Abstract A growing number of Catholic women with same sex attraction (SSA) are interested to know the Catholic Church teaching on this issue. Thus far there are no specific Magisterial documents solely dedicated to women with same sex … [Read more...]
Same Sex Attraction in Catholic Women who Desire to Live Chastely
Questions Answered – August 2023
Question: Does an erroneous conscience bind a person to act since it does not correspond to reality? The most difficult problem in contemporary morals is not the doubtful conscience, but—given the tendency in the subjectivism of the p … [Read more...]
Questions Answered – July 2023
When Conscience Is Mistaken Question: Much has been made of the primacy of conscience today in morals. Even some bishops have claimed that as long as a subject is following their conscience, the Church must support their decision no matter … [Read more...]
Conscience and the Service of Authority
Drawing Pastoral Insights from Joseph Ratzinger
There is, at present, a crisis of authority within the Catholic Church, expressed no more clearly by the clamor for democratization outfitted by the various movements of protest which attempt to raze the “old guard” of bureaucratic est … [Read more...]
Conscience: Christ’s Whisper in Our Moral Life
Elijah, who is “very jealous for the Lord” (1 Kgs 19:4, 14), meets the Lord on Mount Horeb. On the mount, a powerful wind blows, then an earthquake shakes the ground, and then a fire erupts; however, the Lord is not in these great “voices.” … [Read more...]
“The Canon of Issues”: When Catholics Disagree With the Church
Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI named the long list of questions that we Catholics confront in contemporary society the “canon of issues.” This canon includes women’s ordination, contraception, celibacy of priests, and remarriage of divorced pers … [Read more...]
Making Pastoral Sense of Pope Francis’ “Civil Arrangement” Proposal
Pope Francis’ recent comments on “civil arrangement/union” for same-sex couples have caused concern among many across the world. Several Catholic bishops, archbishops and even a few cardinals have not minced words in their criticism. Even so … [Read more...]
Newman‘s Concept of Conscience in His Quest for Moral Truth
The question about truth is vividly present in the teachings of the Catholic Church throughout the ages. The discourse on truth — which resounds in the question posed to Christ, “What is truth?” (Jn 18:38) — has been heard throughout the cen … [Read more...]
Conscience as Relationship, Part II
A Dialogue through Which God Takes Us beyond Ourselves
In the second of these two articles on conscience[1. See Francis Etheredge, “Conscience as Relationship, Part I: General Principles and Personal Experience,” Homiletic & Pastoral Review (Jan 2020), hpr … [Read more...]
Conscience
The Echo of God's Voice
Conscience is the voice of God, whereas it is fashionable on all hands now to consider it in one way or another a creation of man.[1. John Henry Newman, in The Genius of John Henry Newman: Selections from his Writings, ed. Ian Ker (Oxford: … [Read more...]
Questions Answered
Can you explain what the general rights and duties are of the state in regard to the family? What does the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) mean by their term “Creative Fidelity”? Question: Can you explain what the gen … [Read more...]
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