Among the Ten Commandments, the first three concern loving God and the last seven concern loving your neighbour. Some command us to do things; these are positive commandments. Others forbid us from doing things; these are negative commandments. Positive commandments are to be followed in certain circumstances, but negative commandments hold at all times and places. There are three levels to assessing morality: (1) the object, (2) the intention, and (3) the circumstances. Some actions are objectively wrong and we cannot justify them with an intention to do good. An evil intention can make a good action evil, but neither can a good intention make an evil action good. Circumstances can modify the morality of an action; for example, performing evil in front of others increases the harm. We should strive to do good actions with good intentions under good circumstances.
【Spiritual Talk】 Fr. Ho talks about commandments
