1.1 What is "justification"?
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 1989) tells us:
The first work of the grace of the Holy Spirit is CONVERSION, effecting justification ... Moved by grace, man turns toward God and away from sin, thus accepting forgiveness and righteousness from on high.
Note that justification is GOD'S INITIATIVE. As St John says in is Letter (I John 4:19),
he first loved us
CCC 1990 says:
Justification follows upon God's merciful initiative of offering forgiveness.
We do not have the power to cleanse ourselves of sin, to make ourselves pleasing to God. Only God has this power. CCC 1987 teaches:
The grace of the Holy Spirit has the power to justify us, that is, to cleanse us from our sins and to communicate to us "the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ" and through Baptism.
What does justification do to us?
The CCC (1990) says that justification:
Does the grace of the Holy Spirit automatically save us?
No. God respects our freedom. We are free to accept and free to reject. The CCC (1991) teaches:
Justification is at the same time the acceptance of God's righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ.
Thus, point 1993 of the CCC reiterates:
Justification establishes COOPERATION between God's grace and man's freedom. On man's part it is expressed by the assent of faith to the Word of God, which invites him to conversion, and in the cooperation of charity with the prompting of the Holy Spirit who precedes and preserves his assent:
When God touches man's heart through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, man himself is not inactive while receiving that inspiration, since he could reject it; and yet, without God's grace, he cannot by his own free will move himself toward justice in God's sight. [Romans 3:21-26]
Do we deserve to be offered this grace?
Strictly speaking, no. But by offering His life as a payment, Jesus Christ purchased for us the "right" to be offered God's pardon. The CCC (1992) says:
Justification has been merited for us by the Passion of Christ who offered himself on the cross as a living victim, holy and pleasing to God, and whose blood has become the instrument of atonement for the sins of all men.
When do we actually receive justification?
At Baptism (cf CCC 1992).
The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCCC (422) summarises:
Justification is the most excellent work of God's love. It is the merciful and freely-given act of God which takes away our sins and makes us just and holy in our whole being. It is brought about by means of the grace of the Holy Spirit which has been merited for us by the passion of Christ and is given to us in Baptism. Justification is the beginning of the free response of man, that is, faith in Christ and of cooperation with the grace of the Holy Spirit.
1.2 Sanctification
The taking away of sins is only the first step. God, our most loving Father, does not only want us to be decent people. He wants us to be holy as He is Holy. Thus, CCC 1987 also says
"Justification is not only the remission of sins, but also the sanctification and renewal of the interior man." [Council of Trent (1547): DS 1528]
When we study the commandments, when we inquire about the goodness or evil of our actions, we are not only interested in being nice people who try their best not to do evil. That is the minimum. Just as we take care of our bodily life not merely to avoid falling sick, but to be able to perform our tasks well, we take care of our spiritual life not only to avoid sin but to be holy. Saint Paul, in fact, uses the image of the athlete to illustrate to us that the Christian life is not only about NOT LOSING, but about WINNING; it is not only about not becoming a sinner, but about becoming a saint. In the First Letter to the Corinthians (9:24-27), he writes
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. 25 Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 26 Well, I do not run aimlessly, I do not box as one beating the air; 27 but I pommel my body and subdue it, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
Thus the CCC (2013) reiterates the teaching of our Lord and of His Church:
"All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity." [Lumen Gentium, 40 # 2] All are called to holiness: "Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." [Matthew 5:48]
This brings to mind a passage in the book Be Not Afraid (London: The Bodley Head, 1984, pp 109-110), where André Frossard interviews Pope John Paul II. At one point, the writer asked the Holy Father:
The fact remains that Christian morality is often considered RESTRICTIVE, especially by those who do not practise it, while others, having robbed it of its supernatural function, construct out of it a meritorious but joyless Christianity. If the role of the Gospel morality is not to forbid us what we could legitimately claim but to give us much more than we could reasonably hope for (the 'Kingdom of Heaven'), can one prove that it is a LIBERATING force? Is it this morality which builds the person?
The Holy Father replied,
...since my youth, ... I have always considered and continue to think that Christian morality is a DEMANDING one.
This term--demanding--is important because it answers the two questions which you put to me after your initial remarks: first, can one prove that Christian morality is LIBERATING (and not CONSTRICTING)? And secondly, is it this morality which builds persons--and I would add, which builds real persons?
There is no doubt that there is an essential difference between the term 'RESTRICTIVE' and the term 'DEMANDING'.
Christian morals seem to impose on us a series of "thou-shalt-nots", but these should be seen as the training the body "to subdue it," as Saint Paul says in the quotation above. To subdue is TO MASTER, and when one masters something, say a musical instrument, he is able to produce the most beautiful sounds. On the other hand, if he has not mastered it, he may just produce noise instead. In any contest, MASTERY makes for EXCELLENT and WINNING PERFORMANCE. In art, mastery of the medium is a prerequisite for creating works of BEAUTY.
But mastery requires constant practice. In Christian terminology, this undertaking is called the ASCETICAL STRUGGLE. (The adjective "ascetical" comes from the Greek word "askesis", which refers to the training that athletes undergo.) The CCC (2015) says,
The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle [cf 2 Tim 4]. Spiritual progress entails the ascesis and mortification that gradually lead to living in the peace and joy of the Beatitudes.
The ultimate purpose of this training is union with Jesus Christ, its final goal is holiness. Thus, the CCC (2014) explains:
Spiritual progress tends toward ever more intimate union with Christ. This union is called "mystical" because it participates in the mystery of Christ through the sacraments - "the holy mysteries" - and, in him, in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. God calls us all to this intimate union with him, even if the special graces or extraordinary signs of this mystical life are granted only to some for the sake of manifesting the gratuitous gift given to all.
All of us, every Christian, has a vocation to be holy, to let Christ take over his life, to the point that he can say
it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me (Galatians 2:20)
In the homily "Christ's Death is the Christian's Life" (Christ is Passing By, 96), Saint Josemaría Escrivá, founder of Opus Dei, declares:
The Christian is obliged to be ALTER CHRISTUS, IPSE CHRISTUS: another Christ, Christ himself. Through baptism all of us have been made priests of our lives, "to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." Everything we do can be an expression of our obedience to God's will and so perpetuate the mission of the God-man.
Once we realize this, we are immediately reminded of our wretchedness and our personal failings. But they should not dishearten us; we should not become pessimistic and put our ideals aside. Our Lord is calling us, in our present state, to share his life and make an effort to be holy. I know holiness can sound like an empty word. Too many people think it is unattainable, something to do with ascetical theology - but not a real goal for them, a living reality. The first Christians didn't think that way. They often used the word "saints" to describe each other in a very natural manner: "greetings to all the saints"; "my greetings to every one of the saints in Jesus Christ."
In order to understand what grace does for us, it is necessary to review point 6 of Lesson 6, which explains how man is constituted. A person who wishes to understand how a certain drug works on the human body has first to understand how the body works. He has to know some anatomy and physiology. Similarly if we want to appreciate fully the action of grace, we need to understand human nature, in particular, his spiritual soul, his intellect, his will, and his freedom.
2.1 What is grace?
In general, grace is a SUPERNATURAL GIFT from God. This definition has two elements: (1) supernatural; and (2) gift. Let us explain each one.
Let us now tackle the different kinds of grace.
2.2 What is sanctifying grace and what does it do?
Sanctifying grace is grace that affects our BEING (and is thus technically called an ENTITATIVE HABIT, the word "entitative" comes from the Latin "ens, which means "being"), in particular our SOUL.
Secondly, the purpose of this grace is to enable us to participate in the intimate life of the three Divine Persons. The CCCC (no 423; cf CCC 1996-1998; 2005; 2021), asks: "What is the GRACE THAT JUSTIFIES?" It replies
That grace is the gratuitous gift that God gives us to make us participants in his trinitarian life and able to act by his love. It is called HABITUAL, SANCTIFYING or DEIFYING grace because it sanctifies and divinizes us.
Are there other types of grace?
The CCCC (no 424; cf CCC 1999-2000; 2003-2004; 2023-2024) teaches us:
Besides habitual grace, there are ACTUAL GRACES (gifts for specific circumstances), SACRAMENTAL GRACES (gifts proper to each sacrament), SPECIAL GRACES or CHARISMS (gifts that are intended for the common good of the Church) among which are the graces of state that accompany the exercise of ecclesial ministries and the responsibilities of life.
2.3 What about actual grace?
Actual grace, as mentioned above, are gifts for specific circumstances.
While sanctifying grace modifies our soul and configures it to God, actual grace, on the other hand, works on our INTELLECT and our WILL. ACT-UAL grace is supernatural assistance in our ACTS.
