Aquinas’ Natural Law

Eternal, natural, human, revealed law

The theory of natural law, four laws:

Eternal law

God’s creation and plan

Natural law

Human nature and pratical rationality

Human law

Moral and legal rules

Natural, common good

Two methods to make moral decisions is to find out what is ___ according to nature and what is according to the ___ (teleology)

Natural Law St. Thomas

God’s law is written into our very being: natural reason is a reflection of His divine light, enabling us to recognize good and evil, certain moral truths, grounded in God, are universally binding on all people regardless of culture or belief, differs from civil law and revealed law

Civil/positive law

Human laws made by goverments

Divine/revealed law

God’s commands disclosed through Scripture and enstrusted to the Church

Natural law

Is God’s imprint on human reason, distinct from civil law and revealed law.

Natural law, natural light of reason

Reflects God’s handiwork in creation. These moral principles are absolute, universal, and binding on all people. They are accessible through the ___, meaning everyone can know them by right reason.

Natural law

Prescribe what ought to be done, yet they can be disobeyed or ignored when human freedom is misused.

Natural law

For Aquinas, is central to ethics, law, and theology, teaching that humans have intrinsic values guiding reason and behavior.

Foundation in Divine law

For Aquinas, natural law is part of God’s divine law, His plan for all creation. Humans, as rational creatures, share in this plan by using reason to recognize moral truths. In this way, natural law is our participation in the eternal law, the divine order that governs everything.

Primary Precepts

Aquinas identified several primary precepts, which are fundamental principles that reflect the basic goods to which human nature is inclined, are universally valid

Preservation of life

The drive to preserve one's own existence and health.

Reproduction

The inclination to reproduce and raise offspring.

Education of offspring

The responsibility to nurture and educate children.

Seeking God

The natural inclination to seek and worship a higher power.

Living in society

The desire to live in an orderly community and maintain social harmony.

Avoiding Offense

The inclination to avoid harming others.

Secondary Precepts

Are derived from the primary precepts through human reason. They are more specific rules or laws that govern our actions and help us achieve the basic goods, ___ can vary based on context and circumstances.

Role of reason

Aquinas taught that reason enables humans to grasp natural law, apply it to life, and discern right from wrong.

Common good

Natural law is oriented towards the ___. Aquinas believed that moral and legal rules should promote the welfare of the community as a whole, balancing individual rights with social responsibilities.

Natural rights

Aquinas' theory also underpins the concept of ___. These rights are derived from natural law and include the right to life, liberty, and property. These rights are inherent and must be respected by individuals and society.

Virtue and moral development

Natural law theory is closely linked to the development of ___. Aquinas believed that following natural law helps individuals cultivate virtues such as prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance, which are essential for moral development and flourishing.

Eternal and human law

Aquinas distinguished between different types of law

Eternal law

The divine wisdom of God that governs the universe.

Natural law

The part of eternal law that applies to human beings and can be discovered through reason.

Human law

Laws created by human societies to promote the common good. These should be derived from natural law.

Divine law

Revelation from God found in scriptures, which guides individuals in areas where human reason might be insufficient.

Practical application

Aquinas’s natural law theory is ___, providing a framework for ethical decision-making and legal systems. It encourages laws and policies that align with the fundamental principles of natural law and respect the dignity of every individual.

Moral absolutes

While Aquinas acknowledged that secondary precepts could vary, he also maintained that certain actions are intrinsically wrong (e.g., murder, theft, adultery) because they violate primary precepts and fundamental goods. Influence and legacy

Moral absolutes

Aquinas's natural law theory has had a profound influence on Western thought, particularly in the realms of moral theology, philosophy, and law. It has shaped the development of Christian ethics and has been a foundational element in the development of the concept of human rights and modern legal theory.

Moral absolutes

Aquinas’s natural law theory provides a robust framework for understanding morality based on human nature, reason, and the pursuit of fundamental goods. It remains a central theory in both ethical and legal discussions today.

Descriptive laws of nature

By contrast summarize known physical conditions or constraints that apply in fact w/o exception (cannot be “disobeyed”)

Civil or positive law

Speed limits, tax laws, and contracts, property, can be added to, but cannot contravene natural law (cf. Martin Luther King)

International law

Grotius, Pufendorf

Just war theory

Jus ad bellum and jus in bellow, law of theory

Principled civil disobedience

Gandhi, King and notion of ___

Principle of Forfeiture

If you take another life, you forfeit your own right to life

Principle of double effect

A wrong or evil result brought about as a consequence of some morally right action (undertaken with intention to do good) is not itself blameworthy

Good effects

Are intended

Bad effects

Is not out of proportion to the good effects

Principle of double effect

A patient is in the last stage of his life because of cancer, he has severe pains. The doctor decides to give morphine to relieve pain (intention). The patient dies (not intended but possible effects) Is the act right?

Intent matters

The doctor's primary intention is to relieve suffering, not to cause death.

Means vs Ends

Morphine is administered to ease pain not as a means to cause death.

Proportionality

The patient's pain is severe, and the relief provided is significant.

Unintended consequence

Death is a foreseen but not intended outcome, and may even be considered ethically permissible in palliative care

Eternal law

Is a class that encompasses Divine or revealed law (special revelation)

Natural law

Reason

Natural law

Is knowable to everyone; we are responsible for our disobedience

Civil law

What humans legislate in specific national or local settings

Just War theory

An importnant element of natural law