UNIVERSITY OF SAINT LOUIS

Tuguegarao City

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, ARTS and SCIENCES

Department of Philosophy and Religious Instructions
Second Semester
A.Y. 2021-2022

CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE

CFED 1023 - Christian Morality in Our Times

Prepared by:

ALLAN ANTHONY BACCAY

IRENE BAUTISTA
THELMA BARICAUA
NICHOLE MAE LOZADA
ARISTOTLE MIGUEL MAGGAY
RAY OBISPO
WILSON TEMPORAL
CHARISSA ZALUN

Reviewed by:

WILSON J. TEMPORAL, LPT, MST

DPRI Department Head

Recommended by:

VENUS I. GUYOS, Ph.D.

Academic Dean

Approved by:

EMMANUEL JAMES PATTAGUAN, Ph.D.

Vice President for Academic
 School of Education, Arts and Sciences
Department of Philosophy and Religious Instruction
Second Semester A.Y. 2021-2022

CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE

CFED 1023 (Christian Morality in Our Times)

This Weeks’ Time Table: (February 22 – 26, 2022)

For this week, the following shall be your guide for the different lessons and tasks that you need to accomplish.
Oops! Be patient, read them carefully before proceeding to the tasks expected of you.

HAVE A FRUITFUL LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Date Topics Activities or Tasks

February 22 Social Norms Read and Internalize Lesson
February 23-24 Norms of Morality Read and Internalize Lesson
Conscience
February 26 Challenges to the Formation of Conscience Read and Internalize Lesson
February 26 Submission of learning tasks Accomplish the learning task in the
Activity portion of this module

CORRESPONDENCE LEARNING MODULE

CFED 1023 (Christian Morality in Our Times)
Second Semester A.Y. 2021-2022

Lesson 6: SOCIAL NORMS

NORMS OF MORALITY
CONSCIENCE
CHALLENGES TO THE FORMATION OF CONSCIENCE

Topics: Social Norms

Norms of Morality
Conscience
Challenges to the Formation of Conscience

Learning Outcomes: At the end of this module, you are expected to:

a. Define Social Norms;

b. Explicate the Proximate Norms of Morality;
c. Differentiate the levels and kinds of conscience; and
d. Elucidate the challenges and formation of conscience.
LEARNING CONTENT:

INTRODUCTION:

Societal/Social Norms

Social norms, or mores, are the unwritten rules of behavior that are practice in a group or society. Norms
function to provide order and predictability in society. People want approval and sense of belongingness, and
those who do not follow the norms will suffer disapproval or may even be outcast from the group. This is how
people keep society functioning, not just with direct rules but also expectations. When people know what is
expected of them, they will comply. While some people seek to be different, most just want to be part of the
group.

NORMS OF MORALITY

These are standards on which human acts are based to determine their goodness or
badness. A proximate norm is immediately applicable to the acts while the ultimate
norm guarantees the validity of the proximate norm.

a. Proximate Norm

Proximate Norm of Morality arises from human nature. This is present in everyone for all to immediately
find out if the action they are about to do or the act that they have just done is good or bad. Since this norm is in
the human person, it is also subjective. This proximate norm of morality is Conscience.

CONSCIENCE

Conscience comes from the Latin word, CONSCIENTIA, meaning “a joint

knowledge” or “knowledge with.” Based on this etymological meaning,
conscience is not an entity that is devoid of other factors. According to the
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), Conscience is the practical judgment
of reason allowing the person to recognize the moral quality of an act. So,
Conscience is attached with our reason/intellect.

Other definitions of Conscience:

it is considered as God’s voice that echoes in the heart and mind of an individual. Conscience is the most secret
core and sanctuary of man. There he is alone with God whose voice echoes in his depths (GS 16).
Conscience has the final say in making moral decisions. It helps a person make the final judgment on how
to act in a given situation. In addition, it is the inner voice summoning us to love the good and avoid evil, by
applying objective moral norms to our particular acts, and thus commanding: “do this, do not do that”. (CFC 723)
There are two moments of conscience: (Ante = before, Consequent = after)
1. Antecedent Conscience – is a conscience that judges an act before it is done. In other words, before an
action is carried out; the Conscience immediately gave a warning if it is a bad or gave approval if it is good.

A typical example is during a difficult quiz, a student thought of cheating but since his/her conscience
reacted that such is a bad action, the student did not push through with it.

2. Consequent Conscience – judges an act after it is done. In other words, moral assessment comes after
the completion of a certain act. This is the case of people who act first before they think about the action they
did.
Such are called reckless or imprudent. In our local language or dialects, you call these “padalos-dalos” or
“darusudos”
Going back to the example above, consequent conscience works after the cheating has been done by the
student and so he/she starts feeling guilty about the act that he/she committed. A part of him/her would say it is
alright because something good happened – he/she passed the quiz. However, another part of him/her says
he/she should have not done it because it was unfair to those who reviewed. He/she finally realizes it as wrong.

