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Brochure of the Month: July 2019
Understanding Conscience
Conscience is “a judgment of reason” by which we determine whether an action is right or wrong. But if our conscience is not well-formed, we will not be equipped to judge rightly. In order to inform and strengthen our consciences we can first of all pray and participate in the sacraments to allow God’s grace to conform our minds and hearts to Christ. We must also look to the teaching authority of the Church to learn about what the church teaches regarding whatever issue we are facing. Reading about the saints can also teach us how they responded to similar questions. Finally, we can nurture friendships with other Christians who are also trying to follow the Lord, and discuss questions with them.
Two challenges that we may face in trying to follow our conscience are indifference and coercion.. When we are constantly hearing news and stories about people in need, it is easy to become uncaring. While we do not need to work on all the complex problems of the world, we must not lose our sensitivity to the needs of others. There is also a growing tendency for popular opinion and even the state to coerce people to violate their consciences. We must not let the risk of unwanted consequences to change our judgment of what is right or wrong.
The brochure is available at the Hospitality Desk in the Church and in the Ave Maria Family Life Center. Links to the text (8.5 X 11 format) are here: English Spanish.