natural law. natural law lets go back to aristotle quite a breath of common sense after plato he...

NATURAL LAWNATURAL LAW

Natural LawNatural Law

Let’s go back to Aristotle Quite a breath of common sense

after PlatoHe dealt with objects just as we see

themThey’re real not copies or imagesBit of an empiricist was AristotleThings we see are caused


Everything in the universe has a place and a purpose

It all fits together

Wind

FireSeasons

RainSun

Food

AirGravity

Aristotle believed

Water


He also thought that there must be an ultimate cause of the universe

The Prime Mover

The Prime Mover unmoved


As far as people were concernedAristotle believed people wanted to live a good

happy life

EUDAIMONIA

Right actions would automatically follow and the excellent person would automatically behave in the right sort of way.


Thomas Aquinas 1225 –1274

He thought Aristotle’s ideas were tops

Long forgotten Aristotle was about to make a comeback


Aquinas thought everything in the world was real and caused

Everything had a purposeThere was an ultimate purpose and first

cause


Which was God

Who was, by the way uncaused and necessary.

Who let that goldfish in?What d’yer mean it escaped from the Cosmological Argument?


Aquinas maintained there are two ways in which people can learn about God

2


Revealed Theology – that’s reading the Bible to you and me

Natural Theology – working out the truth of God by the use of reason

Natural Law Natural Law

Aquinas favoured the latter Truths about God can be worked out by

reasonThe purpose of human life can be worked

out by reason


That seems a good starting pointWhat is the purpose of human life?


The purpose of human life

Preservation of the selfTo reproduceTo live in an ordered societyTo worship God

These could be discovered by reason


Why on earth would people want to do this?


– Like Aristotle before him Aquinas

thought people wanted to be good and virtuous


He even produced a list of virtues Cardinal Virtues which of course

came from Aristotle

PrudenceTemperanceFortitudeJustice

If you don’t know what these mean, then look them up!


Plus several of his own drawn from St Paul

FaithHopeCharity


And Natural Law?

It was all part of God’s Law

Natural Law


ETERNAL LAW Order which is in the mind of God.

DIVINE LAW Given to people by God through the Bible and the church.

NATURAL LAW Our inborn sense of right and wrong discovered by conscience.

HUMAN LAW Rules made by human societies


So Natural Law comes from GodIt is a law that a person could work out for

him or her self through

Natural Law can be detected by anyone

Reason


The Church didn’t always like that but Aristotle was determined.

God’s law could be revealed through the Bible God’s law could be worked out by reason


So correct human behaviour is directed by God?

Not quite – correct human behaviour is in accordance with God.

PERHAPS


Supposing I do the right thing but for the wrong reason?

I think I am getting a headache


Supposing I help an old lady across the road just so that she will give me a reward

Ha ha gotcha Good act for a bad reason


Aquinas thought of that Your interior motive must be the same as

the exterior action

You must want to help her So you actually do help her


With each moral act you do Good must be the intention so that evil can

be avoided


Hang on a minute Sometimes doing the right thing can be

painful


Like telling the kids off when they misbehave

Yes but you do that so that they will not be unruly or learn to live chaotic lives


It’s the same when you go to the dentist He drills and fills the toothSo that you will get better oral hygiene and

avoid even worse pain


This is what Aquinas called

Primary Precepts and

Secondary Precepts


Secondary precepts are a bit like what the dentist actually does – the bit that hurts

Primary precepts are his ultimate goal – better oral hygiene and that is good


Aquinas believed that humans have a fixed uniform nature and this led him to believe that there was a fixed Natural law.


Natural Law is based on the action alone and takes no account of the consequences.

natural law. natural law lets go back to aristotle quite a breath of common sense after plato he...

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