Conscience, Virtue, and Worship

This book’s central concern is that conscience does not stand alone: it needs to be nourished and guided by virtues and strengthened by prayer together with worship in a faith community. It examines three aspects of conscience-foundational moral awareness; the right to religious freedom; the sexual abuse crisis facing the Catholic Church. The spotlight then shifts to virtue in action as in: exemplars and wisdom such as Jesus Christ; Dag Hammarskjöld’s Markings; contemporary studies in witness and moral development (for instance, Emmanuel Levinas, Raimond Gaita, Pope Francis); the ethical dilemma confronting St Joseph, the foster-father of Jesus. We then consider Evelyn Underhill and how authentic spirituality is oriented towards accountability, action, and worship. This leads to a discussion of the role of the Church’s liturgical prayer in the sensitizing of responsible decision-making in our various relationships. There is a final survey of the changing landscape of Catholic theological ethics emerging in our post-pandemic world.