CMW-WB-CH15

Given that these eight principles overlap with the teachings of
many religions, we might say that conscience and the practice of religion
complement and reinforce one another. The prudent person not
only knows these eight principles, but he also has an awareness of their
goodness and origin in God, which causes him to love them. This love
of principles inspires him to form and follow his conscience so that he
can act rightly even in complex and difficult situations.
There are two aspects of prudence: first, the love of virtue coming
from the dictates of conscience and love of God, and second, the
knowledge of how to best act on the good in particular situations.
The two sources of our knowledge of the good — conscience and
divine revelation — are complementary. As we have learned, each of
us has an interior sense of the transcendent, spiritual, and divine that
moves us to seek the sacred in the world around us. It follows, then, that
the more we grow in knowledge and love of God, the more we grow in
love of His sacred will and commands.
Thus, if we want to grow in the first aspect of prudence, we should
take steps not only to form our conscience by studying the virtues
and eight principles in philosophy, literature, and life experience, but
also to develop our relationship with God through the Sacraments,
prayer, and the study of His precepts, which are given by Scripture and
the Church. The more we engage in these two disciplines, the more
we will grow in prudence — the understanding, desire, and practice of
the good and all the virtues.
It is not enough, however, to simply know the good. We must also
put the good into practice. When the prudent person sees a need or an
opportunity to do the good, he is moved do something about it. Acting
out on this desire requires setting goals to achieve either a partial or full
solution. Without goals, the best intentions go nowhere. To ensure that
our goals to do good actually come to fruition, we also need to create
a plan to accomplish our goals. Creating a plan often requires learning
who to consult and how to do the research to get the necessary tasks
done effectively. Once we have the steps to our goal laid out, we then
must commit the time to completing them. If we discipline ourselves
to begin quickly, acting immediately on doing the good will eventually
become habitual. We will naturally move promptly into action, expedite
steps, and accomplish much in life.
[I]f we want
to grow in the
first aspect of
prudence, we
should take
steps not only
to form our
conscience ...
but also develop
our relationship
with God ...
and study His
precepts given
by Scripture and
the Church.
St. Thomas Aquinas called prudence the first and most important
of the natural virtues. Without the first aspect of prudence, we would be
© Sophia Institute for Teachers Unit 6, Chapter 15: The Life-Giving Virtues
337