Human action, like the divine, proceeds from the two great faculties, the intelligence and the will. The intellect first takes cognizance of an object, and then guides the determination of the will to take action regarding it. Full knowledge is the preliminary to deliberation, responsibility, morality, and the eternal results of human actions. It is not itself the motive force, but it supplies the data for action by forming a judgment. If the mind's apprehension be immature or erroneous, then the action proceeding from the will is not fully voluntary in all its bearings, and responsibility is either diminished or ceases to exist. The intellect is a great gift of God and has a great function. "He filled them with the knowledge of understanding. He created in them the science of the spirit; He filled their heart with wisdom and showed them both good and evil" (Eccli. xvii. 5, 6). This great faculty is capable of being made more efficient by cultivation. It is further accommodated by God for its duties in the supernatural guidance of man, by means of the light of conscience as to good and evil in our actions, by the revelation which God has given us, and by a special influx of illuminating grace. Apply your reason to the truths that God has made known to you, and let its judgments be your guide. Never surrender yourself to the reckless impulses of bodily appetite or blind passion. Keep your guiding faculty clear from the mists of self-will, prejudice and ignorance, and ask the Lord to send forth upon it the rays of His light and His truth. Continue Reading.
