That "voice inside" all minds that, when unheeded or rejected, leads to feelings of guilt and remorse.
*
"knowledge within oneself, sense of right and wrong, a moral sense," abstract noun from conscientem (nominative consciens), present participle of conscire "be (mutually) aware; be conscious of wrong," in Late Latin "to know well," from assimilated form of com "with," or "thoroughly" (see
con-) + scire "to know," probably originally "to separate one thing from another, to distinguish," related to scindere "to cut, divide," from PIE root
*skei- "to cut, split" (source also of Greek skhizein "to split, rend, cleave").
The Latin word is probably a loan-translation of Greek syneidesis, literally "with-knowledge." The sense development is perhaps via "to know along with others" (what is right or wrong) to "to know right or wrong within oneself, know in one's own mind" (conscire sibi). Sometimes it was nativized in Old English/early Middle English as
inwit. Russian also uses a loan-translation, so-vest, "conscience," literally "with-knowledge."
conscience | Origin and meaning of conscience by Online Etymology Dictionary
**
"The Hebrew term for "conscience",
matzpun, is a relative newcomer in Jewish literature. There is no expression for "conscience" in the Biblical or Rabbinic texts.
Matzpun occurs in the medieval philosophical literature, but with a vague meaning. Serious discussions of conscience, together with related concepts like autonomy, natural law, absolute and relative moral values, ethical empowerment and the like, have really come into their own only in the post-Enlightenment period.
This does not mean, however, that moral mechanisms similar to "conscience" cannot be identified in Torah. One writer has referred in this context to a morally challenging episode in the story of Joseph. When Potiphar"s wife invites Joseph to lie with her, Torah tells us he refused. He said to his master"s wife, "Look, with me here, my master gives no thought to anything in this house; he has withheld nothing from me except yourself, since you are his wife. How then could I do this wicked thing and sin before God (
ve-chata"ti le"lohim)?"
The Torah published by the Conservative Movement, Eitz Chayim, notes that Joseph puts forward three arguments to counter Potiphar"s wife"s advances. The first regards Joseph"s position of responsibility in the house; it is prudent for him to act uprightly. The second refers to the legal culture of Egyptian aristocracy; wives are property of their husbands, and Potiphar"s wife has been reserved for her husband. It is the third argument that approaches our notion of conscience: Joseph seems to have an inner sense that this would be a "sin before God". Nowhere prior to Joseph"s tale is this designated a sin; the
Torah itself had not yet been revealed to the world, and we have no evidence that Joseph had learned it as an ethical norm from any other source. Where has Joseph"s recognition that his act would be a "sin before God" come from? Presumably it is the result of an inner ethical realisation."
Conscience: A Jewish Perspective
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"The most pressing issues about conscience in relation to Torah have been caused by the post-Enlightenment emphasis on autonomy and the moral independence of the individual. Following much post-Enlightenment thought, there is a dichotomy or absolute distinction between conscience and Torah. Conscience is the human ability to make moral decisions based on reason. As a result, it is available to all persons, a function of our individual autonomy. It is part of our nature as human beings, hard-wired into our personalities, so to speak. It is universal, not restricted to any particular group within society."
Conscience: A Jewish Perspective
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"While conscience is generally taken to represent the inner
voice, Torah represents the external
voice. To use the powerful image associated with the story of the prophet Elijah: the conscience is "the still, small
voice" within us, while Torah is the thunderous voice outside of us.
We may favour the "still, small
voice" because we prefer thinking of ourselves as autonomous and free rather than "servants", even servants to the divine. The idea that conscience emerges from within us gives us a sense of empowerment and reinforces our feeling that we act freely and without compulsion.
But it is possible, taking a more mystical approach, to assume that both
voices are manifestations of the same thing, ultimately synchronised in the soul that is whole and at one with itself. That is to say, when my inner, or self, will comes to be one with the transcendent, or divine, will – when conscience and Torah are one – then true moral justice may ultimately be achieved."
Conscience: A Jewish Perspective
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"There is no Hebrew term in the Old Testament that is a linguistic equivalent for the classical Greek term suneidesis [
suneivdhsi"].
The Hebrew term for "heart, " however, is a prominent term of self-awareness in the Old Testament. The lack of a developed concept of conscience in the Old Testament, as we see later in Paul, may be due to the worldview of the Hebrew person. Consciousness of life was of a relationship between God and a covenant community rather than an autonomous self-awareness between a person and his or her world. The only usage of suneidesis [
suneivdhsi"] in the canonical section of the Septuagint is in Ecclesiastes 10:20, "Do not revile the king even in your thoughts, or curse the rich in your bedroom, " where it is clearly used as self-reflection in secret (cf. the only verbal variations in
Job 27:6 ; and
Lev 5:1 ). Rabbinic Judaism and the Dead Sea Scrolls are consistent with the Old Testament in their lack of a vocabulary of conscience.
There are thirty occurrences of suneidesis [
suneivdhsi"] in the New Testament (one more possible usage in a variant on
John 8:9 ). The verb form (suneidon [
suneivdw], sunoida) occurs only four times. The thirty occurrences are almost exclusively Pauline (22, with an additional 5 in Hebrews and 3 in 1 Peter), and eleven of them are in the Corinthian correspondence. The classical use of this word-group for simple knowledge occurs in ac 5:2, 12:12, and 14:6. The Pauline development of conscience as a monitor of actions and attitudes is particularly noted in the Pastoral Epistles, where adjectives like "good" (
1 Timothy 1:5 1 Timothy 1:19 ; cf.
Acts 23:1 ) and "clear" (
1 Tim 3:9 ;
2 Tim 1:3 ; cf.
Acts 24:16 ) are used to depict the conscience as affirming right action. This action, however, is not determined by conscience but by other criteria to which
conscience bears witness. Paul's reference to the conscience being "seared" and "corrupted" (
1 Tim 4:2 ;
Titus 1:15 ) indicates that the function of conscience as a capacity for sound inward critique has been thwarted by resistance to God's revealed values. The writer of Hebrews views conscience as bearing a witness of being "clear" or "guilty" (
9:9 9:14 ;
10:2 10:22 ;
13:18 ). First Peter reflects both the classical use of "awareness" (
2:19 ) and the Pauline "clear" (
3:16 ) and
"good" ( 3:21 ) pattern."
Conscience Definition and Meaning - Bible Dictionary
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"Conclusion. Conscience is an aspect of self-awareness that produces the pain and/or pleasure we "feel" as we reflect on the norms and values we recognize and apply. Conscience is not an outside
voice. It is a inward capacity humans possess to critique themselves because
the Creator provided this process as a means of moral restraint for his creation. The critique conscience exercises related to the value system which a person develops. Romans 12:1-2 makes the point that God desires that his creation conform to divine values by a process of rational renewal. The Scriptures provide the content for this renewal."
Conscience Definition and Meaning - Bible Dictionary
(Emphases mine)