Conscience is further classified into different forms:

1. Correct conscience - judges a good act as indeed good while a bad act is indeed bad.

2. False conscience. This conscience judges a good act as bad and bad act as good.

One example is gambling. Gambling in any form is not good at all. In every game, one wins at the expense
of another person’s loss. Assessing this situation, one may say that such action is good for it is a form of fun and
a game of luck. Thus, the bad act is perceived as good for pleases and comforts people. That is why, despite
the clamor of ending all forms of gambling in the country, how come until now, it is still prevalent? Are people
unaware of its negative effects to the wider community?

3. Scrupulous conscience describes that one is always afraid of committing errors; hence, he/she becomes
rigorous in everything that he/she does. In other words, such kind of conscience makes a person very legalistic
(a person interprets the letter of the law alone, not its spirit) in such a way that he/she follow what is literally
there in the law and follows it no matter its effects on his/her life. What matters most is the fact that he/she will
not commit any error.

Fulfilling one’s Sunday obligation of attending mass is good act. This is in accordance with the third
commandment. Misunderstanding this Church law subjects one to his/her scrupulous conscience. While it is true
that everyone needs to fulfill this obligation, it does not however bind sick people. So that when a student of a
Catholic institution goes to mass despite being sick, scrupulous conscience is working on the person. In this
case, he/she may not attend mass anymore considering his/her condition but still forces himself/herself due to
his/her fear of committing a sin.

4. Lax conscience is a case where a person keeps on excusing himself/herself from every mistake committed.
It is as if, he/she does not commit any mistake at all.

Intentional violation of traffic rules is one example. Not stopping even when the red light is on and giving
the reason that no one sees anyway as there are no traffic enforcers around. The driver justifies his/her
mistake by saying that anyway he/she will not be reprimanded since he did not hurt anyone. Another example
are students who are just contented with passing grades and do not exert effort anymore.
5. Certain conscience is a firm judgment that one is not in error. The person always makes it sure that he will
not commit any mistake.

6. Doubtful conscience is a case where judgment is always suspended because of the uncertainty of the
goodness and badness of a human action. The word ‘doubt’ denotes the idea that one is not sure of what
he/she is doing. A person’s suspension of his/her desire for getting in shape until his/her doctor gives
clearance that he/she is fit to go through strenuous activities is one good example. The suspension gives
him/her a reasonable period to assess whether or not such an idea would really help him/her or would rather
bring about a problem on his/her health.

LEVELS OF CONSCIENCE

❖ Instinctive level – dominated by fear of punishment and desire for approval or reward. - Natural level,
it is normal for children (it will not do bad because of fear)

❖ Moral/Philosophical – operates not just on what is commanded by authority but from the judgement or
awareness of the inner goodness or badness of an act.

❖ Christian level – one’s Christian Faith illumines, clarifies and deepens what is perceive as truly worthy
of being a person. It places moral striving as a personal call to wholeness and holiness.

General Norm: Always follow your conscience

Point to ponder: With the given kinds of conscience above, will you always follow the general norm which is
always follow your conscience?

Challenges to the Formation of Conscience

With all the classifications of conscience, is it easy to determine whether one’s conscience is geared towards
the good or bad? To say, “Let your conscience be your guide” is easy, but in
reality, to act accordingly is difficult since many voices are heard within
oneself especially in making decisions. This is where the education and
formation of conscience come in. It is good to stress that the formation of
conscience is a long process, not an overnight activity. It is learned through
experience and time. It is therefore important to form one’s conscience
because it stands as the ethical imperative of the Church – to mold Christians
who are responsible with a well formed and mature conscience (McTavish, 2011).

While the formation of Conscience is a noble task, there are some factors which hinders its good formation

McTavish in his article, The Formation of Conscience, cites some challenges in the formation and education of
conscience which are worth mentioning: First, one challenge can be attributed to extreme relativism, which
means, everybody decides according to what he/she thinks to be the good one, without consulting
knowledgeable people or other authorities. It is indeed detrimental to decision making if a person depends only
on his/her relativistic thinking. There will be no room for clarification and proper advice.
 Another challenge to the formation of conscience is misinformation. This is to say that every now and then,
one hears reactions, comments and opinions from people. Some are very convincing and persuasive. Yet, it is
not a guarantee that it is the truth. Many mistakes are caused by misinformation, so, people really need to clarify
matters of which they do not know their truth so as not to make horrible decisions in their actions.

Another factor that could lead to a gross difficulty in forming one’s conscience is individualism. It is a drive
towards one’s own satisfaction while disregarding other people. In other words, it is an attitude of “my world and
mine alone and outside of me is not significant.”

To come up with a good formation of one’s conscience, people should brush aside these hindrances mentioned
above.

Formation of Conscience

To meet the aforementioned challenges, there are suggested ways by which the Christian moral conscience
can be formed and educated.

1. Through Prayer – According to Lipio, prayer is of vital importance in the process of conscience formation.
Persons who wish to have a true Christian conscience must be faithful in communicating with the Lord in their
daily lives (Lipio, 66).

