CONSCIENCE
- The sense of right and wrong;
ideas and feelings of a person that
tell him when he is doing right and
warn him of what is wrong
- The sense of what is right and
wrong that governs somebody’s
thoughts and actions , urging him
to do right.
Latin
- “con” meaning with
- “sciencia” meaning knowledge
Etymology
Latin
Conscientia
Meaning “ consciousness”
Concire
Literally means “know thoroughly “
or “be conscious”
- Man is endowed with
a special gift for
discerning what is right
and wrong. This
discernment is called
conscience
- Aide to help you do what is right
- Tormentor continually condemn your
conscious self if you have done wrong
- For there to be right judgement, a
clear criterion must exist.
- Otherwise, the conscience becomes
false or erroneous, confused or
perplexed, hardened or calloused
- Conscience brings us guilt if ever we
do anything that is against what our
conscience has dictated us to do
Conscience belongs to the
intellectual faculty of man,
his being able to judge
whether human act is right
or wrong.
- The conscience warns men against
making bad choices.
- Once the conscience is sensitive ,
there is an accompanying feeling of
either praise or blame.
Types of Conscience
1. Antecedent- if the judgment on the
morality of an action and the obligation
to perform or omit it is passed before
the action is translated into the reality.
2. Consequent - Judgment made after
an act.
- After an act is done or
omitted, it is judged to be
deserving of approval or disapproval
Qualities of Conscience
A. Personal Freedom
Free Conscience
One is able to assume a personal moral
stand with regard to a particular attitude, or
moral responsibility for a particular action in
a way that is unhindered or unimpeded: so
as to be able to claim full responsibility for a
particular attitude or action.
Unfree Conscience
One’s moral attitude or responsibility
for a particular action is hindered or
impeded by some obstacles
or influences (fear, anger, force)
B. Objective Value
Correct Conscience
One’s subjective perceptions,
discernment, and decisions of conscience
are in conformity with the objective moral
values and demands that one is striving to
possess and to express in one’s own
personal actions.
Erroneous Conscience
- There is lack of conformity between the
objective values and the moral demands
that they carry with them.
Culpable Conscience (sadya)
- One is in error through one’s own fault and
is therefore responsible for such
an erroneous state of conscience.
Inculpable Conscience (di sinadya)
C. Moral Attitude
Lax Conscience
- Is remiss or careless in its effort to clearly
perceive and internalize particular moral
value.
Strict Conscience
- When the conscience ends to judge
moral obligations too harshly,
especially in excessively legalistic
way adhering more to the letter
than the spirit of the law.
- Judging others
Scrupulous
- A conscience that tends to judge a sin
when in fact there is none.
- Judging yourself
Pharisaical Conscience
Tends to be self-righteous as for one’s
own moral evaluation is concerned,
while tending to be judgmental towards
others, making unwarranted
conclusions on the basis of external
observance of the law.
Clear Conscience
A conscience which confidently and freely
acts and with due regard for perceiving,
appreciating and internalizing true values
and making the proper transition one’s
actual conscience when confronted with a
moral decision regarding a particular way
of acting.
Callous Conscience
This the worst type of conscience
because it has no sensitivity to sin and
God; as if the person has no
conscience at all (e.g. criminals).
D. Degree of Certitude
Perplexed Conscience
One judges it to be equally wrong to act
in a particular way, or to refrain from
acting and therefore, one cannot make a
normally good choice.
Doubtful Conscience
The conscience in its efforts to form a
clear conscience on a particular
attitude or way of acting, lacks
sufficient evidence to make or leave
judgment.
Probable Conscience
The conscience arrives at a point
where it finds security in its own
formation of a moral attitude at the
habitual level or of a practical judgment
at the actual level, even while still
admitting the possibility that the
opposite may be true.
Certain Conscience
The conscience is able to reach a
degree of certainty in its own formation
of moral judgment so that all practical
doubts are resolved.
Knowing whether a thing is good or
bad is based on 3 principles
-The object (action to be done)
-Circumstance (situation)
-Intention (motive)
Human Acts are neither good nor bad,
they’re considered to be neutral . But
they acquire morality when we speak
the receiver of the action, the motive or
the outcome of it.
We make decisions everyday of
our lives from the dress we
wear, to the words we say and
the actions we do.
Man chooses not what is merely
good but the better.
What may seem good at a
moment may come out to be
evil or bad once all factors
are considered.
For instance, hating
sin is good, but hating
a person is bad.
Once the object has
been established, the
intellect does not need
to consider the other
principles to
determine whether an
act is good or bad in
nature
- The morality of an act increase or
decrease depending on the
circumstance.
- It includes who or what does it, where
it is done, what means are employed,
why it is done, how it is done, and when
it is accomplished
At other moment one can err in his
judgement because of habitual sin,
neglect of prayer, unwillingness to
examine one’s motives or refusal to
accept the advice.
Conscience will be an eternal
companion. We need to be aware of it
and train it for the truth. Know the truth
for the truth will set you free.
The recognition of
freedom lies with the
mind; the grasping of
it, with the will. The
truth will make me
free - if I choose to
accept it.
But I may know the truth and choose not
to accept it. Then I am not made free. I
make myself unfree.
Freedom is not the freedom to do what
one likes; it is the freedom to do good.
Freedom is present only when you
opt for the good.
The dignity of a human person implies
and requires uprightness of moral
conscience.
Components of Conscience:
1.The perception of the principles of
morality
2.Their application in the given
circumstances by practical
discernment of reasons and goods
3.Finally, judgement about concrete
acts yet to be performed or already
performed
All three components of the conscience
require education, training, practice, and
experience
“ Man has the right to
act in conscience and
in freedom so as
personally to make
moral decisions . He
must not be forced to
act contrary to his
conscience
Formation of Conscience - is a
continuous conversion to what is true
and to what is good
- the process by which true principles
of conduct gradually become
operative in a person's mind, by which
his mind gradually takes hold of true
principles.
- Deformation of conscience is the
process by which false principles
gradually come to shape and
govern the working of the mind.
Formation of Conscience
1. We must learn the basic moral
principles as known through the natural
moral law (use of reason to analyze
human nature and deduce binding rules
of moral behavior)
2. We must learn
how to do moral
reasoning, how
the moral
principles apply
to various
situations in life.
We must
understand why a
good moral
principle is
objective,
consistent with
universal
application.
3. When making moral judgements
about a particular human act, we are to
use good reasoning in conformity with
the truth and in pursuit of the good.
According to Fr. Matthew Habiger OSB
PhD, very often we do not know what is
good for us. Simple surroundings and
our own fallen nature, more prone to sin
than to virtue, encourage us to dismiss
teaching authority and prefer our own
judgement. Formation of conscience
helps us see the contrast between our
culture and our faith. The faith is to
shape the culture, not vice versa.
REFERENCES
Perspective: Current issues in Values
Education. Book 4. 1992. Philippines. Sinag-
Tala Publishers, Inc.
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