Subsidiarity

- The state should be an instrument to promote human dignity, protect human rights and develop the
common good.
  Subsidiarity holds the functions of government should be performed at the lowest level possible
(common people), if they can be performed adequately. When they cannot, higher levels of
government must intervene.

IV. Spirituality
 Sprituality is a person’s mental and spiritual lifestyle, being aware and consistent in his acts of
holiness in everything he do and decides.

 It should become spontaneous way of life in:

 dealing with work (spirituality  the way we deal our sexuality
of work) and others (spirituality of
 caring the environment sexuality)
(spirituality of loving the  the way of life of every
creation) Canossian (Canossian
 the way we deal others in Spirituality)
differences and uniqueness
(spirituality of relationship)

V. Discernment Process
 Chrisitian Discernment
- It is the process of finding answers to our questions and making decisions in the light of faith.
- It is an act of finding the will of God in the events of our daily life and choices.
- It is an act of listening to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and cooperating to God’s divine plan in our
lives.
- It involves the appropriate use of one’s intellect and free will which make us holy/divine in every action
we take.

Three elements which are very essential in strengthening ones’ Discerning Spirit:
1. Constant Prayer
2. Listening to the guidance of the Holy Spirit
3. Spend time in Silence and Solitude

 Mental prayer of the heart

- It is the term used by St. Magdalene for Discerning Spirit.
- This means awareness/consciousness of our senses that God is present and real in every person and
event, choosing to the right thing inorder not offend God and others because you care and love them.

VI. Vocation, the universal call to holiness

 Vocation or vocare means the call, which is something we need to listen, reflect, discern and
respond to (to act/to live out).
 Our universal call is to live a holy life in whatever vocation God has. Everybody is called to be holy.
All vocations are leading us towards holiness.
 Live out Christian Vocation through the 3 states of life:
1. Priestly Vocation - ordained ministers, clerics/clergy, presbyteral
2. Religious Vocation or Consecrated Life - brothers and sisters (nuns) who are consecrated or set
apart or separated (called to a special purpose in life).
  Consecrated persons freely embrace this radical kind of life through 3 evangelical vows:
a. Poverty - living a life of simplicity, building up treasures in heaven not on earth
b. Chastity - living a pure and chaste body, mind and spirit, open to love everyone
c. Obedience - being obedient to the will of God and by faith to obey the authority of
religious leaders

3. Laity or Lay Man/Woman - great majority of Christians, living an ordinary circumstance of family
and social life in secular world who are called for two states:
a. Married Life - a covenant between a baptized man and woman, form an intimate
communion of life and love.
b. Single Blessedness - they freely choose not to marry in order to spend more time to serve
God and others.

VII. Basic Understanding of Human Dignity

 Every human person has an inherent dignity given by God for He created man/woman in His
image and likeness.
 Dignity cannot be achieved by ones’ possessions or achievements since it is inherent from the
Creator.
 Each one has great value and is worthy to be respected.
 Jesus taught us that our dignity as human persons (pagkatao) depends not on any measurable
worldly standards or human judgement but on God, who loves us unconditionally. He constantly
calls us to love Him in return and come back to Him when we sin through the Sacrament of
Reconciliation.
 God’s love for human person is the basis of our human dignity. God created us with dignity simply
because He loves us.
 God created us in His image and likeness. We are share the same features (exterior aspects) with
God and we also share in His divine likeness (interior aspect): traits, attitudes, virtues.

VIII. Responsible use of social media

1. Use properly and with moderation for the moral benefit of all.
2. You can use it to evangelize, to spread the Good News and promote the Christian faith.
3. Build up healthy relationships with others inorder to build a kingdom of heaven here on earth.
4. Be truthful in sharing information.
5. Discerning and exercising critical thinking (objective analysis) the information you read and
listen, post and share information will be an advantageous help to you.
6. Prudence (cautiousness) and vigilance (being careful) in everything you post and share is a
must.

IX. Being a responsible Steward of Mother Earth

 The goods and resources of the earth are gifts from God making us not owners but “temporary
stewards.” Being stewards of God’s creation, our basic responsibility, is to take care and
preserve the environment for the future generation and common good.

 Genesis 1: 26 -...“dominion” over all the earth, to subdue the earth

1. It means to rule or to have authority over God’s creation with responsibility to preserve.
 2. To act rightly and justly in all the resources, animals, nature, environment for the common good
and the future generation.

 The invitations/challenges of Pope Francis in “Laudato Si” to all men and women of good will:
1. We take care of our “Common Home” by combatting against global degradation, global
warming and the throw-away culture.
2. Like Jesus, we considered everyone as brothers and sisters. Human beings and creation are
interrelated.
3. Always be aware of the effects of the abuse of the power of science and technology.
4. Always aim for the promotion of peace, human life and dignity especially of the poor , all for
the common good.
5. We initiate for inter-dialogue/interfaith (cooperation and positive interaction) and
solidarity (unity or agreement) with other religions and beliefs because it is a global concern
to save our common home.