One needs to develop and practice a good prayer life. In this way one’s moral conscience is formed. In
prayer, a person is helped to discern what is good and what is bad, how to accept and correct mistakes, and
reflect on concrete experiences. It should be understood that prayer is not something that is purely spiritual
without any connection to the concrete events of daily life. Rather, prayer is always connected and relevant to
the present and concrete experiences of people. That is why, prayer helps form one’s conscience because it
enlightens the mind and one’s able to assess properly a moral situation from a Christian perspective.

2. Through Listening to the preaching of the Gospel – “In the homily, preachers are exerting greater
effort to be faithful to the biblical text and mindful of the condition of the faithful, providing them assistance in
interpreting the events of their personal lives and historical happenings in the light of faith” (McTavish, 2011). In
this way, persons may see and realize their actions in relation to what Jesus is telling them in the Gospel.

3. Through the Role of the Christian community – as children of God, people always need to depend on
one another especially on matters that they want to be clarified with regarding their course of action. People do
not live individually but with others. Gaudium et Spes advises that, “In fidelity to conscience, Christians are
enjoined with the rest of humans in the search for the truth, and for the genuine solution to the numerous
problems which arise in the life of individuals from social relationships” (Gaudium et Spes 16). The Christian
community can help in looking at issues from different angles, not just form one viewpoint.

To sum up the three factors mentioned above in forming one’s conscience, CFC explicitly says, “…to form
the conscience of a disciple of Christ, the key obviously is Christ and His Spirit, experienced within Christ’s
community the Church. The formative process takes place in faith and through prayer, by attending to the Word
of God and the teaching of the Church and by responsiveness to the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Critical reflection on
the events and experiences of our life helps us in forming moral judgments. It is in living out the faith that we form
our Christian consciences” (558).
4. Through Multi-disciplinary approach – Other fields of science such as psychology, economics, civil
laws, natural sciences etc. are considered in forming one’s conscience. However, these fields should not be the
only measure in decision making but these other perspectives should also be considered, and it is where one
can derive good decision.

Thus, the formation of conscience is indeed a great challenge for all, not only for Christians. To say that
conscience is God’s voice is easy, yet in reality one may get confused because there are conflicting voices. That
is why it is best to emphasize the importance of prayer because it is where one can truly be assured that he/she
hears and listens to God’s voice. Praying doesn’t only mean going to mass alone or reciting formula prayers, but
it is in its broader sense when one is always in touch with the presence of God in his/her life. It is by experiencing
His presence that she/he may be able to realize what course of action he/she should take, especially in very
delicate and complicated situations.

Having a well formed conscience does not happen in a split of a second, but it is a deliberate and lifelong
journey. It is a challenge to form one’s conscience well but a worthwhile one.

*****END OF LESSON*****

EVALUATION:

Name: Date:
Course/Year: Score:

Directions: Read each statement below carefully. Write T on the line if you think a statement it
TRUE. Write an F on the line if you think the statement is FALSE. (2 pts each)

1. Proximate Norm of Morality is subjective in nature. T

2. Conscience is God’s voice that echoes in the heart and mind of an individual. T
3. False Conscience is always afraid of committing errors. F
4. In Certain Conscience, the person always makes it sure that he will not commit any mistake. T
5. Lax conscience is a case where a person keeps on pointing the blame to other people from every mistake
he committed. F
6. Extreme Relativism is a drive towards one’s own satisfaction while disregarding other people. F
7. In correct conscience, the person becomes rigorous in everything that he/she does. F
8. Consequent conscience judges an act before it is done. F
9. Other fields of science like psychology and civil laws are considered in forming one’s conscience. T
10. Conscience is attached with one of the human nature of person and that is his Intellect. T
REFERENCES:

Books:

Peschke, Henry C., (1975). Christian Ethics: A Presentation of General Moral Theology in the Light of Vatican II
Volume 1

Peschke, Karl H., (1996). Christian Ethics: Moral Theology in the Light of Vatican II

Living A Christian Moral Life (150 years of CICM in the Philippines) by CICM Philippines

Salbay, Esteban Jr., (2008). Christian Morality in Contemporary Society. C & E Publishing, Inc.

Online References:

Catholic Dictionary. Retrieved February 20, 2021 from

https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=35153

Conscience. Retrieved February 20, 2021 from https://www.slideshare.net/arvi_bernardo/conscience-9319884

Social Norm Examples. Retrieved February 20, 2021 from https://examples.yourdictionary.com/social-

normexamples.html

Picture credits:

Conscience: https://www.mindbrews.in/science-v-s-conscious-a-revolution-is-afoot/

Conscience Just Ahead: https://billditewig.blog/2016/04/21/formation-of-conscience-step-one-mind-your-

ownbusiness/

Right or Wrong: http://jethroodoy.blogspot.com/2018/05/learning-week-1-norms-of-morality.html