Chapter 5: Conscience Formation

“ Conscience is sacred, the most secret core and sanctuary of a person where we are alone with God” p. 138

Conscience

 Conscience is a practical judgment of reason that helps a person decide the goodness or sinfulness of an action or attitude. It is the subjective norm of morality that we must form properly and then follow.

Conscience is NOT…

 Majority Opinion: Everyone is doing it  Surrenders personal responsibility to group  “The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.” - Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird

Conscience is NOT…

 A Feeling: If it feels good, do it  Holds that individuals are creators of their own moral rules and only accountable to themselves  Problem is… feelings may be out of touch with reality

Conscience is NOT…

 Superego: leftover rules of childhood (“shoulds” and “have-tos”) we carry around in our subconscious (Freud)   Rules we follow because we want approval, but not because we saw or understood value. Christian conscience is personal, self chosen response to God and His invitation to love

Conscience is NOT…

 Gut instinct: Acting on your hunch  Can be helpful start, but decision making process also needs to involve intellect and judgment

Conscience is NOT…

 “Jiminy Cricket”: voice whispering in your ear  Not a separate voice in inside us

Conscience is NOT…

 Myth: false concept invented by religion to control people  Death of conscience leads to death of morality

Conscience IS…

 Awareness of God’s call to be  Secret, personal place at core of being where we are alone with God

Conscience IS…

 Awareness of God’s call to know and to do the good, that is, to love  Basic awareness of good and evil

Conscience IS…

 Practical judgment of the intellect  Judges moral goodness or evil of concrete actions we are about to perform, are performing or have performed  It works before, during and after we act

How Conscience Works

 Most of our daily decisions are implicit:  Made from rote or habit  Require little thought  Result from values and attitudes, virtues and vices

Theory of Moral Development

 See Kohlberg handout for stages/ How Have I Changed over the Years?

Heinz Dilemna

 A woman was near death from a unique kind of cancer. There is a drug that might save her. The drug costs $4,000 per dosage. The sick woman's husband, Heinz, went to everyone he knew to borrow the money and tried every legal means, but he could only get together about $2,000. He asked the doctor scientist who discovered the drug for a discount or to let him pay later, but the scientist refused.

Should Heinz break into the laboratory to steal the drug for his wife? Why or why not?

Stage 1: Obedience and Punishment

 People in this stage obey rules to avoid punishment. A good or bad action is determined by its physical consequences.

Possible Stage 1 responses to Heinz Dilemma:

 Heinz should not steal the drug because he might be caught and sent to jail.

 Heinz should steal the drug because if he doesn't then his wife might scold him.

Stage 2: Selfishness

 In this stage, personal needs determine right or wrong.

Possible Stage 2 responses to Heinz Dilemma:

  It is right for Heinz to steal the drug because it can cure his wife and then she can cook for him.

It’s wrong to steal the drug because going to jail would not be fun for Heinz.

Stage 3: “Good boy/girl”

 To a person in this stage, good means “nice”. Behavior is determined by what pleases and is approved by others.

Possible Stage 3 responses to Heinz Dilemma:

 Yes, Heinz should steal the drug. He probably will go to jail for a short time for stealing but his in-laws will think he is a good husband.

 No…

Stage 4: Law and Order

 When deciding the punishment for a given wrongdoing, laws are absolute. In all cases, authority must be respected and the social order maintained.

Possible Stage 4 responses to Heinz Dilemma:

 As her husband, Heinz has a duty to save his wife's life so he should steal the drug. But it's wrong to steal, so Heinz should be prepared to accept the penalty for breaking the law.

Stage 5: Social Contract

 Good is determined by socially agreed upon standards of individual rights (i.e.: the U.S. Constitution). People operating in this moral stage believe that different societies have different views of right and wrong.

Possible Stage 5 responses to Heinz Dilemma:

 Heinz should steal the drug because everyone has the right to life regardless of the law against stealing. Should Heinz be caught and prosecuted for stealing then the law (against stealing) needs to be reinterpreted because a person's life is at stake.

Stage 6: Principled Conscience

 What is “good” and “right” are matters of individual conscience and involve abstract concepts of justice, human dignity, and equality. People in this stage believe there are universal points of view on which all societies should agree.

Possible Stage 6 responses to Heinz Dilemma:

 Heinz should steal the drug to save his wife because preserving human life is a higher moral obligation than preserving property.

Applying Kohlberg

  Use Kohlberg’s phases to decide what someone would decide about cheating on a test.

How could these phases be helpful in making moral decisions and becoming more self-aware as we grow and mature?

How Conscience Works

   More important decisions usually made with explicit, deliberate reference to our conscience Conscience is the subjective norm of morality, however, it can still judge the objective truth Review: Discernment/STOP

SEER

  Seer: person in tune with truth, prophet Christians called to be seers and live out 2 important principles: 1) Must always form and keep informing your conscience 2) Must follow your conscience

SEER

 S: Study     Conscience is primarily judgment of intellect Concerned with discovering objective truth Involves research, deliberation, and seeking advice of trusted mentors Time for self-reflection of motives and past actions/experiences

SEER

 E: Elect    Prayer Listening to God through intellect, imaginations, memories and emotions Ask for fortitude: have courage to do what conscience tells us is right

SEER

 E: Execute     Putting into action what you have decided is right course of action for right now Involves responsibility: must do what conscience tells you is right Be an actor, not reactor Hardest part!

SEER

 R: Review  Evaluate and reflect on actions performed  Examination of conscience

Examination of Conscience

   Do I put God first in my life or do I place other things before Him?

Do I work to make positive changes and become a better person or keep repeating the same mistakes?

Do I care about others and put their needs before my own or do I focus solely on my own wants and needs?

FAQ on Conscience

Must I always follow my conscience?

   Yes: going against conscience is ignoring voice of God Not following conscience is sin because it separates us from God The judgment of conscience requires us to do the good we have recognized

Can my conscience ever be wrong?

 Yes: conscience can make mistakes  Formation of conscience is lifelong task  Following in good faith, even if mistaken, is not sin

What makes conscience wrong?

 Ignorance  Insincerity: “This is way I am”, little or no effort to find good or truth  Bad habit of choosing wrong, making evil easy to do.

How can I guard against a wrong conscience?

 Guard against it by understanding difference in “I must always follow conscience” vs. “I can do whatever I want.”

Peer Pressure and Conscience

   “Conformity is jailer of freedom and enemy of growth” JFK Doing what is right takes fortitude: keeps us from fear of non-action and acting rashly out of false sense of bravery In a sense we are a kind of martyr, meaning witness, when we stand up to evil or injustice.