My dear parishioners,
Peace! In other bulletins (4 December, 2016-11 June, 2017) we have considered the teaching of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on “conscience.” We then turned to Saint John Paul II’s encyclical letter Veritatis splendor (6 August, 1993) which addresses fundamental moral issues, including “conscience” more than one hundred times. These reflections were begun earlier (6 April, 2018-30 May, 2018). Here we now consider a passage from Veritatis splendor.
Saint John Paul II (+2005) when considering the “seeking what is true and good” reminds us that “conscience, as the judgment of an act, is not exempt from the possibility of error.”
Questions of “erroneous conscience” involve issues of willful/voluntary (culpable) or involuntary (invincible) ignorance. This was addressed by Saint Thomas Aquinas, OP (+1274) in his Summa Theologiae I-II Q. 76, A.1 where he cites Saint Augustine (+430) to the effect that “some sin through ignorance” although Saint Thomas also recognizes that “not every kind of ignorance is the cause of a sin.” In general those who do not know the mathematical value of , π (3.14) or that the capital of Tajikstan is Dushanbe do not sin through this lack of knowledge, but electrical engineers, biochemists or physicists who don’t know or use pi will be lacking at best and politicians in China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan should know their neighbors. In the next article Saint Thomas cites 1 Corinthians 14:38 “If any man know not, he shall not be known” concluding that “ignorance is a sin.” In ST I-II Q. 76, A.3 Saint Thomas continues by highlighting that “ignorance does not altogether excuse from sin” while also highlighting the importance of the will “because voluntariness is essential to sin.” Willful ignorance or willfully not seeking what is good and true is contrary to our nature. It is one thing if we are merely mistaken. It is something altogether different if we willfully rejected that which is good and true. In ST I-II Q. 76, A.4 Saint Thomas further cites 1 Timothy 1:13 “I obtained… mercy… because I did it ignorantly” such that “ignorance diminishes or alleviates sin. Ignorance only diminishes sin to the extent that it diminishes voluntariness or willfulness.
We should not forget that God alone is omniscient, all knowing. Consider Psalm 139:4 “Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O Lord, You know it” or Psalm 147:5 “Great is our Lord and abundant in strength; His understanding is infinite” or 1 John 3:20 “God is greater than our heart and knows all things.” But God has made us in His “image and likeness” (cf. Genesis 1:26). Even before the Incarnation we are like the Almighty. This is primarily because we are able to know and love, powers of our immortal spiritual soul. The more we know and love, secundum Deum (according to God), the less we will have to worry about an erroneous conscience. Let us seek to know and love as does the Almighty.
God bless you!
Father John Arthur Orr