Medulla Theologiae Moralis, Facili ac Perspicua Methodo Resolvens Casus Conscientiae ex Variis Probatisque Authoribus Concinnata

The Medulla Theologiae Moralis (1650) by Hermann Busenbaum was a highly influential work in moral theology. It provided an easy-to-understand method for resolving conscience cases, drawing from various reputable authors. This book became a foundational text for subsequent commentaries and served as a textbook in many seminaries, with over 200 editions published before 1776.1

The work employed a method known as casuistry, which is a case-based approach to ethical reasoning. Casuistry uses general principles to reason analogically from clear cases to more complex ones, treating similar situations similarly. This method was particularly valued for its flexibility in addressing real-life ethical problems, especially when values or rules conflicted.2