MODULE 3 NATURAL LAW THEORY

OVERVIEW

This module deals with the Natural Law Theory of St. Thomas Aquinas. It defines law
and discusses the different kinds of law. The module clarifies the difference between Natural
Law from Eternal Law, Divine Law, and Human Law. In this module, you must read the text,
Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas which is provided. Lastly, the module challenges you to
apply the precepts of the natural law to contemporary moral issues.

OBJECTIVES: At the end of this module, you should be able to:

define what is a law and its kinds;

distinguish natural law from the eternal law, divine law and human law, and;

apply the precepts of natural law to contemporary moral issues.

LET’S READ

You may read Summa Theologica by Thomas Aquinas. You will find it in the readings
section of the module. After reading it, you must answer the following questions:

1. What is the law?

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2. What is Eternal law?

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3. What is Divine law?

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 4. What is Human law?
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NATURAL LAW

There are different kinds of law. We have seen it in the readings and you have defined it clearly.
We now turn our attention to natural law. When we talk about natural, it brings more questions
rather than answers. How might one commonly define what is “natural” or “unnatural”? Persons
are having difficulty in differentiating what is natural and unnatural. Let us test your
understanding of what is natural and what is not. We have here some list and tell us whether it
is natural or unnatural. After finishing the module we go back to your answers and test it if you
got it right.

Natural or Unnatural

eating insects

picking one’s nose (pangungulangot)

mixed martial arts (combat sports)

plastic surgery

eating raw beef

cross-dressing

IUD (intra-uterine device)

incest

male on male sex

male infidelity (pambababae)

According to Thomas Aquinas:

The Natural Law

Summa Theologiae 1-2, Question 94, Article 2

Since however, good has the nature of an end, and evil, the
nature of a contrary, hence it is that all those things to which man has a
natural inclination are naturally apprehended by reason as being good,
and consequently as objects of pursuit, and their contraries as evil, and
object of avoidance. Wherefore according to the order of natural
inclinations, is the order of the precepts of the natural law. Because in
man there is first of all an inclination to good in accordance with the
nature which he has in common with all substances inasmuch as
every substance seeks the preservation of its own being, according
to its nature: and by reason of this inclination, whatever is a means of
preserving human life, and of warding off its obstacles, belongs to
the natural law. Secondly, there is in man an inclination to things that
pertain to him more specially, according to that nature which he has in
common with other animals: and in virtue of this inclination, those
things are said to belong to the natural law, "which nature has
taught to all animals“ … such as sexual intercourse, education of
offspring and so forth. Thirdly, there is in man an inclination to good,
according to the nature of his reason, which nature is proper to him:
thus man has a natural inclination to know the truth about God, and
to live in society: and in this respect, whatever pertains to this
inclination belongs to the natural law; for instance, to shun
ignorance, to avoid offending those among whom one has to live,
and other such things regarding the above inclination.

ORDER OF THE PRECEPTS OF NATURAL LAW

According to Thomas Aquinas, God created the world according to natural law. It is a
goal-driven system whereby life is sustained and everything function smoothly. God created a
good thing for His creatures. Like meat that is good for dogs and cats or water that is good for
plants. God being the creator, Thomas Aquinas argues that God instills in creatures an intuitive
desire or inclination to seek what is best for them. We, creatures, are designed to seek basic
goods. Now, what are the basic goods? There are seven basic goods: self-preservation,
procreation, educate offspring, seek God, live in society, avoid offense, and shun ignorance.

The first basic good is self- preservation. We cannot deny the fact that the drive to
sustain life is very visible to all creatures. It is common to all beings. Have you noticed it? There
are certain trees when they are cut they release a certain foul odor that shoos away threats.
Animals fight back or run away when they feel that their lives are in danger. In the same way
that persons have that natural inclination to preserve their being. When we hear a gunshot like
sounds we duck or stop to process what we think is a potential threat.

The second basic good is reproduction. It is a desire to do sexual intercourse. This

process makes us feel good. Similar to other beings that periodically engage in this kind of
activity. Reproduction leads to the third basic good, which is the education of offspring. It is
good to take care of the offspring. We need to feed, give them shelter, and educate them.
Similarly, persons and animals do educate their offspring. Persons do bring their offspring to
school while animals teach their offspring how to hunt or protect themselves from
predators.

The first three basic goods are a commonality of person to other beings but the
remaining four basic goods are exclusive to a person. It is exclusive because it uses reason.
The fourth basic good is to seek God. It is a natural inclination to seek God. We seek the truth
about God because of reason. People tend to think that there is a greater good. It does not end
there. We want to be part of the community. This leads us to the fifth basic good and that is to
live in the community. Persons are social animals and we have this inclination to live in the
community. Thomas Aquinas would argue that we basically pack animals, our desire for love
and acceptance, and our susceptibility to peer pressure are all evidence of this desire. So, to be
accepted in the community, we need to avoid offense, which is the sixth basic good. We must
avoid alienating others. Our reason tells us that it is not good to alienate others. Like stealing
something from them or spreading gossip about others. The last basic good is to shun
ignorance. There is no denying that persons are knowers. We think that knowledge promotes
survival. Thomas Aquinas argues that knowledge promotes survival and ignorance can mean
starving to death. This very inclination pushes us to study to shun ignorance. Have you noticed
it? Parents will always tell that the only inheritance they can give their children is education.
They do not like that their children become ignorant. Being ignorant is not a good thing.

Thomas Aquinas believes that from these seven basic goods, the natural law is derived.
Our inclination shows us basic good and reason allows us to derive natural law from them. This
brings us to the understanding that the right acts are in accordance with natural law. How thus
this system of Natural law works? Let us take the obvious inclination, self-preservation. We all
see that our lives are valuable. It is the reason why we do not do stupid or dumb acts that will
put our lives in danger. However, we cannot deny the fact that others’ lives are also valuable the
same as ours. The reason will tell us that killing is wrong because it is a violation of natural law.
From here, we will be able to create prohibition: “do not kill”. In turn, it will bring to a positive
injunction which promotes life.

References:
Bulaong, O. et. al. (2018). Ethics: foundation of moral valuation. Manila: Rex Bookstore.
Thiroux, J. (2012). Ethics: theory and practice.(11th ed.). Engelewood Cliffs:
Prentice Hall