Raphael Leandro L.

Sison T
BSIE 4

Theology 131 Christian Morality

February 9, 2015
REFLECTION PAPER

The human conscience is both a very important and sensitive agendum among men.
Both men of the ancient and the recent past were all curious about the nature and reality of this
voice residing in their heads. And I believe up until now, there are some men who still try to
decipher what the conscience really is as if it is reducible to a mere object that can be subjected
to experiments. But despite the frustration some have over the nature and reality of conscience,
it cannot be denied that it plays a very large and essential roll in humanity and humanization.
The conscience is especially important in theology since it is a legitimate basis for discerning
right and wrong because it is the voice of God; legitimate but not sole and final authority as Fr.
Corapi emphasized in his video preaching.
The problem with how people interpret conscience is a contemporary concern. This
problem has two sides: there are those who deem conscience as only a product of a persons
experiences and environment, and there are those who look at conscience as the sole and
absolute gauge for human morality. Those who regard the former are of the Freudian tradition.
The problem with their perspective is that they took God out of the picture before defining what
conscience is. Their proposition could not even answer why the conscience exists and why it
operates the way it is. On the other hand, those of the latter may range from a misinformed
Christian to a member of a cult. Their perspective is also problematic and should be
straightened at once by the Church. According to Fr. Corapi, the conscience cannot be sole and
absolute authority since the conscience can be seared and killed by a sinful lifestyle. This
renders the conscience dead or dysfunctional.
The solution to those misinterpretations is sound theology taught by godly and loving
catechists/teachers. It should be made clear by Christian teachers that the very thing that
governs the lives of men is the truth---not the conscience. According to Fr. Corapi the truth can
be found richly in the teachings of the Church. Church teaching can correct what the conscience
had wrong. A well-learned and heavily equipped catechist is not enough to teach a misinformed
generation. These catechists should also be godly and loving since seekers of the truth must be
convinced that what they hear from them really is the truth. What better way can the truth about
God and humanity be proven than by a life proper lived and worth imitating.
If the above can be promoted among Christian circles and concerned communities, I
believe the world will become a better place. Above all, God will be glorified. Once people have
the understanding that the conscience should not be neglected nor should it be raised above
sound doctrine, men will become united. People will resist hurting women and children, they will
understand that sex outside the bounds of marriage is immoral and abominable to God, and
people will work together to maintain a just and harmonious society.
First and most important step/action Im going to take is to work on the change that God
began in me. I can do this by having a deeper understanding of conscience and biblical truths. I
can also put this understanding into action by helping the lost and misinformed understand the
legitimacy and limitations of the human conscience and by just being a genuinely concerned
and loving member to society. And of course the first step to become a concerned and loving
person to the society is to become a concerned and loving person to my own family.