X. Chastity and the value of Sexual Abstinence

 Chastity is the virtue that moderates ones’ sexual appetite, desire and behaviour.
 To live a pure and chaste life is an act of fidelity and living a single hearted state despite being in
a relationship within marriage, priestly ordination and religious consecration.
 Sexual abstinence is the only policy in living a holy life despite being in a relationship.
1. Unmarried Catholics express chastity through sexual abstinence “no sex before marriage”.
2. Sexual Intercourse within marriage is considered chaste when they are faithful to their
spouse and concern for the two functions of sexual act: union (intimate bond of couples)
and procreation (continuing the human race).

XI. See, Judge and Act

 The social action cycle responds to the signs of the times or social issues.

 See (Awareness Stage) - seeing the reality of the issue using the eyes of Jesus
 Who are the poor and vulnerable in my community/ society / world?

 Judge (Analysis and Discerning Stage ) - discerning for an action to take in order to respond
to the need using the mind and heart of Christ.
 What is needed in order for the poor and vulnerable people to experience love and justice?

 ACT (Action Stage) - following the ways / actions of Jesus

 How are we called to act for the poor to live in dignity?

XII. Church’s References

 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (God is merciful and welcoming but he is also just and righteous !)
Or do you not know that the unrighteous (sinners) will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be
deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice
homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers (curse, insults), nor swindlers will
inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you
were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
  Catechism of the Catholic Church nos. (2333-2335) (This is the code of the Canon Law of the
Church stipulating that marriage is between “a man and a woman.)
Everyone, man and woman, should acknowledge and accept his sexual identity. Physical, moral, and
spiritual difference and complementarity are oriented toward the goods of marriage and the flourishing
of family life. The harmony of the couple and of society depends in part on the way in which the
complementarity, needs, and mutual support between the sexes are lived out. … Each of the two sexes
is an image of the power and tenderness of God, with equal dignity though in a different way.
 The Philippine Constitution does not only recognize “family life” but also “equally protects
the life of the mother and the life of the unborn” (State Policy: 12).
 The Family Code of the Philippines states that marriage is “between a man and a woman”
(Art. 1). This does not apply to “same sex marriage.”
 Church’S Teaching on Sex Change:
1. What makes genital-changing operations immoral is that the person’s body is being mutilated (cut
off, removed). Doing violence to one’s body when there is nothing wrong with it is an unjustifiable
mutilation.
2. Mutilation may result in a person’s incapability to function the nature of sex organs (impotent or
sterile, not functioning on its nature) and dependent for the rest of one’s life on a hormonal regimen
which makes one appear to be other than what he or she is.
3. One cannot change one’s sex. A person can change what genitalia they have, but not one’s sex.
Sexual identity is not reducible to hormonal levels or genitalia but is an objective fact rooted in the
specific nature of the person that is only given by God.

 Deuteronomy 23:1 (A person who has mutilated his body will not enter the kingdom of God.)
"No one whose testicles are crushed or whose male organ is cut off shall enter the assembly of the
Lord."

 Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:19 (The implication is that one's body is not one's own to be changed
at your own will and risk. False anthropology, the wrong concept of self, points out that we
are is wrong, distorting one’s relationship with God.)
Do you not realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you and whom you received
from God? You are not your own property, then; you have been bought at a price. So use your body for
the glory of God.

 Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) no. 2297 (Mutilation should only be done for
medical purposes.)
"Except when performed for strictly therapeutic medical reason, directly intended amputations,
mutilations, and sterilizations performed on innocent persons are against the moral law."

 Vatican II document titled: "Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World"
(When applied to transsexuality, the document implies that a person with Gender Dysphoria
must accept their body as it is. Surgically modifying one's body would be a serious sin.)
"Man, though made of body and soul, is a unity. Through his very bodily condition he sums up in himself
the elements of the material world. Through him they are thus brought to their highest perfection
(holiness) and can raise their voice in praise freely given to the Creator. For this reason, man may not
despise (hate) his bodily life. Rather he is obliged to regard his body as good and to hold it in honor
(respect) since God has created it and will raise it up on the last day."

 Bible Verses summarizing my CST experience for 10 months

Matthew 5:14
You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

1 Chronicles 16:11
Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always.

Jeremiah 12:2
You have planted them and they have taken root,; they grow and bear
fruit.

Hebrews 4:16
Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we
may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

John 12:46
I have come into the world as light so that whoever believes in me may
not remain in darkness.