That is not an unreasonable objection. On the other hand, most people acquainted with philosophy are familiar, directly or indirectly, with scholastic usage, which generally encompasses the process of applying moral principles to particular cases, and refining moral notions through experience and reflection. Thus, whether one regarded it as a separate faculty, or a particular use of mental faculties, it is a common way of referring to moral reasoning:
Through conscience and its related notion, synderesis, human beings discern what is right and wrong. While there are many medieval views about the nature of conscience, most views regard human beings as capable of knowing in general what ought to be done and applying this knowledge through conscience to particular decisions about action. The ability to act on the determinations of conscience is, moreover, tied to the development of the moral virtues, which in turn refines the functions of conscience.
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