Memorial of Saint Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
This week I’ve had the opportunity to learn more about what the Church teaches about the human conscience. Until now, I had always thought of the conscience as my moral compass – the “meter” somewhere within me that alerts me to right and wrong. Picture a simple meter with a needle that alternates between “right/good” on one side and “wrong/sin” on the other. The Catholic Church does indeed define the moral conscience as the locus within which leads a person to do good and to avoid evil. My revelation this week, however, is that the conscience is so much more! It is, in fact, the “aboriginal Vicar of Christ” within us. It is through the conscience that one hears and responds to the voice of God. As we consider the readings today, let us invite God to form our conscience so that we can better know and do his will.
In the verses preceding our first reading, we find, “After the king was settled in his palace and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, ‘Here I am, living in a house of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent.’ Nathan replied to the king, ‘Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the Lord is with you.’” But then, today’s reading tells us that God spoke to Nathan in a dream and sent him to tell David that it was not God’s will that David build the temple. In fact, God says to the two men, “In all my wanderings everywhere among the children of Israel, did I ever utter a word to any one of the judges whom I charged to tend my people Israel, to ask: Why have you not built me a house of cedar?” This reminds me of the pithy saying, if you want to make God laugh, just tell him your plans!
It appears that neither David nor Nathan listened to their conscience. David came up with the idea to build a temple for God to dwell and Nathan basically said, yeah great idea! I would say that the plan to build the temple was amoral – neither good nor bad. But it was not God’s will that David should undertake that project. This example illustrates what I’ve learned about the conscience this week – it is what I’ve always referred to as my “knower” – the place deep within where I hear God’s voice. The Catechism states, “His conscience is man’s most secret core and his sanctuary. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths” (CCC 1776). Perhaps it was in this secret core that God spoke to Nathan in his dream and issued the course correction for David.
Cardinal John Henry Newman is quoted in the Catechism (1778). He wrote, “Conscience is a law of the mind; yet [Christians] would not grant that it is nothing more . . . [Conscience] is a messenger of him, who, both in nature and in grace, speaks to us behind a veil, and teaches and rules us by his representatives. Conscience is the aboriginal Vicar of Christ.” WOW, conscience is the aboriginal Vicar of Christ! That means it is a primordial place deep within us where the authority of Christ can be found and accessed. When I connect with God in that secret place “behind the veil,” not only will I have clarity concerning good and evil, but I will enjoy intimate fellowship with the One who created me in a plan of sheer goodness (CCC 1) and for some definite purpose. As I grow in my ability to tune my inner ear to the voice of this aboriginal Vicar of Christ, I am better able to hear God’s will for me and the mission upon which he wants me to embark at any particular moment.
The Catechism continues, “It is important for every person to be sufficiently present to himself in order to hear and follow the voice of his conscience. This requirement of interiority is all the more necessary as life often distracts us from any reflection, self-examination or introspection: Return to your conscience, question it . . . Turn inward, brethren, and in everything you do, see God as your witness” (CCC 1779). What would need to happen in your life for you to practice greater “interiority,” to be silent, still and present to yourself and to God in order to connect with your conscience and with the Lord who abides there? We’re often a lot like David and Nathan, aren’t we? We come up with our own plans independently from God, even when it comes to things that we want to do for God or for the Church. Today, let us commit to forming our consciences such that we grow in moral beauty and in obedience to our great God who loves us and calls us to join him in sharing the Gospel and bringing the Kingdom of God to earth.
Let us attend to the voice of Jesus in today’s Gospel, "Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear." Give us the grace we need, Jesus, to hear you in our consciences. Amen, Alleluia!
-Elizabeth Wells