In order to understand Natural Law, we should first discuss with his beliefs about God.

AQUINAS’ BELIEF ON GOD

God not only created the world, but he also remains intimately involved in it. He did not create it and
walk away and let his creations flourish on their own.

Q: How is God still involved in it?

A: God wants all his creations to be the best versions of what they are.

Ex: He wants squirrels to be good at finding acorn, or he wants frogs to be good at jumping, swimming,
and catching flies, and he wants us humans to be happy, healthy, and virtuous persons who know and
love him and each other.

Q: How can God do that?

A: He does that not in a way that he controls us like a puppet. He wants us to do that through our own
actions. So, the way that God helps us achieve what’s best for us, and at the same time, doing it on
our own, is by creating us with instincts and inclinations.

Ex: Birds have instincts to build nest and protect their nest. Dogs generally know what’s food and what’s
not, but of course, case to case basis. Aquinas believes that instincts and inclinations that we have are
imprint of God’s own wisdom.

ETERNAL LAW

Now, Aquinas believes that such inclination toward what is good for them is a sharing of God’s Eternal
Law.

Q: What is Eternal Law?

A: Eternal Law is, for Aquinas, that rational plan by which all creation is ordered. It is a plan created by
God.

Now, Aquinas said that Natural Law is human beings’ participation in God’s eternal law. The fact that
God gave us instincts to decide what’s best for us is a statement that God intended his creations to be
part of his order.

But why is natural law only concerned with human beings? Are we special? Are we different from the
animals? We are going to answer that later.

THE NATURAL LAW

Like animals, we have our own instincts. We have an internal drive to do things that are good for
ourselves. However, we participate in Eternal Law better than animals because we are rational beings.
We can understand God’s view of what is good for human beings and we can use reason and choice to
follow it.

EX: An animal’s instinct is to survive. So what an animal should do is not to let itself starve to death.

But as human beings, we can reflect on the instincts that we have. We can think about what the ways
are to pursue our instincts. So, unlike animals, we can reason when, how, and what we should eat. This
shows that, human have various ways in which we can fulfill our instincts and we can use reason to
reflect on which will be the best way for us. Animals can’t do this of course. Diba, we have different cook
books, diet tracking apps or whatsoever for us to have different ideas when, how, and what are we
going to eat. We were able to do that because we have rationality.

Another example is, our instinct to procreate. For animals, they will just procreate whenever they feel
the heat. Unlike animals, we are capable of thinking when we are going to procreate or when do we
build our family. For some, it is necessary to have a stable career before having a child and to some,
basta brownout, pwede na. So we have our different ways on how we are going to act on our instincts.
We are capable of determining what’s best for us.

THEREFORE, NATURAL LAW INVOLVES INSTINCTS OR INCLINATIONS AND REASONING.

Without inclination, we will not recognize what are the things that we need or the things that are
desirable, without reasoning however, we would not know the best to pursue the objects which our
inclinations reveal to us as having value.

Aquinas defined Natural Law as the “light of natural reason whereby we discern what is good and
evil”. It is the light which guides us to know what is good and evil and that light is an imprint on us by
the divine light. God creates us with both reason and instincts and these capacities illuminate for us
the path to becoming the best version of ourselves. Inclination enable us to determine what is
desirable for us, and reason enables us to know what’s the best way of pursuing that.

Aquinas believe that if we can reflect on our instincts with reason, then we can do good things. Now,
this is the first precept of the natural law –do good and avoid evil.

FOUR BASIC INSTINCTS

Aquinas believe that human have 4 basic instincts.

1. Preserve self
2. Preserve species
3. Know truth
4. Live in society

First and second basic instincts are shared with animals, while the last 2 are specific to human beings.
Basically, we have an instinct to preserve our life. That’s why we have this fight or flight tendency. We
tend to fight because we believe we can win to preserve our life, and we fly because we believe that we
cannot win so running is the best way to preserve our life.

In preserving the species, humans have instinct to procreate in order for our species not to perish.

As to our inclination to know the truth, we are by nature curious about the world and want to know how
to know things work –we want the truth. This instinct has led our race to pursue scientific inquiry and to
develop arts.

We are also a social animal. We have an instinct to interact with other members of our society.

APLLYING FIRST PRECEPT IN OUR INSTINCTS

1. We have an inclination to preserve life. Hence, life is good and anything that destroys that which
we should preserve is evil. So, alongside with the inclination to preserve life, human reasoning
would tell us that we should not harm or kill another human being.
2. Humans also have an instinct to preserve its specie. So, humans tend to procreate. Procreation
does not necessarily mean preservation of the specie. Of course, the offspring should survive
the way you survived and created and an offspring. So, it is good to care for them and educate
them everything they have to know for them to survive. It is evil if we just let them thrive in
their own.
3. We have an instinct to know the truth. Therefore, truth is something good. If we choose not to
know the truth, then we are choosing not to pursue something that is good to us. So, we have to
shun ignorance. In the same way, when we lie to others, we deprive them of the good of truth.
4. As a social animal, we tend to interact with other people. So, peaceful community life is
something good. If we do something that would destroy that good, then we are doing an evil.
For example, insulting your neighbor, or stealing from them.

In sum, Aquinas thought that our inclinations and ability to reason provide us the basis on how to live an
excellent life. Aquinas believe that some people, because of bad upbringing, or living in a corrupt
society, could affect them on how they will subscribe to the natural law. Thus, a violation of the natural
law results from ignorance. It is because they lack reasoning.