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Truth is an important possession of humanity. It has always been the object of many human pursuits1

TRUTH

from the ancients Know thyself to the most recent intellectual conquesttruth has always pervaded the thoughts of men. 2

Truth

The search for truth is a part of human nature itself. 3

TRUTH

However, in this search, there results at times a manipulation of the truth to whatever would be convenient to people. This muffles the truth and makes it a mere plaything.

In the midst of this confusion, the voice of one man stands outJoseph Ratzingerwho possesses an insight to truth so unique, yet never far from truth as we know it.

In this regard, I wish to present this thesis tackling such circumstances which are at present prevail in many societies. This work is entitled 4

COOPERATORES VERITATIS: An Expository Analysis of Joseph Ratzingers Concept of Truth and Its Role in the Battle against Moral Relativism

JOSEPH ALOIS RATZINGERb. April 16, 1927, Bavaria, Germany, of a devoutly Catholic familyLived through the Nazi regimeUniversity professor, cardinal, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, later Pope Benedict XVIWrote around a hundred books and compilations, and some hundred essays, speeches and lectures. Transcendental philosophy, founded on Augustine and Plato, is an alley way leading to his profound theology.

Let us first know the thinker whose concept of truth we shall later analyze. Joseph Alois Ratzinger was born on April 16, 1927. During the Nazi regime, he, with other youth, was forced to serve in the military. After his ordination, he became a professor of theology in several universities, later a peritus of the Second Vatican Council, then, a cardinal-Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, and ultimately Pope Benedict XVI. He is a professed Platonist-Augustinian in his line of thought. His philosophy, tightly intertwined with his theology, is transcendental, serving as an alley-way to his profound theology. Thus, a study of Ratzingers philosophy is an extraction of his philosophy from his theology, but always considering their inner dynamics, harmony and unity.

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Conformity of the intellect to a thing.

For Ratzinger, truth goes beyond the traditional Thomistic definition of Conformity of intellect with the thing known. 7

TRUTHBeingGOD

In this definition, since truth is found on being, and Ratzinger so professes that being is founded on the Divine, 8

GODTRUTH

Unchanging and AbsoluteObjective

then, for him, truth has God as its source. No human entity or institution can produce it. This renders it unchanging and absolute. Also, this makes truth objective, as something readily given, as it is from revelation that truth is known to man.

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TRUTHTRUTHReason &Conscience

Truth is the foundation upon which all human undertakings are based

Though truth is outside human manipulation, it is still a natural imperative for man to seek the truth. It is an object which perfects reason. Thus, through his reason and conscience, man is able to know the truth. Man is fully capable of holding the truth. There is this human desire for truth because it is the foundation upon which all human undertakings are based. 10

T R U T HCUL

UREVAL

ESU N I V E R S A MO A L

Thus, truth is the foundation of culture, as well as of the interaction of cultures, so evidently seen nowadays. Being the foundation of culture and interactions among several of it presupposes truth as universal, or, acceptable for all people. Also, truth is the foundation of the values of society, as well as the standard of morality. 11

Truth is an ABSOLUTE, IMMUTABLE attribute of the Divine which man cannot manipulate (OBJECTIVE), to which, however, the human intellectual faculty naturally tends, consisting of the recognition of the nature of a thing known as it is in the set NATURAL ORDER of the cosmos.

Having given these characteristics, what then is truth according to Joseph Ratzinger?12

However, modern trends contradict such concepts of truth. It is either regarded as unattainable, or changeable, or subjective and circumstantial, or produced by the state or by a majority vote, as is seen nowadays in many societies wherein what has long been held stringently as true is now sacrificed in the name of tolerance and convenience. This trend is known as relativism.

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RELATIVISMAbsolute Knowledge

Absolute Morality

Absolute Beauty

Denial of Objectivity

Relativism is a loose philosophical view which maintains that there are no absolute principles in some order of knowledge (e.g., epistemology, metaphysics, history, or mathematics), or in the moral order, or in the aesthetic order. It denies that any of some class of statements is absolutely true, or that anything is absolutely right or good, or that anything is absolutely beautiful; and asserts that judgments vary according to the subjects who make them at different times, or in different places, or under some other circumstances. Thus, it is a denial of the objectivity of everything, leaving these into the subjective realm of human manipulation. Relativism is not a single unit of thought but a family of views. Common to them is the assumption that there is no absolute standard anywhere or anyway. All simply depend on the persons altruistic dispositions, and the situations and circumstances he faces. Nothing absolute can be attained or known.

