Because of the ongoing radical dissent which continues without public sanctions, many people cannot give their religious assent to this moral doctrine. They have formed their consciences in such a manner as to believe that it alone is the authentic guide in moral decision-making as if it were an independent and infallible faculty. It really means that no one, not even the authorized persons who speak in the name of Jesus can be a source of truth for them. One wonders why they choose to remain in the Catholic Church unless for accidental motives such as private devotions. Beyond question, the principal cause for this breakdown in communication between the Church's official teaching and ordinary Catholics has been due to radical theological dissent tolerated and permitted by the Church authorities for many years, with an occasional public or private reprimand for certain theologians.
Faith is a free gift, but it can be sinned against and lost.
So, we must nourish it by prayer, think about it lovingly, live it morally and celebrate it liturgically. We received our faith from our mother the Church. Loving her means learning to trust her teachings in her ordinary and everyday instructions even when those teachings are not easy to live nor popular with the culture around us. Basil Cole, O.P. Is a member of the Western Dominican Preaching Band, and assistant professor of moral and spiritual theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, Rome, Italy. He was also the contributing editor of The Rosary, Light and Life in 1980-1983.