CONSCIENCE

WHAT IS CONSCIENCE?,[object Object]

Etymology: con (with) + scientia (knowledge) [From scire (to know)]. ,[object Object],The word “conscience” derives from the Latin cum (together) and scientia, scire (to know).,[object Object]

Conscience is our lived knowledge of good and evil, our judgment about how we should act, and our commitment to do so.,[object Object],A moral faculty or feeling prompting us to see that certain actions are morally right or wrong.,[object Object]

Conscience is the person’s moral faculty, the inner core and sanctuary where one knows oneself in confrontation with God and with fellowmen. (Bernard Haring, CSsR),[object Object],“An inward moral impression of one’s actions and principles… as the inward faculty of moral judgment… as the inward moral and spiritual frame” (Analytical Greek Lexicon),[object Object]

Images of Conscience,[object Object],“our most secret core and sanctuary” where we encounter God; our heart(Catechism#1776).,[object Object]

Images of Conscience,[object Object],a law inscribed in our hearts by God and recognized as our own; its voice calls us “to love and do what is good and avoid evil” (Catechism #1776; Romans 2:14-15). ,[object Object]

Images of Conscience,[object Object],our moral compass that directs us to good or evil.,[object Object]

Images of Conscience,[object Object],our moral sensory faculty: capacity to see, feel, hear, smell, and touch the good; moral appetiteus as we judge moral questions (whole person includes intellect, feeling, imagination, and will). ,[object Object]

Conscience is a practical moral judgment: the “dictate of conscience”,[object Object], A. Conscience,[object Object],[object Object]

commanding to do what is good and to avoid what is evil. B. This description of conscience pertains to all persons.,[object Object]

Example: It was the night before their final examination. Cherise prepared a “kodigo”. She earnestly desired to get a high grade in the exam and to impress her classmates as well. However, on the day of the exam, she felt a growing uneasiness deep within herself and gave up her plan.,[object Object]

The feeling of uneasiness - result of conscience which made her realize her moral obligation to be honest, which led her to give up her plan to cheat.,[object Object],Therefore if conscience tells us that this act is cheating and therefore is bad, it is a moral judgment which expresses that we are morally bound not to do the act. If we go ahead and do not follow my conscience, we sin.,[object Object]

As a practical moral judgment: the “dictate of conscience”,[object Object],Two basic elements of conscience:,[object Object],Moral judgment that discerns what is right or wrong,[object Object],Moral obligation or command to do the good and avoid the evil.,[object Object]

As a moral faculty,[object Object], - The faculty which makes known to man his moral obligations and urges him to fulfill them.,[object Object], - It is a faculty distinct from reason, will and feeling, situated at the very depth and center of the human person which gives to man an understanding of his meaning and destiny, an awareness of the divine purpose behind the world,,[object Object], a perception of his personal calling within God’s plan and an experience of the imperative character of this calling (Peschke).,[object Object]

“In the depths of his or her conscience, the human person detects a law which she or he does not impose upon themselves, but which holds them to obedience. Always summoning them to love good and avoid evil, the voice of conscience when necessary speaks to their heart: do this, shun that.,[object Object],Gaudium et Spes, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, #16,[object Object]

“Deep within our conscience we discover a law which we have not laid on ourselves, but which we must obey. ,[object Object],[object Object]

We cannot manipulate or silence our conscience.

