Forming our conscience
"God desires from you the least degree of purity of conscience more than all the works you can perform." - St. John of the Cross
At this moment in history, freedom of conscience seems increasingly to be questioned by States, even those that claim to be based on democracy and human rights …This freedom, however, establishes a balance between the collective interest and individual dignity. It also emphasizes that a truly free society does not impose uniformity but protects the diversity of consciences, preventing authoritarian tendencies and promoting an ethical dialogue that enriches the social fabric. Pope Leo, Pope raises alarm over human rights and a spreading “zeal for war”
We have an obligation to act on our conscience, to obey our conscience. Alongside that is the obligation to inform our conscience. The Scriptures speak of having a clear conscience, of being at peace with your actions and decisions.
The informing of our conscience is an active endeavor. It’s done in our prayerful engaging of scripture, tradition, and reason. We are seeking as close as is humanly possible moral and ethical truth rather than mere subjective feelings. We are to listen to that inner voice and also work at educating it.
You must deeply distrust the feelings of your heart, however just and sincere they may seem to you. - St. Louis Marie de Montfort and Do not trust in your own righteousness. - St. Anthony the Abbot
So, the standard Anglican threefold pattern of prayer - Eucharist, Daily Office, reflection - sits at the center of our effort. Giving ourselves to that brilliant gift of our tradition may be the most efficient and effective pathway for most people.
Facts
The formation of our conscience includes prayerful reasoning. What John Macquarrie called '“compassionate and responsible thinking.” That enables us to see things in perspective, to attain the vision of them in their unity and interrelatedness.” ..Regarding compassionate thinking – “In prayer we go out from ourselves, we stand alongside the other, we try to share his feelings and aspirations. .. must lead to the increase in sympathy and the upbuilding of community.” And regarding responsible thinking – “Responsibility to the neighbor …take into account the needs and claims of the neighbor ..Prayer is our responsible thinking in the presence of God.” That form of prayer easily brings us to intercession.
That doesn't discount the need to struggle with the facts of situations. But it does enlarge our responsibility in the situation, even when we can't be sure of the facts.
Is not a new thought to observe that we live in an environment where getting at the facts of a situation is very difficult. Some say it has to do with our online obsession. But I think people have always had a hard time getting at the facts. Our online world is part of why, in this age, we have that problem.
Take the dispute of this moment. What actually happened on that street in Minneapolis?
Yesterday I noted Politico’s statement, “The tragic details of the deceased — a mother of three and a devout Christian — are laid out here by AP. The broader point, as you can’t have missed from a glance at social media, is that America is again divided over even the basic facts of a major event. And that once again, these diverging takes seem to correlate almost precisely with people’s views of the Trump administration. The worry is that the incendiary language and mass rush to judgment on both sides will only inflame a tinder-box situation.” If you looked at the comment section of AP, the Washington Post, the New York Times or The Free Press, you'd see hundreds of statements, proclaiming with absolute certainty what the facts were. Initially, much of it was based on the first video that had been made available in those publications. As time went on, if you read across several publications and looked at several different videos, it all became more complex. But for the most part, the comments, the online mob, were having none of it. They knew the truth. And as Politico pointed out, that truth was largely based on your pre-existing political alignment. For many people it seemed impossible to see the situation within itself. (More - Witch Hunts for the 21st Century: Passion and hysteria are poor substitutes for fact finding.)
The Wall Street Journal pulled much of it together with this observation. “Some footage showed an officer firing his gun both while in front of the vehicle and from the side as Good attempted to pull away. On Wednesday, President Trump posted a video to social media from a different angle that appeared to show the officer more squarely in front of the vehicle.” (The WSJ article) If that ends up being the fact about the officer’s actions, it still does not tell us how the law will see things or what moral judgment we will make. But it is a critical element that goes into making such conclusions.
Most of us don’t have the time or inclination to look at all the resources available on every situation. In the Order of the Ascension we’ve made an effort to engage news and analysis sources outside our comfort zone. It helps. But finally, we are left with limited knowledge and understanding. Underlying it all is a willingness to accept complexity and our confusion with some degree of humility.
Intercession
While getting at the facts will always be a struggle. There is something the faithful are always called to do — we offer intercession. Archbishop Michael Ramsey said, "Intercession is standing before God with the people on your heart," (More)
So, as the investigation begins - and the experts work to figure out what happened in those few seconds, and the politicians and activists on both sides second guess the investigation - the faithful can stand before God with Renee Nicole Good and Jonathan Ross - on our heart.
I’ve come to think that intercession is best done in regard to people rather than situations or hoped for conditions. There is something grounding about praying by name for the woman killed and the officer who shot her. When we leave the concreteness of particular people we end up with well intended platitudes about Minneapolis or peace. All too often that drifts over into turning our prayers into a political position paper.
I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (From Colossians 1)
This abides,
Brother Robert, OA