NOTIONS OF CONSCIENCEIs understood as a kind of inner voice which guides us in our moral life. This

can mean our basic tendency toward the good, the voice “always summoning us

to love the good and avoid evil.”It is also called the subjective norm of morality. This means that conscience

has the final say in the making of moral decisions.

CONCEPT OF CONSCIENCE The one that summons us to love the

good and avoid evil. It is the most secret core and sanctuary of an individual- where one can be alone with God.

The Moral Conscience In the depths of a person’s conscience,

man detects a law which he does not impose upon himself, but which holds him to obedience. Always summoning him to love good and avoid evil, the voice of conscience can, when necessary, speak to his heart more specifically: “Do this, shun that.” For man in his heart detects a law written by God. To obey it is the very dignity of man; according to it he will be judged. Conscience is the most secret core and sanctuary of man. There he is alone with God, whose voice echoes in its depths (Gaudium et Spes, 16)

Divisions of Conscience True conscience- when it

deduces correctly from the principle that the act is lawful, or it conforms to what is objectively right.

False or erroneous conscience- when it decides, from false principles considered as true, that something is unlawful. The conscience errs because of the false principles or from incorrect reasoning.

Kinds of Erroneous Conscience Scrupulous conscience- one that for little or no

reason judges an act to be morally evil when it is not, or exaggerates the gravity of sin or sees sin where it does not exist.

Perplexed Conscience- judges wrongly that sin is committed both in the performance or omission of an act. One fears that sin is committed whether it was actually done or not.

Lax Conscience- judges on insufficient ground that there is no sin in the fact, or that sin is not as grave as it is in fact, or it is insensitive to a moral obligation in a particular area.

Pharisaical Conscience- minimizes grave sins but maximizes small ones.

Certain conscience- when without any prudent fear or error it decides that the act is either lawful or unlawful, or if the person has no doubt about the correctness of one’s judgment. A conscience can be certain at the same time erroneous. A certain conscience is not necessarily right. A certain conscience excludes all fear or error about acting rightly.

Doubtful Conscience- when it fails to pass a moral judgment in the character of the act due to a fear or error, or if the person is unsure about the correctness of his judgment.

Some moral principles involving the use of conscience:

A person who follows an erroneous conscience without causing injury to others should not be prevented from acting , unless the person objects unreasonably against one’s own welfare like in the prevention of suicide or an injury to one’s health.

A person who follows one’s erroneous conscience and injures others should be prevented from performing one’s external deeds.

One may not morally coerce or persuade another to act versus one’s conscience.

Some principles governing/forming conscience1. One is obliged to form a right

and unerring conscience.2. Everyone is obliged to follow

one’s conscience. 3. One is not permitted to follow an

erroneous conscience; so the error must be corrected before one acts upon it.

4. If the person with a perplexed conscience finds it impossible to ask for an advise, one should choose what seems to be the lesser evil. The person follows the Reflex principles.

5. Only the certain conscience is the correct guide to moral behavior.

Reflex principles are rules of prudence which do not solve doubts concerning the existence of a law, moral principle, or fact by intrinsic or extrinsic evidence; instead, they only indicate where, in cases of unreasonable doubts, the greater right is usually to be found and the lesser evil is to be feared, and which side therefore is favored as long as the doubt persists.

Reflex principles wherein doubt presumption stand:

In doubt, the condition of the possessor is the better.

In doubt, favor the accused; or (which comes to the same): Crime is not to be presumed, it has to be proven.

In doubt, presumption stands on the side of the superior.

In doubt, stand for the validity of the act. In doubt, amplify the favorable and

restrict the unfavorable. In doubt, presumption stands for the

usual and the ordinary. In doubt, favor the customary and

hitherto approved. A doubtful law does not oblige.

More Practical Principles in the Formation of Conscience (Finley and Pennock):

Principle 1. Yes, we are told to follow our conscience. Conscience is Supreme. In moral decisions, we must follow our conscience, even if it is wrong. Two points should be emphasized here:

Because a person is ultimately responsible for one’s actions nobody else can be blamed for them.

But by saying that conscience is supreme, it does not mean that an individual is superior to God, the Church, or other people. True, a person is responsible for one’s action, but these are not in isolation from others.

Principle 2. One has the duty to continuously develop an informed conscience.

Have a pure intention Consult the teaching of the New

Testament, the Prophets, Moses, and Paul.

Ask the question: ‘How will this action of mine measure up to the yardstick of love?’

Consult the people of God where Christ and His Spirit reside.

Follow the current debate on the great moral issues.

Pray for God’s graceful guidance in all our actions.

Be sorrowful for our sinfulness, not just our sins, by confessing them fully and humbly, asking for God’s help in the process.