FREEDOM OF THE

HUMAN PERSON
Adrian Rabanal Reizel Balicao
Shiela Mae Tablate Queen Mae Salvoro
 What Is Freedom?
~ Freedom stands for something greater than just the right
to act however I choose—it also stands for securing to everyone
an equal opportunity for life, liberty, and the pursuit of
happiness.

~ To most reasonable people, freedom means more than

just ‘free to do whatever I want’. Taken literally, that approach
would produce anarchy—every man, woman, and child for
himself or herself.
 OBJECTIVES:

1. To Realize the consequences of one’s actions

2. To show situation that demonstrate freedom of
choice
3. To evaluate and exercise prudence on one’s
choices
Learning Outcomes:
This lesson highlights freedom from the intellectual, political, spiritual, and
economic aspect. To be free is a part of humanity’s authenticity. In one way,
understanding freedom is part of our transcendence. Freedom consists of going
beyond situations such as physical or economic. For instance, students can be
young and poor, but they can still pursue their dreams of becoming a doctor,
teacher, or a stage actor. As discussed in the last lesson, critical thinking is an
important tool toward freedom and truth.

Realize that “ All Actions have consequences”

 Theories
About Freedom
Aristotle
The power of Volition
The imperative quality of a judgment of practical intellect is
meaningless, apart from will. Reason can legislate, but only through
will can it legislation be translated into action. The task of practical
intellect is to guide will be enlightening it. Will, in fact, is to be
understood wholly in terms of intellect. If there were no intellect, there
would be no will. This is obvious from the way in is rationally
denominated.
The will of humanity is an instrument of free choice. It is within the power of
everyone to be good or bad, worthy or worthless. This is borned out by;

a. Our inner awareness of an aptitude to do right or wrong

b. The common testimony ,of all human beings;
c. The reward and punishment of rulers; and
d. The general employment of praise and blame

Moral acts, which are always particular acts, are in our power and we are
responsible for them. Character or habit is no excuse for immoral conduct.
For Aristotle, human being
is rational. Reason is a
divine characteristic.
Humans have the spark of
the divine. If there were no
intellect there would be no
will.
St. Thomas Aquinas

Love is freedom

All creatures of God, human beings have the unique power to change themselves
and the thing around them for the better. He consider that the human as moral agent.
A human being, therefore, has a supernatural, transcendental destiny. This mean
that he can rise above his ordinary being of self. This is in line with the idea of St.
Thomas that in the plan of God, a human being has to develop and perfect himself by
doing his daily tasks. Hence, if a human being perseveringly lives a righteous and virtuous
life, he transcends his ortal state of life and soars to an immortal state of life.
 The power of change, however, cannot be done by human being alone,
bubt it achived through cooperation with God. Between humanity and God,
there is an infinite gap, which God alone can brigde through his power
perfection by participation here means that it is a union of humanity with
God, Change should promote not just any purely private advantage, but the
good of the community.
FOUR FOLD CLASSIFICATION OF LAW by Aquinas
1 . Eternal Law
2. Natural Law
3. Human law
4. Divine Laws
 Human beings, as rational rational, have laws that should not only be obeyed
but also obeyed voluntarily and with understanding (for instance, in following the
traffic rules). The natural law, then in its ethical sense, applies only to human being.
The first principle and precept of the natural law is that good is to be sought and evil
avoided(this is the instruct of self-preservation). There is inherent in every human
being an inclination that he shares with all other being, namely, the desire to
conserve human life and forbids the contrary. For instance, if there is firee and its
burning heat is felt, then it is but a human tendency to avoid it
Since the law looks to the common good as it end, it is then conceived primarily
with external acts and not with the interior disposition.
A person, thus, should not be judged through his actions alone but also through
his sincerity behind his acts.
 Both natural and human laws are concerned with ends determined simply by
humanity’s nature.
Eternal Law is is a decree of god that governs all creation. It is that law which is
supreme reason cannot be understood to be otherwise than unchangeable and eternal
“natural law is the human “participation” in the eternal law and is discovered by reason.
Natural law is based on “first principles” .
St. Thomas Aquinas wisely and aptly chose and proposed Love rather than law to
bring about the transformation of humanity . For love is in consonance with humanity’s
free nature, for law commands and complete; Love calls and invite. Aquinas emphasizes
the freedom of humanity but chooses love on governing humanity’s life. Since God is
love, then Love is the guiding principle of humanity toward his self-perception and
happiness-his ultimate destiny.
 The Spiritual Freedom

The existence of God as a first cause. Of all

God’s creations, human beings have the
unique power to change themselves and
things around them for the better. As
humans, we are both material and spiritual.
We have a conscience because of our
spirituality. God is Love and Love is our
destiny.
Jean Paul Sartre: Individual freedom
Sartre’s Philosophy is considered to be representative of
existentialism. For him the human person is the desire to
be God; the desire to exist as a being has its sufficient
ground in itself (en sui causa). There are no guidepost
along the road of life. The human person builds the road
to the destiny of his/her is the creator.
Theory of Social Contract
A Law of nature (lex naturalis) is a precept or general
rule established by reasin, by which a person is
forbidden to do that which is destructive of his life or
takes away the means of preserving the same; and to
omit that by which he thinks it may be best
preserved.
Jean – Jacques Rosseau
In his book the social contract, The state owes it origin to a
social contract freely enterd into by its member (ex. EDSA
Revolution)
The two Philosophers differed in their interpretations.
Hobbes developed his idea in favor of absolute monarchy, while
Rousseau interpreted the idea in terms of absolute democracy
and individualism.