MODULE 4: Conscience
Learning Objectives
At the end of this chapter, the learners are expected to:
1. define and explain conscience,
2. explain conscience as subjective norm of morality,
3. critique the various concepts of conscience, and
4. propose a new meaning of conscience.
ON CONSCIENCE
In moral theology (i.e. study of the norms human person must follow in
the light of reason and faith), conscience is important in the formation
of the goodness in person. It is believed that human person is good and
always seek what is good for him or her (fundamental orientation). A
good person is happy and fulfilling. However sometimes, what we think
‘good’ is not ‘good’ in itself but ‘evil’ in disguise. And sometimes what
we think ‘bad’ is actually ‘good.’ But how can we know what is ‘good’
and ‘bad?’ Do we have the capacity to distinguish ‘good’ from the ‘bad’
behaviors?
moral law
In moral law, when one violates it, the person’s
action is ‘bad’; but if one obeys it, the person who
ascend to it is considered good. So, what now will
happen if one does not accept moral law? Is there
another way to know the ‘good’ and the ‘bad?’
The Doctrine of the Catholic Church: “When he listens to his conscience,
the prudent man can hear God speaking”
In Vatican II Document entitled Gadium et Spes or ‘Joy and Hope’ number 16:
“In the depths of his 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 when necessary speaks to his
heart: do this, shun that. For man has in his heart 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 a man. There he is alone with God, Whose
voice echoes in his depths”
Feelings and Morality
Feelings are amoral, meaning it can’t be ‘good’ or ‘bad.’ Unless we
put them into actions or we manifest them through our behaviors or
emotions. For example, anger itself is not immoral unless it is
manifested through one’s behavior, emotions and actions, such as,
smacking the face of the person or planning to take revenge to a long
time enemy.
Thomas Aquinas on CONSCIENCE
Aquinas believes that people should obey their conscience fully as
long as their standards are right because it is the voice of reason and
not of intuition. So Thomas sees conscience as “right reason.” Reason
has a very vital place in moral life.
It is necessary to recognizing the differences between right and
wrong. Conscience is not just telling us to proceed doing good based
on what we feel. It is reason that makes one decides to act good. And
if reason is used correctly it assists us to perceive what God sees as
good and right.
Conscience for Aquinas is divided into
Synderesis and Conscienta.
1. Synderesis is the inner principle in every person that moves her or
him to avoid evil and do what is good.
2. Conscientia is the actual moral judgement does by a person
prompting him or her to do good and avoid evil.
In contrast to Joseph Butler, a protestant
philosopher, and Cardinal Newman, a Catholic
Theologian
Joseph Butler: human persons are forced to act by two basic
principles; selfish-ness and self-less-ness. This conscience discourages
us to be selfish and encourage us to be self-less. Butler believes that
conscience is based on feelings rather than reason. And he believes it
is the final arbiter in making moral judgements. In fact, human
persons have a normal gifts from God to sense and be conscious of
right and wrong.
Cardinal Newman: accepts Aquinas’ notion that conscience is the
ability to know and apply moral principles but believes that it happens
through intuition not reason. He believes that conscience is God’s
little voice in us, to guide us to be with God’s will.
INTUITION: the ability to understand something immediately, without the need for conscious
reasoning.
Conscience from the Lens of the Psychologists
Sigmund Freud says that conscience does not come from God. it
begins in the four walls of our home. How we are raised in the
family. Besides, he believes that conscience is the work of the mind
to feel one’s weaknesses and sins. It deals with our guilt feelings.
In other words conscience is simply synonymous to ‘guilt.’
Freud concluded that the human personality consisted
of three vital elements:
1. The id which is the unconscious self, is the portion of the mind containing the
basic drives and repressed memories. It is neither moral or immoral and has no
concern about what is good and evil. It is only concerned with itself.
2. The ego which is the conscious self, is the part of the mind which is exposed to
the outside world.
3. The superego which is the ‘moralist’ part. It is similar to the moral conscience.
They are given from the outside by authorities - people or society. It is often in
conflict with the id. It is the realistic part of the self.
SIGMUND FREUD
Freud believes that our experiences are the one that matters, they make us who
we are and decide our path, and he believes, it begins in the family circle. So
Freud claims that there is no definite moral code of conduct or universal moral
law that shapes our individual consciences, it is our personal experience of
things from childhood days to adulthood that form our personhood. Conscience
is the product of how we are raised in the family and society.
Jean Piaget
Piaget follows the line of thought of Freud, he believes that our conscience comes
from our upbringing, not God. Children learn morality from their parents
(heteronymous morality), but after this stage their own moral reasoning develops
due to increasing consciousness of what is good and bad in our life, including the
people around them and societies, he calls this ‘autonomous conscience.’ This
development is brought about by a child’s cognitive development. Piaget’s notion
about conscience shows that the development of conscience is learned from external
influences but also that it is naturally occurring from the inside.
Erich Fromm
claims that our sense of morality came from those people around us
who enforce their authority over us, like our parents, the influence of
the media and our friends. They inculcate on us the concept of ‘reward
and punishment.’ If we do ‘good’ we are rewarded’ if we do ‘bad’ we
are punished. And we internalized this idea as we get older.
He adds that guilty conscience is the effect of our fear to be rejected by
people with authorities, like parents or teachers, he calls this as
‘authoritarian conscience’.
Freud, Piaget and Fromm
It is quite clear here, that these three admired psychologists are
against the popular theory that our conscience comes from God. They
believe it is developed and caused by the people and society around
us. These theories introduce us to the notion of ‘cultural relativism’.
That culture causes us to be according to how and where we are raised
as human beings, including the existence of what we call ‘conscience.’.
Conclusion:
Until now we can’t prove for the concrete existence
of conscience. However, this conscience given by
God seems very much explicit to anyone as part of
our existence, but it is not so tangible. What is really
visible and sure is that we decide what is right and
wrong using reason and base on experience, and not
from the idea of hearing ‘a little voice coming from
God’.
