Reflection for July 7

What is Conscience Anyway?

Sunday's readings can be found here.

        During the “Fortnight for Freedom” and for the last year or so, you have been hearing a lot from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (and from me) about the right to conscience and how this right is being threatened by the insidious HHS contraception mandate.  Yet, there is much confusion these days about what exactly conscience is.  It seems just about any action – good or evil – can be justified using a reference to one’s own conscience.  Unfortunately, there are some Catholics who fall into this category (even worse, some of them are the highest-ranking government officials in our nation).

        So, what is conscience?  Conscience comes from the Latin con “with” + scientia “knowledge”.  It is essentially an awareness of oneself, of others and of God.  Vatican II calls conscience: “[The] most secret core and sanctuary of a man. There he is alone with God, Whose voice echoes in his depths” (Gaudium et Spes, 16).  Conscience is another quality of man (related to reason) that sets him apart from the other animals.  Usually, though, when we speak of conscience today, we are referring to moral conscience.  The Catechism says that the moral conscience is a practical judgment of reason that enjoins man to do good and avoid evil (CCC 1777).  Moral conscience is not only a gift that we as Catholics and other Christians enjoy; St. Paul teaches that even unbelievers have moral conscience: [The Gentiles] show that the demands of the law are written in their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even defend them (Romans 2:15).  However, because the unbeliever’s conscience lacks the enlightenment that comes from Divine Law, he is more likely to err in his moral judgments.

        For us as Catholic Christians, we have the obligation to form our conscience through the teachings of Christ and His holy Church, and by prayerful discernment (CCC 1783).  Conscience does not mean: “I form my own opinions on things, and then pick and choose the Church’s teachings I like the most and leave the ones I think are outdated.”  This is called “Cafeteria Catholicism”, which is a joke to anyone serious about living the fullness of the Christian faith.  If I struggle with a particular doctrinal or moral precept, I must continue to try to understand why the Church teaches something — and then prayerfully ask myself the question: “Does the Church need to change or do I need to change?” 

        The correct formation of our conscience is a lifelong commitment because it is intimately connected to our relationship with Christ.  As your priest and shepherd, I will assist with the formation of your conscience through instruction, but it is up to you to pray and meditate on the Scriptures, to take advantage of faith formation opportunities, to examine your conscience daily, and to confess your sins regularly.  These are all ways Jesus continues to abide in us — so that we may not become dead, dry wood, but rather that the Father may be glorified, that we bear much fruit, and that we give awesome witness that we are Jesus’ disciples (see John 15).