It will never leave us peace unless it is obeyed.Its voice, ever calling us to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, tell us inwardly at the right time: do this, shun that.,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]

For persons have in their hearts a law written by God. To obey it is their very dignity; according to it they will be judged. ,[object Object],[object Object]

To obey it is our very dignity as true images of God.Conscience is the most secret core and sanctuary of all persons. There they are alone with God, whose voice echoes in their depths. ”,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]

OLD TESTAMENT,[object Object],Limited interest in conscience; inner moral authority,[object Object],Stress is direct relations wit God; listening to the Word of God is primary,[object Object],“Syneidesis” – a Greek word for conscience appeared only in the Book of Wisdom,[object Object]

OLD TESTAMENT,[object Object],Some expressions related to conscience:,[object Object],“ Mind” “Loins” “Heart”,[object Object],Examine me, O LORD, and try me; Test my mind and my heart. (Psalm 26:2),[object Object],But, O LORD Almighty, you who judge righteously and test the heart and mind, let me see your vengeance upon them, for to you I have committed my cause. (Jer 11:20),[object Object]

OLD TESTAMENT,[object Object],Some expressions related to conscience:,[object Object],“ Mind” “Loins” “Heart”,[object Object],Conscience condemns man after sin is known. (Gen 3:7-10 – Adam and Eve, Gen 4:9-14 – Cain and Abel),[object Object],Conscience praises man for justice. (Job 27:6, Ps 17:3, 26, ff, 139:23 – ff),[object Object],Judgement of conscience in the OT - ultimately voice of God.,[object Object]

NEW TESTAMENT,[object Object],St. Paul used the word “syneidesis”,[object Object],A Greek concept; a negative judge of completed or at least initiated action.,[object Object]

NEW TESTAMENT,[object Object], Conscience is:,[object Object],A God-given capacity for human being to exercise self-evaluation (Acts 23:1, 24:16, 1 Cor 4:4),[object Object],Paul refers to his conscience as “good” “clear”, “blameless, his values and standards in conformity with God’s standards; conscience a faculty to evaluate good and evil.,[object Object]

NEW TESTAMENT,[object Object], Conscience is:,[object Object],A witness,[object Object],[object Object]

Romans 9:1 = His conscience as witness he is telling the truth

2 Cor 1:12 = he conducts self with holiness and sincerity,[object Object]

NEW TESTAMENT,[object Object], Conscience is:,[object Object],3. A Servant to the individual’s value system,[object Object],A weak value system produces weak sense of right and wrong while a strong value system produces a strong sense of right and wrong.,[object Object],Conscience can be erroneous and cannot be directly equated to the voice of God; it examines and not creates norms; it uses criteria to judge what people do or fail to do.,[object Object]

NEW TESTAMENT,[object Object], Conscience is:,[object Object],4. A universal endowment of all human beings,[object Object],Romans 2:14-ff : Gentiles have the possibility to fulfill the moral law even without the knowledge of the written law; their conscience bears witness and shows what the law requires; everybody has conscience, endowed with a faculty for moral judgements,[object Object]

SUMMARY,[object Object],Conscience receives a growing attention in the Bible,[object Object],In the Old Testament, the emphasis is more on man listening to the Word of God rather than an inner moral authority – conscience.,[object Object],In the New Testament, conscience is described as an endowment embedded in the context of faith and oriented by it.,[object Object]

SUMMARY,[object Object],In the New Testament, conscience is also seen as a reality with limitations owing to man’s limitations a a creature; a reality in need of cleansing and purification,[object Object],For the Bible, the key words in ethics is not the concept of conscience experienced as something subjective and individual. The distinctive words are: obedience and love or service, always give expression of a transcendental relationship.,[object Object]

CONSCIENCE IN CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY,[object Object]

Scholastic Theology,[object Object],Conscience is a particular instance of the operation of reason.,[object Object],A process in which the general norms of the moral law are applied to a concrete action which a person is about to perform or has performed,[object Object],Tells the person that his moral obligation is here and now or judging is past acts.,[object Object]

2 Essential parts of Conscience: Synderesis and Conscientia,[object Object],Synderesis’ discovers very basic moral principles; the use of right reason by which we learn basic moral principles and understand that we have to do good and avoid evil.,[object Object],‘Conscientia’ (conscience) = practical reason which tells us what to do in particular situations,[object Object]

Joseph Butler,[object Object],Bishop of Durham 1750.,[object Object],[object Object]

So being human involves being moral.

Conscience is a person’s God-given guide to right conduct and its demands must therefore always be followed.,[object Object]

the purpose of conscience is to guide a person into a way of life that will make them happy

conscience will harmonise self-love and benevolence – this may take some sorting out and so in moral dilemmas we may be uncertain what to do

conscience controls human nature,[object Object]

Bonaventure and great mystics,[object Object],Conscience as the scintilla animae, the spark of the soul,[object Object],Peak of the soul; the center of the soul where man encounters God and is at least accessible to the contamination of sin.,[object Object]

Conscience is not mere reason; not mere executive agent of pre-existing moral laws tasked to apply them on concrete situations.,[object Object],It informs a person about a personal calling in the context of God’s plan o creation.,[object Object],Reason is not purely intellectual operations from merely rational premises considering strong elements of an emotional nature with consequent conscience,[object Object]

Conscience has both perceptive and volative functions; perceives the moral obligation and urges the person to accept the good and realize it.,[object Object],Conscience is not identical with the power of the will; man may still will,[object Object],and do what is against his conscience,[object Object],A ground of the soul deeper than and distinct from both reason and will.,[object Object]

Conscience is a faculty in its own right distinct from reason, will and feeling; situated at the very depth and center of the person and helps him/her understand meaning and destiny:,[object Object],An awareness of the divine purpose; a perception of one’s personal calling; an experience of the imperative nature of the call;,[object Object],Conscience has a religious dimension,[object Object]

Conscience can evidently err. Even then it still manifests the will of God not in the sense that God wills the error. It is the voice of God in the sense that God wills the good faith and the love of the good of which it remains an expression.,[object Object]

KINDS OF CONSCIENCE AND ITS BINDING FORCE,[object Object]

A. Conscience in the Process of Time: Antecedent, Concomitant, Consequent,[object Object],Antecedent: Judgment on morality of action and obligation to perform or omit is passed before action is translated to reality.,[object Object],It helps us to sort out the data and examine the morality of an act before we perform it.,[object Object],It commands, exhorts, permits or forbids.,[object Object]

A. Conscience in the Process of Time: Antecedent, Concomitant, Consequent,[object Object],Concomitant: During the action; refers to one’s actual awareness of being morally responsible for the goodness and the badness of the particular act while one is doing it.,[object Object],eg. Scolding or disapproving (as in the case of habitual sins: kupit, saying bad words, answering back, etc.) or approving (as in the case of good habits).,[object Object]

A. Conscience in the Process of Time: Antecedent, Concomitant, Consequent,[object Object],Consequent: if it evaluates an act already done or omitted. ,[object Object],It is the process of looking back to review and evaluate the morality of what we have done.,[object Object],It approves, excuses, reproves or accuses.,[object Object]

B. Conscience seen according to the Objective Norm: Right, Erroneous, perplexed, lax, scrupulous, compensatory,[object Object]

Vincibly erroneous:,[object Object],The error is due to one’s own fault but, with some good will, can still be corrected.,[object Object],It often happens when one is doubtful and do not take time and energy to find out what is truly good and bad.,[object Object],Culpable and cannot be followed as a legitimate rule of action.,[object Object]

Invincibly erroneous:,[object Object],It is the type that is not due to one’s own fault;,[object Object],Person has no awareness of the possibility of error;,[object Object],Must be followed just the same as a certain conscience which is right.,[object Object]

Perplexed conscience:,[object Object],This type of erroneous conscience fears sin in whatever choice it makes ,[object Object], (conflict of values). ,[object Object],This usually occurs in individuals who are less acquainted with moral,[object Object], norms.,[object Object],If the decision can be delayed, postpone action to obtain information, if not, choose the lesser evil.,[object Object]

Lax conscience:,[object Object],With insufficient grounds, conscience is inclined to judge a thing to be truthful when in fact sinful; allowable when objectively it is not,[object Object],Considers something to be a light sin when actually it is a grave one.,[object Object],Need to reform state of mind; considered erroneous,[object Object]

