Reasons to Believe, Part Two: Conscience

From Dictionary.com--Conscience: The awareness of a moral or ethical aspect to one's conduct together with the urge to prefer right over wrong. The faculty, power, or inward principle which decides as to the character of one's own actions, purposes, and affections, warning against and condemning that which is wrong, and approving and prompting to that which is right; the moral faculty passing judgment on one's self; the moral sense. that faculty of the mind, or inborn sense of right and wrong, by which we judge of the moral character of human conduct.

Furthermore, my own illumination of the word's meaning: Conscience is that nagging little voice in the back of your mind, pushing you toward or away from certain behaviors or thoughts. It's that little thorn pricking your spirit, telling you how to act. It's the heat you find rising in your neck from the shame of that publicly blurted curse word, or from making your wife cry during a heated argument.

So why do we have a conscience, in the first place? This question particularly is relevant for those who deny God's existence. From where does such an alarm system or voice derive?

I submit that the existence of a conscience within every man or woman is a reason for believing in the Creator. It points toward something or someone higher than us, who has certain expectations for us. This view rests in perfect harmony with Christian teaching and the Holy Bible. In Paul's letter to the Romans, he illuminates the subject: For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another. . .(Romans 2:14-15) I've lifted this verse from its greater context to make a point, which in no wise diminishes the verse's meaning. Part of Paul's message, here, is that whether adhering to Jewish law or not, all people have a basic understanding of right and wrong dwelling within them. He goes on to make further comments not relevant to our discussion. But the Bible has much else to say about the conscience, how it is with us constantly, and how it may be "seared with a hot iron" (I Timothy 4:2), or muted and ignored. The conscience is instilled within us by God, probably a remnant of our once perfect state of existence in the Garden of Eden, now marred and decayed by the Fall's effects. So the conscience is an imperfect guide, but we have it all the same, and it is a gift from God.

Stepping outside the circle of belief becomes tricky, however. Assuming one is an agnostic or full-blown atheist, how does one explain the conscience? What is its purpose? I've heard the argument stated thusly: "Perhaps the conscience is nature's way of keeping us from destroying each other, of ensuring our continued success as a species and perpetual propagation. Perhaps it's hard-wired into us." Of course, this explanation remains unsatisfactory. As I stated in Part One of this series, such a view lends human or personal attributes to nature, even devine ones. So we have stepped within a different circle--albeit a religious one, as well: the circle of pantheism, or the worship of the creation. What a strange conclusion. Stated candidly, the so-called atheist must say: "I do not believe in God, but I do believe in nature personified, with the ability to think and reason and provide failsafes within the human's inner self--just like a god." Bizarre. G.K. Chesterton said it best: "When people stop believing in God, they don't believe in nothing--they believe in anything."

I have never heard a secular rationalization for the existence of conscience that makes the slightest bit of sense. Most often, in fact, the subject is skipped and evaded, like a bad memory or an unpleasant task. But a question worthy of an answer is this: If there is no God, how do we know our conscience is even correct? All have experienced the flaws in thought and action of mankind. Isn't it possible that the conscience, too, is mistaken completely, and should be ignored? Another observation: If man is a law unto himself--and himself only--then even if my conscience lead me down a different path than yours, we both are heading in the right direction. Let's demonstrate this absurdity. Your conscience quails in horror at the thought of murdering someone, yet I have no such compunction whatsoever. So, either we are both right, or both wrong. I see little difference between the two conclusions. If murder is not an offense against Almighty God in the extinguishing of one's life made in His image, if it is not a grave sin, then where's the harm in acting out such brutal fantasies of mayhem? And don't talk to me about the law, civilization, or just treatment of my fellow man. Apart from God, these ideas merely are human constructs; and that which is constructed is made to be demolished; or in contemporary vernacular: laws are made to be broken. So, civilization is a human construct--the imposition of one man's will over that of someone else--and God does not exist. Is murder wrong? Impossible to know. All opinions are pure conjecture. Perhaps murder has consequences--even dire ones--but this is no evidence that it is wrong. You may say: "But laws against such evils keep civilization from crumbling, chaos from ruling." I, the atheist content in all his smugness, ask simply: "Evil is a word with religious connotations; therefore, it is meaningless to me. Who are you to determine the good or evil of a situation? Furthermore, why is the collapse of civilization--or even the destruction of the human race--a bad thing? Why should society not be torn apart and thrown down like a house of cards in a tornado? Eat, drink, and be merry; for tomorrow we die."

When not garbled to the point of incoherency, the explanation tendered by secularists for the human conscience is a baffled look or a disinterested shrug. I expect more from people who proclaim the righteousness and correctness of their worldview. I expect more from those who would laugh at me and call my Christianity foolish superstition. I expect more; and yet, my great expectations wait, unanswered, and unanswerable.

I'll leave this subject with another quote from Chesterton: "The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried."