Pope: Following conscience is not following own interest

Pope Francis exhorts the faithful to follow their conscience but warns them not to confuse their conscience with following their own interests.

In his weekly Angelus, July 1, Pope Francis said conscience “is the interior space in which we can listen to and hear the truth, the good, the voice of God.”

Pope Francis said Jesus himself also heeded his conscience when He followed the will of the Father.

“All this makes us think. It tells us, for example, the importance, even for Jesus, of conscience: listening in his heart to the Father’s voice, and following it. Jesus, in his earthly life, was not, so to speak, remote-controlled: He was the Word made flesh, the Son of God made man, and at one point he made a firm decision to go up to Jerusalem for the last time – a decision taken in His conscience, but not on His own: with the Father, in full union with Him!” Pope Francis said, as reported in zenit.org.

The pope said Jesus’ obedience to the will of the Father was the result of ‘profound intimate attunement’ with Him and Jesus decided with freedom, and in doing so, gave Christians the example to be “free as he is.”

“Jesus wants neither selfish Christians, who follow their egos and do not speak with God, nor weak Christians, without will: remote-controlled Christians, incapable of creativity, who seek ever to connect with the will of another, and are not free,” Pope Francis said.

Setting his predecessor Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI as example, he said the former head of the Church is a great example of following one’s conscience “When the Lord had made it clear, in prayer, what was the step he had to take, he followed, with a great sense of discernment and courage, his conscience, that is, the will of God that spoke to his heart and this example of our father does much good to all of us, as an example to follow.”

Pope Francis also cited the Blessed Mother, whose simplicity and humility meditated deeply on the will of God saying, “May Mary help us to become more and more men and women of conscience, free in our conscience, because it is in conscience that the dialogue with God is given men and women able to hear the voice of God and follow it with decision.” (@dcherald)