Conscience & Catholicism

A symposium on the always-prominent issue of conscience int he Catholic Church, based on papers given at a two-day, invitation-only meeting of top scholars from the United States and around the world at Santa Clara University. Essayists include many of the world's most prominent Catholic ethicists, numerous Orbis authors, and retied Archbishop John Quinn, among others. Leading ethicists and theologians address "Conscience," a term loaded with meaning and controversy in the Catholic church in recent decades around issues like political participation, human sexuality, war and institutional violence, and theological dissent. Many essays focus on the tension between the primacy of conscience (codified at Vatican II) and the processes and cultures of Catholic institutions, including schools, hospitals, and medical research facilities.David DeCosse;, Kristin E. Heyer