CLE

• Through conscience, we come to know whether our act is good or evil
• Conscience


  A practical judgment of reason telling someone to do the good and avoid evil
• Conscience is a judgment of reason whereby the human person recognizes the moral quality of a concrete act that he is going to perform, is in the process of performing, or has already completed
• Origin of Conscience

  Derived from the Latin words “con” plus “scientia” which means, “with knowledge” or “consciousness”
• Formative Factors of Moral Judgment

  • Mind - where we think, analyze, create judgements, reflect especially in understanding the teachings of Jesus.
  • Heart - where our emotion resides affected by what we think in our mind.
• Dimensions/Determinants of Moral Judgment

  • The act chosen
  • The subjective goal or intention
  • The situation or circumstances in which we perform the act
• Scrupulous Conscience


  • Person judges a simple act to be evil or lesser evil to be grave resulting in torment and guilt for no good reason
• Types of Erroneous Conscience

  • Invincibly Erroneous conscience - kind of judgment where the error could not have been avoided.
  • Vincibly Erroneous conscience- kind of judgment where the error could have been avoided if the person exerted diligence on his part.
  • Perplexed Erroneous conscience - when faced with two alternative options but fears that sin is present in both choices.
  • Pharisaical Erroneous conscience - imagines grave sins as small ones and magnifies little offenses as serious.
• Right/True Conscience


  • Judges good act as good and evil act as evil
• Doubtful Conscience


  • Person is confused about the good or evil of an act done or omitted
• Influences that Affect the Formation of Conscience

  • Family upbringing
  • Basic education and catechesis in the faith
  • Cultural attitudes and values
  • Friends in school
  • Larger social environment of the community
• Arriving to A Moral Judgment

  1. Discernment Stage - the stage when a person reflects or meditates on the matter. This includes understanding the problem, searching for solutions, finding reasons, consulting others probably experts, and prayer.

  2. Demand Stage - Strengthening one’s judgment by checking what the moral norm or law demands according to weight of offense or concern. To judge this or that is good or evil, there must be a basis.

  3. Decision Stage- when a person finally concludes the matter by taking a course of action.
• Demand Stage


  • Strengthening one's judgment by checking what the moral norm or law demands according to weight of offense or concern
• Erroneous Conscience


  • Person has a wrong idea of a particular action and believes it's the morally right thing to do
• Discernment Stage


  • Stage when a person reflects or meditates on the matter, includes understanding the problem, searching for solutions, finding reasons, consulting others, and prayer
• Certain Conscience


  • Person is convinced without any doubt that an action is morally good or bad
• Lax Conscience


  • Person does not mind whether the action is good or bad, significant or not
• Decision Stage


  • When a person finally concludes the matter by taking a course of action
• Guilty Conscience


  • Person does things either as a form of repentance or to cover up the wrong deed
• CONSCIENCE – A practical judgment of reason telling someone to do the good and avoid evil.
• ·         ANTECEDENT CONSCIENCE – a conscience that occurs before the action.
• SCRUPULOUS CONSCIENCE - if a person judges a simple act to be evil or lesser evil to be grave resulting to inordinate feeling of torment and guilt for no good reason.