But all human acts begin from the intellect and the will. Hence, actual grace enhances the OPERATION (and is thus technically called OPERATIVE HABIT) of our POWERS (also called POTENCIES) of knowing and willing. It works like supernatural vitamins for the intellect and will.
The CCC (no 1996) refers to this when it says:
Grace is favor, the FREE and UNDESERVED HELP that God gives us TO RESPOND to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life [cf John 1:12-18; 17:3; Romans 8:14-17; II Peter 1:3-4].
Actual grace accompanies us all the way, from the PREPARATION to the CONCLUSION of God's big project which is our sanctification. Thus, the CCC (no 2001) teaches:
The preparation of man for the reception of grace is already a work of grace. This latter is needed to arouse and sustain our collaboration in justification through faith, and in sanctification through charity. God brings to completion in us what he has begun, "since he who completes his work by cooperating with our will began by working so that we might will it:" [St Augustine, De gratia et libero arbitrio, 17]
Indeed we also work, but we are only collaborating with God who works, for his mercy has gone before us. It has gone before us so that we may be healed, and follows us so that once healed, we may be given life; it goes before us so that we may be called, and follows us so that we may be glorified; it goes before us so that we may live devoutly, and follows us so that we may always live with God: for without him we can do nothing. [St Augustine, De natura et gratia, 31]
God FREELY gives, but we have to FREELY receive. The CCC (no 2002) reiterates this point:
God's free initiative demands man's free response, for God has created man in his image by conferring on him, along with freedom, the power to know him and love him. The soul only enters freely into the communion of love. ...
2.4 What about sacramental grace?
We have tackled these in the sections on the sacraments (Lessons 17 to 25).
2.5 And charisms?
The CCC (no 2003) teaches us:
There are furthermore special graces, also called charisms after the Greek term used by St. Paul and meaning "favor," "gratuitous gift," "benefit."[cf Lumen Gentium 12] Whatever their character - sometimes it is extraordinary, such as the gift of miracles or of tongues - charisms are oriented toward sanctifying grace and are intended for the common good of the Church. They are at the service of charity which builds up the Church [cf I Corinthians 12]
We know about charisms because Saint Paul talks about it. In particular, we can read in the First Letter to the Corinthians, chapter 12:
4 Now there are VARIETIES OF GIFTS, but the SAME SPIRIT; 5 and there are VARIETIES OF SERVICE, but the SAME LORD; 6 and there are VARIETIES OF WORKING, but it is the SAME GOD who inspires them all in every one. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit FOR THE COMMON GOOD.
8 To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10* to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.
11 All these are inspired by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.
12* For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. 13* For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and all were made to drink of one Spirit. 14 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. 15 If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," that would not make it any less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? 18 But as it is, God arranged the organs in the body, each one of them, as he chose. 19 If all were a single organ, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," nor again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." 22 On the contrary, the parts of the body which seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and those parts of the body which we think less honorable we invest with the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, 24 which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior part, 25 that there may be no discord in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 27* Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
28* And God has appointed in the church FIRST APOSTLES, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators, speakers in various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30 Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak with tongues? Do all interpret?
Persons in authority also receive these charisms; they receive what is called the GRACE OF STATE (note that this is different from the "state of grace"). The CCC (no 2004), says:
Among the special graces ought to be mentioned the graces of state that accompany the exercise of the responsibilities of the Christian life and of the ministries within the Church:
Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; he who teaches, in his teaching; he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who contributes, in liberality; he who gives aid, with zeal; he who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness [Rom 12:6-8].
Saint Paul, after enumerating the different charisms, notes that these are NOT THE MOST IMPORTANT of graces. One reason is that they do not directly sanctify the person who is given the gift, because the gift is for the benefit of other members of the Church. Thus Saint Paul concludes this chapter saying:
31 But earnestly desire the higher gifts. And I will show you A STILL MORE EXCELLENT WAY.
In the following chaper, he speaks about charity, the most essential gift of all.
As mentioned above, CHARISMS are special supernatural gifts that are intended for the common good of the Church--they are not meant primarily for the receiver, but FOR OTHERS, while SANCTIFYING grace and ACTUAL grace are for the GOOD OF THE ONE WHO RECEIVES THEM. Thus, a person should NOT BE SATISFIED WITH HAVING SPECIAL GIFTS OR CHARISMS. Charisms do not BY THEMSELVES make the recipient holy. Being a priest, or speaking in tongues, or having the gift of healing does not make one a saint. Saint Paul says we should strive to achieve the greater gift which is CHARITY (in Greek, AGAPE), which comes hand in hand with SANCTIFYING GRACE. This is why, in chapter 13, he says
1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; 5 it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.