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INTENTION OF THE AGENTMORAL OR ETHICAL RELATIVISMMORALITY

Objective morality

Intrinsic value

The kind of relativism which is significant to this study is moral or ethical relativism. This kind is characterized by the attitude that the subject alone is the standard of morality. A relativistic moral theory, in this sense, would be a theory denying objective morality as a whole for it contends that the sole and exclusive source of moral value is the intention of the agent, the persons inner commitment to behaving out of loving or generous motives. Values and virtues become thus manifestations of moral intent, and not components of a moral act. Morality becomes but a matter of motivation. Thus it rejects entirely the concept of intrinsic value as a constituent of moral judgment. In a broader sense, morality is also accepted as it is accepted by the culture and society in which the person is set. 15

AttainabilityObjectivity

Ratzinger detests relativism. He is especially opposed to the rejection of relativism regarding the attainability and objectivity of truth. It has been noted earlier that for him, man is capable of and in need of the truth which is the objective, universal standard of moral action. 16

NIHILISM

ANARCHY

The disregard of relativism of these aspects of truth is destructive. Relativism can only produce anarchy in society and nihilism in individuals who live under its sway. 17

Ratzinger sees such an attitude towards life will lead to the degradation and destruction of the human person himself.

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OBJECTIVE MORALITY

The conviction that mans being contains an imperative, the conviction that he does not himself invent morality on the basis of expediency, but rather finds it already present in things.

The solution to stall this destruction by relativism is to arrive at a moral consensus in society that is rooted in objective morality. Ratzinger gives the definition of objective morality as the conviction that mans being contains an imperative, the conviction that he does not himself invent morality on the basis of expediency, but rather finds it already present in things. This is a reversion to objective truth as the basis of morality. The objective morality to which Ratzinger pertains essentially includes a recognition of the truth of human nature shared by all individuals, and that there are things that are wrong and can never become right (killing innocent people, for instance; denying individuals the right to be treated as humans and to a way of life appropriate to that) and there are things that are right and can never become wrong.19

Are there things which can really be relative?

However, one may still ask, Are there things which can really be relative? Indeed, as this study recommends, one must take on an objective morality. However, clinging strenuously to much of upholding the absolute would lead to stringent absolutism, which ultimately stifles man. 20

TRUTH DYNAMISM

Here, I wish to say that beyond Ratzingers thought, it is still to be recognized that TRUTH also possesses a kind of DYNAMISM. Truth, though not bendable, adapts itself to different particular circumstances, without leading to subjectivism or subscription to circumstantial ethics. This is seen in the simple demand of the very objective morality Ratzinger speaks of:21

mercy and compassion, the thrust of his successor, Pope Francis. By mercy and compassion, the person sees and understands the cause of anothers lapse, instead of condemning him. Through mercy and compassion, the truth is upheld without sacrificing the person, while the erring is simultaneously corrected of his error instead of estranging him from the rest of humanity. Mercy and compassion must balance the stringency of an absolute truth. 22

Single parenthood

?

How is this possible? Let us take single parenthood, a common sight nowadays, as an example. Before, being a single parent is stigmatized, and single mothers especially are labeled to be bad women. 23

It is true that the situation in which the child was made is an immoral onesexual union outside wedlock. It is also true that the family is an institution born out of marriage and that it has to be made of both father and mother living together, and their children. Looking at the situation, we may say that perhaps, this single mother has been convinced in herself that because she loves this man, it is not wrong to give herself to him even though they are not wed. There is a tinge of relativism here. 24

OUTCAST?

CORRECTED ACCEPTED

Now, should this woman be made an OUTCAST? In the sight of mercy and compassion, she should not be. However, she should be reminded that what she did was still wrong, and she must make ways not to do such things again. Marriage is still the proper place of conceiving a child. She should be corrected and accepted, and be helped to change her life. The truth is upheld without sacrificing the person. This is how truth interacts with mercy and compassion.

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RECOMMENDATIONSTo the field of epistemology, which is one of the chief concerns here, this research offers a re-appreciation of the absolute and objective character of truth.

RECOMMENDATIONSTo the field of anthropology, this research tries to remind of the role of the natural order in human existence.

RECOMMENDATIONSTo the field of ethics, this work tries to contribute in the battle against moral relativism whose adverse effects have been discussed at length in the preceding chapters.

CONCLUSIONThe concept of truth as proposed by Joseph Ratzinger is very important in countering the destruction possibly brought about by moral relativism.

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