Symposium on the 2015 Synod of Bishops on the Family--Conscience and the Synod: An Evolving Quaestio Disputata

Abstract

There has been shift in moral theology that began with the run-up to Vatican II and has been something of a protracted tug-of-war ever since. The core tension revolves around various understandings of conscience, especially in its relationship to the Church’s magisterium. Clearly in the Franciscan papacy, the energy has again shifted to an emphasis on conscience, whereas the previous two pontificates emphasized the teaching of the Magisterium. This tension is on display in the October 2015 Synod.