Conscience

Have you ever noticed how some people have a really odd conscience? Some people truly believe something that is wrong is right. So how does that work? Shouldn't your conscience always be the same? Well no. Conscience is the application of Natural Law (the law which God has written on the heart of men) to our thoughts, words, and deeds. It is the judgment passed by our reason on the moral worth of our actions already done, being done, or that you are considering doing in the future. But here's where it gets complicated: you can shape your own conscience. In order to fully understand this you have to know that there are actually four different types of conscience: a true conscience, a false conscience, a certain conscience, and a doubtful conscience. You can probably guess what a true conscience is. A true conscience always speaks the truth. If you have a true conscience you will always know what is truly right and wrong. It is an echo of God's voice. Now a false conscience is a little more complicated. A false conscience is a conscious that firmly tells you something that is actually wrong is right. This may or may not be the persons fault. If a person is raised from a young age in an environment that constantly tells him that wrong things are right he will grow up to firmly believe evil is good. So his conscious will be false. If this happens it is called inculpably erroneous. However, if it is your fault that your conscience is false it is called culpably erroneous. How does this happen? Well let's say that every time you commit a sin you try to convince yourself that it is not a sin. After a while you will start to believe yourself and your conscience will no longer register it as a bad deed. If a person does this with enough sins he will reach a point where his conscience no longer truly knows what is right and what is wrong. A certain conscience is a conscience that speaks with certainty. Whether the act is right or wrong, your conscience speaks with certainty and clarity without a touch of doubt. A person is, no matter what, bound to follow a certain conscience. St Paul said, "All that is not from conscience is sin." Although a certain conscience can tell a person that something that is wrong is right a person may never doubt a certain conscience without committing a sin. A doubtful conscience is a conscience that is never certain if an act is right or wrong. It is a non-functioning conscience. If you have a doubtful conscience you may never act upon your conscience. Ever. If you are not sure if something is right, do not commit the act without clarifying its goodness. To do so would be a sin. So what if you have a false conscience? Or a certain conscience that may be wrong? Or a doubtful conscience? Well that's why God gave us Laws. The first law is Natural Law, which is pretty much a true conscience. It tells us what is right and wrong. What is to be done or left undone, and what leads us to heaven or away from it. It is the foundation of all other laws. The second law is Divine Positive Law. This is the law that God has reviled to us through the Old and New Testaments. These laws are divided into the Old Law (laws of the Old Testament) and the New Law (laws of the New Testament). The Old Law can be split into two parts: the Patriarchal Law and the Mosaic Law. The New law is all the laws reviled to man after the birth of Christ.

The next is Human Positive Law. In order that God's Will can be done until the end of time He gives certain people the authority to share in His legislative powers. Hence the authority of parents over their children. The Church over her people. The government over the people. (Now it is important that if a parent tell a child to do something wrong or if a law is passed the goes directly against the faith we are called to NOT follow that authority. We should only follow earthly authority if it is in line with God's laws.) So try your very best to develops a true conscience. If you feel something is wrong don't try to convince yourself that it's right. If you are not sure if an action is sin find out. Only you can make your conscious true and that is one of a person's foremost duties to themselves. For His Glory -Kateri Note: the majority of the things I write about morality or sacraments or any other doctrines I probably got my information from Fr. John Laux's books. He is a priest who wrote a series on pretty much everything. He has books on the basic truths of the faith, Morality, Mass and the Sacraments, the Bible, apologetics, etc. I encourage you to look into his books!