Scrupulous conscience:,[object Object],It is in constant dread of sin where there is none, or of grave sin when there is only venial sin.,[object Object]

Conscience in Relation to Certitude: Certain, Doubtful,[object Object]

Certain Conscience,[object Object],It passes judgment without fear of error. ,[object Object],It is purity of intention. One’s moral actions are not for show but arise from a sincere intention to do what is right; is acting according to one’s convictions.,[object Object],This must always be obeyed when it commands or forbids,[object Object]

Doubtful Conscience,[object Object],It is uncertain concerning the morality of an action;,[object Object],therefore it suspends its judgments; or it passes judgments but with reasonable fear of erring;,[object Object],One may never act in a practical doubt on the lawfulness of an action; act can be postponed there is certainty.,[object Object]

DEVELOPMENT,[object Object],OF,[object Object],CONSCIENCE,[object Object]

Freud,[object Object],The human personality consists of three areas:,[object Object],[object Object]

the ego – the conscious self, the part seem by the outside world.

id – the unconscious self, the part of the mind containing basic drives and repressed memories. It is amoral, has no concerns about right and wrong and is only concerned with itself.,[object Object]

Freud,[object Object],In non-religious people it would be their responses to externally imposed authority.,[object Object],The content of our consciences are shaped by our experiences,[object Object],The superego internalises the disapproval of others and creates the guilty conscience,[object Object]

Piaget,[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]

Kohlberg,[object Object],People move from:,[object Object],[object Object]

and finally respect for universal principles and the demands of an individual conscience.

Kohlberg felt that most adults never got beyond keeping the law.,[object Object]

I will not steal because if I get caught I will be punished.,[object Object],I will steal the drugs for my wife for if she dies, nobody will take care of me anymore.,[object Object]

I will steal the drug because if my wife remains untreated and dies, our friends will say I did not take care of her.,[object Object],I will not steal the drug because for stealing is against the law.,[object Object]

The drug should be made available to anyone who needs it, not possessed by one person for his own interest.,[object Object],The human being is more important than any law or convention. I have to save her not because she is my wife but because she is a human being who needs help.,[object Object]

Fromm,[object Object],Authoritarian Conscience,[object Object],[object Object]

these are internalised by the individual

a guilty conscience is a result of displeasing the authority

disobedience produces guilt which makes us more submissive to the authority,[object Object]

We use it to judge how successful we are as people.

We use our own discoveries in life and the teachings and example of others to give us personal integrity and moral honesty.

This is the opposite to the slavish obedience and conformity of the authoritarian conscience.,[object Object]

LEVELS OF CONSCIENCE,[object Object],FEAR CONSCIENCE,[object Object],operates on the instinctive level,[object Object],focuses,[object Object],[object Object]

on the material breaking of the command,

on being restored to the good graces of the authority figure. ,[object Object]

CHRISTIAN ( Religious) CONSCIENCE,[object Object],operates on the religious level,[object Object],Not some separated area but the whole of our daily lives,,[object Object],Using ethical reason,[object Object],But now strengthened and illumined by Christ’s revelation and grace,[object Object],METANOIA,[object Object]

Formation of a Christian Conscience,[object Object]

Objective Moral Order,[object Object],Objective Pole,[object Object],Conscience judges a moral act as it relates to the objective moral order “outside” of the person.,[object Object],The Person,[object Object],The resulting judgement of the faculty of conscience can be either right or erroneous.,[object Object],Subjective Pole,[object Object]

Objective Moral Order,[object Object],The adult conscience “interiorizes” the external voice of the objective norms directing or constraining the person.,[object Object],Objective Pole,[object Object],The Person,[object Object],Interiorization arises from the conviction of the inner value of the moral obligation which enables human person to answer God’s call.,[object Object],Subjective Pole,[object Object]

