Confronting the Truth: Conscience in the Catholic Tradition - Softcover

Hogan, Linda

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0809139812 ISBN 13: 9780809139811

Publisher: Paulist Pr, 2001

Synopsis

Linda Hogan's book is a balanced and clearly written examination of conscience in the Catholic tradition. "Although," she writes, "Vatican II sought to promote individual responsibility and autonomy in the moral realm, the politics and teaching of the church in subsequent years has undermined this." The result is an inevitable tension between conscience and other moral authorities in Catholicism.

The author explores the development of this tension historically, reviews its contemporary manifestations and finally constructs a positive theology of conscience that seeks to resolve this tension while remaining deeply rooted in Catholic tradition. This scholarly work, which draws upon the insights of classic and contemporary moral theologians, is an ideal college text, or ancillary text in courses on conscience and moral questions. But its accessible style will broaden its appeal to a wider audience.

About this title

About the Author

Linda Hogan, who holds a Ph.D. from Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland, is presently lecturer in theology in the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Leeds, England.

Reviews

Hogan (Univ. of Leeds, UK; not the Native American writer of the same name), who has written previously on feminist theology and ethics, explores the historical development of conscience in Catholic theology. She demonstrates how divergent views and moral distinctions have evolved and led to opposite schools of thought affecting contemporary theology. Hogan emphasizes the complexity of issues throughout the book and proposes that a personalist model of conscience is already rooted in Catholic tradition. She covers the roles of reason, intuition, emotion, and imagination in the processes of conscience dynamics, notes the central role of the faithful and the value of the "loyal opposition" in developing the recommendations of Vatican II, and suggests that existing tradition can provide the basis for a renewed theology of conscience. The book provides a useful current synthesis for study groups and is suitable for courses or discussion groups on moral theology.DAnna M. Donnelly, St. Johns Univ. Lib., Jamaica, NY
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Paulist Pr
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0809139812
• ISBN 13: 9780809139811
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 240