3.1 What is a virtue?
The CCC (no 1803) first quotes Saint Paul and says:
"Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." [Philippians 4:8]
A virtue is an HABITUAL and FIRM DISPOSITION to DO THE GOOD. It allows the person not only to perform good acts, but TO GIVE THE BEST OF HIMSELF. The virtuous person tends toward the good with all his sensory and spiritual powers; he pursues the good and chooses it in concrete actions.
The goal of a virtuous life is to become like God. [St. Gregory of Nyssa, De beatitudinibus, 1]
3.2 Are there many kinds of virtue?
Virtues can be CLASSIFIED, according to their source, as follows:
Let us examine further the theological virtues and the moral virtues.
3.3 The Theological Virtues
The CCC, in no 1814, spells our for us the the meaning of FAITH:
Faith is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he is truth itself.
Regarding HOPE, points 1817 and 1818 explain:
Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit.
The virtue of hope responds to the aspiration to happiness which God has placed in the heart of every man; it takes up the hopes that inspire men's activities and purifies them so as to order them to the Kingdom of heaven; it keeps man from discouragement; it sustains him during times of abandonment; it opens up his heart in expectation of eternal beatitude. Buoyed up by hope, he is preserved from selfishness and led to the happiness that flows from charity.
As for CHARITY, point 1822 teaches:
Charity is the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God.
Here once more is the table we saw in Lesson 3:
3.4 The Human Virtues
The CCC (no 1804) tells us that
Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions, and guide our conduct according to reason and faith. They make possible ease, self-mastery, and joy in leading a morally good life. The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good.
We can distinguish the following elements in the above definition.
The CCC (no 1805) highlights the importance of the CARDINAL virtues:
Four virtues play a pivotal role and accordingly are called "cardinal"; all the others are grouped around them. They are: prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. "If anyone loves righteousness, [Wisdom's] labors are virtues; for she teaches temperance and prudence, justice, and courage" [Wisdom 8:7]. These virtues are praised under other names in many passages of Scripture.
Let us follow the CCC (1806-1809) in understanding what each of these cardinal virtues are and what they do.
PRUDENCE is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it; "the prudent man looks where he is going" [Proverbs 14:15] "Keep sane and sober for your prayers" [I Peter 4:7]. Prudence is "right reason in action," writes St Thomas Aquinas, following Aristotle [St Thomas Aquinas, STh II-II q47 a2]. It is not to be confused with timidity or fear, nor with duplicity or dissimulation. It is called "auriga virtutum" (the charioteer of the virtues); it guides the other virtues by setting rule and measure. It is prudence that immediately guides the judgment of conscience. The prudent man determines and directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment. With the help of this virtue we apply moral principles to particular cases without error and overcome doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.
JUSTICE is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor" [Leviticus 19:15]. "Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven" [Colossians 4:1].
FORTITUDE is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, and to face trials and persecutions. It disposes one even to renounce and sacrifice his life in defense of a just cause. "The Lord is my strength and my song" [Psalm 118:14]. "In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" [John 16:33].
TEMPERANCE is the moral virtue that moderates the attraction of pleasures and provides balance in the use of created goods. It ensures the will's mastery over instincts and keeps desires within the limits of what is honorable. The temperate person directs the sensitive appetites toward what is good and maintains a healthy discretion: "Do not follow your inclination and strength, walking according to the desires of your heart" [Sirach (or Ecclesiasticus) 5:2; cf 37:27-31] Temperance is often praised in the Old Testament: "Do not follow your base desires, but restrain your appetites" [Sirach 18:30]. In the New Testament it is called "moderation" or "sobriety." We ought "to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world" [Titus 2:12].
To live well is nothing other than to love God with all one's heart, with all one's soul and with all one's efforts; from this it comes about that love is kept whole and uncorrupted (through temperance). No misfortune can disturb it (and this is fortitude). It obeys only [God] (and this is justice), and is careful in discerning things, so as not to be surprised by deceit or trickery (and this is prudence) [St Augustine, De moribus eccl. 1, 25, 46].
