Gary Zimak is the founder of Following The Truth Ministries (http://www.followingthetruth.com), a lay apostolate created to assist Catholics in learning more about their Faith. He is a regular guest on EWTN Radio’s “Son Rise Morning Show”, Ave Maria Radio’s “Catholic Connection with Teresa Tomeo” and appears frequently on several other Catholic radio programs. In addition to writing for CatholicLane. Mr. Zimak hosts a daily program on BlogTalkRadio and posts frequently on his blog, Facebook and Twitter. He is a member of Catholics United For The Faith and the Knights of Columbus and resides in New Jersey.
**One look at various newspaper editorial pages will illustrate a growing belief among Catholics that an individual’s conscience trumps Church teaching, especially if they are in opposition to each other.**
** If someone “takes little trouble to find out what is true and good”, they can still be held responsible for the evil action committed (CCC 1791). This matter becomes especially serious when the sin committed is grave (or mortal).**
Catholic thoughts?
This was also a lecture topic in the 2011 St. Benedict Center Conference:
By Sister Maria Philomena, M.I.C.M.
Theme: Right and Freedom: Catholic Considerations on Misused Concepts
Title: ‘Always Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide’: Was Jiminy Cricket Right?
This talk might have been entitled “Conscience 101, in Sixty Minutes.” It was an excellent summation of perennial philosophy’s teaching on the nature of man in relation to his two spiritual faculties of intellect and will. Sister establishes conscience in the intellect, which has truth for its proper object. If the will of man is good, it embraces the natural law as the good that it knows by reason. Sister explains how the conscience ought to conform to the natural law and deal with reality, not lies. Conscience continues to be informed by God’s positive law as grace builds on nature, making the mind and will of man to mature in perfection.
http://store.catholicism.org/always-let-your-conscience-be-your-guide.html
Fascinating/educational post/thread. Thanks.
To me, this is the catechesis issue that trumps all other catechesis issues, and I pound home this point to every fellow Catholic I can. You can have all the programs, and catechesis and great sermons and statements of Church teaching you want, but until Catholics get it into their heads that the very essence of what it means to be a Christian Catholic is that you cannot pick and choose what Church teaching to follow based on your own inner lights. Our decisions are to be formed according to the Scriptures and the teaching of the Church founded by Jesus, not the other way around. This should be a key aspect of all catechesis at every level, and a regular point made from the pulpit.