1. Why Be Ethical?
1.1. The Experiences
1.1.1. The Experience of Obligation
1.1.1.1. You aren't asked to act ethically. You MUST act ethically.
1.1.2. The Experience of Contrast
1.1.2.1. Because you may be more fortunate than others, and you want things to be more fair and just for them!
1.1.3. The Experience of the Other
1.1.3.1. Someone is in need. You can''t simply pass by them without wondering to yourself if you are ethically wrong for doing so.
1.2. What kind of CGE is this?
1.2.1. A responsible citizen who gives witness to Catholic social teaching. If you wish to be a responsible citizen giving witness to Catholic social teaching, then you must be Ethical. Without good ethics then you simply cannot be a good Catholic.
1.3. Quotes from the Unknown
1.3.1. Your ethics and how they affect your choices create who you are "Life isn't about finding yourself. It is about creating yourself" - George Bernard Shaw
1.3.2. To create a happy life you don't need money or women or fast cars, all you need to do is think poitively and ethically. "Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all in yourself, in your way of thinking." - Marcus Aurelius
1.4. My Ethical Rule!
1.4.1. "I will always act in a way that will help the others around me before I take my benefit into account."
2. You Are What You Do
2.1. Conceptual Framework of Action
2.1.1. What?
2.1.1.1. What are you doing? Is it something that will negatively impact someone else? Is it truly the ethically right thing to do then? The action must be ethically correct for it to be an act condoned by God our Father.
2.1.2. Why?
2.1.2.1. What makes you want to do this? What are your intentions with this act? The why is perhaps the most important thing in determining if an act is ethical or not. The intention behind the action is the key factor.
2.1.3. How?
2.1.3.1. How are you going to do this task? Are you going to have to do something morally, or ethically, incorrect in order to be able to complete the task? Most times we simply think of whether or not the task itself is ethically correct. However the things that you must do to complete the task are as important if not more to think about.
2.2. What kind of CGE is this?
2.2.1. A self directed, responsible, lifelong learner If you devote your life to acting responsibly and in such a way that you don't need guidance, you will be subconsciously acting in an ethical way.
2.3. Wanna hear a story?
2.3.1. People are given first impression of you based on how you act both physically and emotionally. While I was being raised, my grandparents (n my dad's side) always fought to make sure I had proper table manners and etiquette when in the presence of guests, or when dining at other peoples homes. This came in especially handy when I first began to date. My girlfriend decided it was time for me to meet her parents, and reassuringly enough she told me that they would love me. I was not reassured. The night comes and I go over to her house. Her father opens the door. Oh great I think. I remember I firmly shook his hand and tried to maintain eye contact as much as possible without seeming crazy. The dinner went as smoothly as I could have hoped, and I made sure to be on my best behavior, elbows off the table, clearing plates, using my napkin on my pant leg. The next day my girlfriend was overjoyed, her father had told her after I left that I was the most enjoyable well mannered boy that he had ever met, and that he was sure I would treat her right. And that is the story of how my grandparents helped with my romantic life.
2.4. My Ethical Rule!
2.4.1. "To truly become a better person, you must act in an according manner."
3. The Naming Of God And Ethics
3.1. The Ten Commandments
3.1.1. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour
3.1.1.1. You must make the decision of whether or not to lie. What is correct ethically? Morally?
3.1.2. You shall not kill
3.1.2.1. I think this one is pretty straight forward.
3.1.3. You shall not steal
3.1.3.1. You desire something that you can't have. But you want it so badly. Should you take it? Think of the person whose belonging you are taking. Will their life be impacted negatively or positively by your actions? This is what makes something ethical.
3.2. What kind of CGE is this?
3.2.1. A Graduate is expected to be A discerning believer You must celebrate the signs and sacred mystery of God's presence through word, sacrament and prayer, among other things, if you wish to be a good Catholic.
3.3. My Ethical Rule!
3.3.1. "It is important to give a name to rules, otherwise they are words on paper that have no symbolic meaning, and then you are more likely to break them."