Within the Catholic Church, conscience was long a powerful internal guide to conduct that worked hand-in-hand with external law and authority. Yet in the 1960s in America, as the morality and fairness of institutions like government and the Church itself came into question, more and more Catholics relied only on their consciences. This turn away from authority had radical effects on American society, influencing other denominations, human rights activists, health-care professionals, lawyers, government employees, and the vocabulary of the greater culture. Today's debates over political power, religious freedom, gay rights, and more are infused by the language and concepts of conscience"--