Everyone is obliged to use serious diligence to possess on all occasions a true conscience.,[object Object],Overcome ignorance and error by applying ourselves to the study of our moral, civil and Church’s laws and regulations.,[object Object],Overcome doubts in moral matters by forming good habits of reasoning or by consulting prudent and virtuous persons.,[object Object]

Form,[object Object],Inform,[object Object],Reform,[object Object],Conscience in Action,[object Object],Formation Strengths/Obstacles,[object Object],Discern,[object Object],Information Resources/Obstacles,[object Object],Reconsider,[object Object],Discernment Insights/Blindspots,[object Object],Decision and Action Strengths/Weaknesses,[object Object],Reflection to Reform Strengths/Obstacles,[object Object],Decide,[object Object],Reflect,[object Object],Act,[object Object]

Formation of a Christian Conscience,[object Object],[object Object]

Studying the WORD of GOD & the Teachings of the Church (Seek the moral guidance of the Church)

Responsiveness to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

Examination of one’s conscience. Critical Reflection on our concrete moral choices & experiences in daily life.,[object Object]

THE COMPULSORY NATURE OF CONSCIENCE,[object Object]

In so far as conscience operates within the realm of truth and sound reason, following it is compulsory. It is infallible, it should be followed.,[object Object]

It is truly the voice of God when it impels us to act according to our rational insights,[object Object]

When error creeps in, one has the responsibility to trace the roots of error and eradicate it.,[object Object]

FREEDOM OF CONSCIENCE,[object Object]

Human beings have the right to freedom of conscience; human dignity demands that the human being acts to a knowing and free choice.,[object Object]

Vatican II declares that man is not to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his conscience nor is he to be restrained from acting in accordance with his conscience.,[object Object]

Man ought to be fully free in his moral decisions, gearing towards authentic self-realization and self-donation in love...a response of love to a call of love.,[object Object]

If the dictates of his conscience is in conflict with rights of others or the common welfare, he must re-examine his conscience and suspect that it can be erroneous and needs revision. ,[object Object]

Some Current Issues Related to Conscience,[object Object]

Conflict between the Church's teaching (Magisterium) with one's conscience (conscience of the faithful).,[object Object],The faithful asserting to follow one’s conscience (primacy /compulsory nature of conscience,[object Object],The Magisterium performing its role and duty to teach with authority the princples of the moral order in line with the Christian faith.,[object Object]

THE RH BILL,[object Object],a high 69% of respondents agree and support the RH Bill. (Pulse Asia Survey Oct 2010),[object Object]

IN A survey conducted by the Ateneo Statistics Circle for The GUIDON last June, several Ateneans expressed support for the controversial Reproductive Health bill.,[object Object],142 out of 172 respondents from the sophomore, junior, and senior batches are in favor of the bill, citing its provisions for greater access to reproductive health information and services.,[object Object]

The Catholic Church says no to RH Bill,[object Object]

Conscience?,[object Object],The Magisterium.,[object Object],Primacy of Conscience?,[object Object]

Primacy of conscience does not mean that it is the final arbiter of what is morally right.,[object Object],Conscience is our judgement using ethical reason based on the law of God.,[object Object]

Conflict between the Church's teaching (Magisterium) with one's conscience (conscience of the faithful).,[object Object],Conscience?,[object Object],The Magisterium.,[object Object],Conscience is one's best judgment, in a given situation, on what here and now is to be done as good, or to be avoided as evil.,[object Object],Presumption: conscience is formed and informed.,[object Object]

Conflict between the Church's teaching (Magisterium) with one's conscience (conscience of the faithful).,[object Object],Conscience?,[object Object],The Magisterium.,[object Object],Dissent comes not because one does not agree with the teaching or does not like what the Church wants to be done.,[object Object],Decision comes with one’s careful study of the teachings and an honest discernment.,[object Object]

CONSCIENCE

CONSCIENCE

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CONSCIENCE