3.5 Does a naturally virtuous man need grace?
Two points of the CCC (1810 and 1811) teach us:
Human virtues acquired by education, by deliberate acts and by a perseverance ever-renewed in repeated efforts are PURIFIED and ELEVATED by divine grace. With God's help, they forge character and give facility in the practice of the good. The virtuous man is happy to practice them.
It is not easy for man, WOUNDED BY SIN, to maintain moral balance. Christ's gift of salvation offers us the grace necessary to persevere in the pursuit of the virtues. Everyone should always ask for this grace of light and strength, frequent the sacraments, cooperate with the Holy Spirit, and follow his calls to love what is good and shun evil.
See LESSON 12.
5.1 Emotions and Passions
All living things have a way of receiving STIMULI and eliciting a RESPONSE. For animals it is the SENSES that receive the stimuli and the EMOTIONS or PASSIONS (also called "sentiments" or "feelings") that determine the response. Once the stimuli is received, the emotions automatically act according to the stimuli. The CCC (no 1763) says:
The term "passions" belongs to the Christian patrimony. Feelings or passions are emotions or movements of the sensitive appetite that incline us to act or not to act in regard to something felt or imagined to be good or evil.
While man also possesses senses for receiving stimuli and emotions or passions that bring about a response, he possesses something that the animals do not have. As we have seen in Lesson 6, when God made man, He made him in his image and likeness, giving him a spiritual soul. With this spiritual soul comes two spiritual powers, the intellect and the will. The intellect takes up what the senses receive. This makes it possible for man not only to see, hear, feel, taste, touch, or imagine, but also to UNDERSTAND the input from the senses. With our intellect or mind, we can EVALUATE or ASSESS whether something is good for us. According to the assessment made by the intellect, the will decides FREELY on whether or not to act, or on how to act. In other words, unlike in animals, man's response is not pre-determined or automatic. Acts that are truly human are rational and free. This does not mean that the senses and passions are useless. Thus, the CCC (no 1764) says:
The passions are natural components of the human psyche; they form the passageway and ensure the connection between the life of the senses and the life of the mind. Our Lord called man's heart the source from which the passions spring [cf Mark 7:21].
But after original sin, man's reason has been clouded and his will has been weakened to such an extent that sometimes, man wittingly or unwittingly foregoes the use of reason and will, letting himself be led by mere perception or emotion. Our task is to form our mind so that we habitually reflect first on the inputs that come from what we see or hear, and train our will so that it always governs the sentiments and makes use of them in doing good.
5.2 Which passions are we exactly talking about?
The CCC (no 1765) enumerates some of them for us:
There are many passions. The most fundamental passion is LOVE, aroused by the attraction of the good. Love causes a DESIRE for the absent good and the HOPE of obtaining it; this movement finds completion in the PLEASURE and JOY of the good possessed.
The apprehension of evil causes HATRED, AVERSION, and FEAR of the impending evil; this movement ends in SADNESS at some present evil, or in the ANGER that resists it.
5.3 Are passions good or bad?
The CCC 1767 tells us:
In themselves passions are NEITHER GOOD NOR EVIL. They are morally qualified [i.e., GOOD or EVIL] only to the extent that they effectively ENGAGE REASON AND WILL. Passions are said to be VOLUNTARY, "either because they are commanded by the will or because the will does not place obstacles in their way" [St Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II q24 a1]. It belongs to the perfection of the moral or human good that the passions be governed by reason [St Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II q24 a1].
Furthermore, the CCC (no 1768) says that feelings can be good or bad depending on how they are used, i.e., on whether the ACTIONS they are involved in are GOOD or BAD.
Strong feelings are not decisive for the morality or the holiness of persons; they are simply the inexhaustible reservoir of images and affections in which the moral life is expressed. Passions are morally good when they contribute to a good action, evil in the opposite case. The upright will orders the movements of the senses it appropriates to the good and to beatitude; an evil will succumbs to disordered passions and exacerbates them. Emotions and feelings can be taken up into the virtues or perverted by the vices.
Good use of the passions is exemplified by our Lord Jesus Christ himself. In the CCC (no 1769), it says:
In the Christian life, the Holy Spirit himself accomplishes his work by mobilizing the whole being, with all its sorrows, fears and sadness, as is visible in the Lord's agony and passion. In Christ human feelings are able to reach their consummation in charity and divine beatitude.
The CCC (no 1770) adds:
Moral perfection consists in man's being moved to the good not by his will alone, but also by his sensitive appetite, as in the words of the psalm: "My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God" [Psalm 84:2].