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, 56.2.
Saint John Paul II (+2005) highlights how the “very identity of the moral consciencein relation to human freedom and God’s law” ought not be discarded. Here, three things together help us to maintain and safeguard not only the identity of the moral conscience but our own relationship with God, neighbor and self.
The authentic identity of the moral conscience includes the ability to recognize what is truly good and to do it as well as the ability to recognize what is truly evil or bad and to avoid or repent accordingly. The etymology of the term “conscience” includes “with + knowledge” (con-scientia). The classical understanding of science is a body of knowledge, not limited to the empirical sort only (how tall, how wide, how deep, what weight…).
Human Freedom does not mean doing whatever we want, but whatever is good, true, and beautiful (cf. Philippians 4:8). Christ has set us free for freedom (cf. Galatians 5:1). We are not to use our liberty as a cloak for wickedness or wrongdoing (cf. 1 Peter 2:16). The Lord Jesus, who has identified Himself as “the way, the truth and the life,” also teaches us that the truth will set us free (cf. John 14:6; 8:32). He came among us to teach us about God (“If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father” “The Father and I are One”) and about ourselves, made in His image, redeemed by His Blood (cf. John 14:9; 10:30). Some might complain about the weight and burden felt by keeping the Commandments, but it is important to recall that when teaching about the fruit of the Spirit, Saint Paul reminds us that when considering love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control “there is no law” (cf. Galatians 5:23). Another way to say this is that there is no limit to the good that we can do.
The Commandments of God or God’s Law helps us to form our conscience well (cf. Exodus 20:3-17; Deuteronomy 5:5-21). The Commandments are found in Sacred Scripture as a part of divine revelation. Many of the precepts of the Law of the Lord can be known, however, through the natural light of reason and have been identified as the Natural Law. But because some of us are a little “thick in the head” God has gone to the trouble of spelling it out for us with a little help from Moses.
The soundness of our understanding of the moral conscience will determine our authentic identity no less.
God bless you!
Father John Arthur Orr