The Natural Law Natural Law Theory of Saint Thomas Aquinas
Who is Saint Thomas Aquinas?
-born in 1225 at Roccassecca, Italy from a rich
and powerful noble family
- was set to take a religious path as youngest son
- Aquinas' family wanted him so much to enter
religious order and follow his uncle who was an
Abbot of the Benedictine monastery.
- From 5 to 13 years old, he was educated by the
Benedictine monks
- continued his studies at the University of
Naples
- at the age of 19, Thomas decided to join the
Dominican order
- Thomas was held prisoner for almost one year
in the family castles at Monte San Giovanni and
Roccasecca in an attempt to prevent him from
assuming the Dominican habit and to push him
into renouncing his new aspiration.
- By 1244, seeing that all her attempts to
dissuade Thomas had failed, Theodora sought to
save the family's dignity arranging for Thomas to
escape at night through his window. In her mind,
a secret escape from detention was less
damaging than an open surrender to the
Dominicans.
- In 1245, Thomas became Dominican, was sent
to study at the Faculty of the Arts at the
University of Paris under the tutelage of Saint
Albert the Great.
Why Saint Thomas Aquinas?
Ethical and Philosophical Theory
• Proposes that human possesses intrinsic
values that govern our reasoning and
behavior.
• If you act according to reason, you are
partaking the Natural Law.
• Everything follows a plan, that
everything has a purpose.
• "Reason" is the source of moral law; it
directs us towards the “Good”
❑ Ultimate GOAL of the person's
action;
❑ Discoverable with the person's
nature
• "Telos" - Greek word
❑ Purpose
❑ Goal
❑ The true final function of an
object
- Teleology is the study of the ends or purposes
that things serve, and Aristotle's emphasis on
teleology has repercussions throughout his
philosophy. Aristotle believed that the best way
to understand why things are the way they are is
to understand what purpose they were designed
to serve.
- Thus, in teleological ethics, consequences drive
the moral decision. For example, most people
believe that lying is wrong, but if telling a lie
would do no harm and help to make a person
happy or save someone, this action would be
right in teleological ethics.
- Aquinas believed that if an object follows its
purpose, then such object is good.
- The term object talks about each individual
thing (being) you can think of.
- What is my purpose so that I can be called a
good person?
"Do GOOD and avoid EVIL"
Natural Law Theory of Saint Thomas Aquinas
Reason
❑ Human has the capacity to reason
❑ We can make choices in an Ethical way
❑ What makes the person unique
❑ A good person is a person who acts
according to reason
What is God's role in Morality?
- For Aquinas, God's commands are there
to help us see what is right and what is
wrong, rather than figure out or
determine right and wrong.
What two things did Aquinas combine to make
the natural law theory?
4 Types of Natural Law Theory:
❑ Eternal Law
❑ Natural Law
❑ Human Law
❑ Divine Law
Eternal Law
❑ The Eternal Law is God's rational
purpose and plan for all things.
❑ It has always been a part of God.
❑ The Eternal Law has always existed.
❑ God's perfect plan, not fully knowable to
humans.
Natural Law
❑ An internal rule that we intrinsically
recognize.
❑ People do not need to learn that we
should pursue good and avoid evil.
❑ People will inherently pursue good and
avoid evil.
Natural Law vs Divine Command Theory
- Divine command theory (also known as
theological voluntarism) theory asserts that
what is moral is determined by God's commands
and that for a person to be moral he is to follow
God's commands. Followers of both
monotheistic and polytheistic religions in
ancient and modern times have often accepted
the importance of God's commands in
establishing morality.
Problem: The divine command theory (DCT)
gives us reason to worry that God's commands
are arbitrary as universal moral standards of
action.
- Thomas Aquinas asserted that something is
moral if it works towards the purpose of human
existence, and so human nature can determine
what is moral.
- Kelly James Clark and Anne Poortenga argued
that God created human nature and thus
commanded a certain morality; hence he cannot
arbitrarily change what is right or wrong for
humans.
Human Law and external acts, freely chosen by him/her,
must conform to the will and commandments of
❑ Considered secondary precepts
Christ.
❑ Made because Natural Law is too
general
❑ People need specific rules to guide our
day to day activities
❑ Must always be aligned with the Natural
Law or Primary precepts

- If Human Laws are not consistent with the

Natural Law, then we should not follow it.

- Human Laws that are created through rational

reflection is in line with the Natural Law.

"Real Good"

Several Human Laws do not follow the Natural

Law

e.g. Legalizing Abortion, Divorce, Same-sex

Marriage, Prostitution, Euthanasia, etc

Merely seems to be good because it satisfies

some appetite or desire

"Apparent Good"

Divine Law

❑ Revealed guidance
❑ The Commandments
❑ Not an order that tells us what is morally
acceptable
❑ The Divine Law enlightens us of what is
moral
❑ We need God to remind us to keep us in
the right track as He intended for us

What is Situational Ethics?

- Situational ethics is the philosophical position

that although there are a few universal truths,
different situations call for different responses.

What does the Church say?

- The Divine norm is the ultimate and personal

rule for deciding, in particular cases, what will
constitute a moral action. A human's internal