I choose the good! Moral education and Christian initiation paths: this is the theme of the moral theology study day, promoted by the Apulian theological facultyin collaboration with the regional catechetical commission, Catholic Youth Action and Agesci of Puglia and held last Saturday at the Pontifical Regional Seminary of Molfetta.
As promptly highlighted in the introductory speech by don Vito Mignozzi, dean of the Theological Faculty of Puglia, the theme of Christian initiation continues to question ecclesial experiences because, while recognizing the urgent need to go beyond obsolete and ineffective models, it is difficult to make a leap towards a new perspective, with courage and freedom. It seems more evident and relevant than ever that educating in Christian life does not mean giving a series of doctrinal contents to learn, but introducing an experience, living an internship, an apprenticeship, within the Trinitarian experience.
Rich in content stimuli and meaning orientations, the report proposed by prof. Alessandra Augelliprofessor of pedagogy at the Catholic University of Milan, on the topic of moral development in children and adolescents. Starting from the theoretical contributions of Piaget And Kohlberg, highlighted how thinking about the good must lead to choosing it, in a strengthening of cognitive and volitional identity, in training for choice, made up of renunciation and position. It is therefore necessary to encourage contexts in which to experiment with virtuous examples, made not of perfection, but of the search for meaning that attract towards the Good and solicit questions that lead to sharpening the conscience and choosing free and true answers.
The moral life, he insisted in his speech prof. Gaia De Vecchimoral theologian of the Pontifical Gregorian University of Rome, it’s not doing or not doing something but it’s being. Orthodoxy, which is thinking well, cannot help but dialogue withorthopathyfeeling good, for aorthopraxy that teaches you to act well. In dealing with moral education in the paths of Christian initiation, he outlined various perspectives that orient life in a constant dialectic between faith and morality and that favor positive and non-repressive attitudes, in a horizon of internalized values and not imposed by an authority.
Of no less importance are the afternoon workshops, divided into 3 thematic areas: teaching mercy, freedom and gift. Driven by Friar Gianpaolo Lacerenza, Don Giorgio Nacci And Don Roberto Massarothe almost one hundred participants were able to think and develop, concretely, structured and creative paths, referring respectively to the fields of catechesis, ACR andAge.
Present from the diocese of Lecce were the director of the Catechetical Office, Don Stefano Spedicato, together with some lay members of the office itself, certain that as he says Romano Guardini, quoted precisely during a report: «educating means helping the other person to find his way towards God… man is the path towards God for man. In order for him to truly be so, however, he must himself travel that way. It is absurd to talk to a man about the path to God if one does not know it from personal experience, or at least does not seek it.”
With the final greetings, the participants agreed to meet next year for the third day of study of moral theology, on the theme of education for social charity.
