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ethics > natural law > Flashcards

natural law Flashcards

1
Q

what is natural law based on ?

A
  • there is a natural order to the world
  • God has designed the universe to function in a particular way
  • as humans are part of this order there is a way we are meant to behave
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2
Q

what was Aristotle’s idea about telos

A
  • everything has a purpose
  • a thing is good if it fulfils this purpose
  • we find the purpose of things by observing
  • so a good knife cuts well as this is the purpose for which it was designed
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3
Q

the rediscovery of Ancient Greek writings was a challenge to medieval Christianity as it was based on reason. However, what did Aquinas argue ?

A
  • properly applied reason would reach the same conclusions as the Bible.
  • as both reason and the Bible were given to us by God
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4
Q

what does St. Paul point out

A
  • in the New Testament the Jews follow the laws of God handed down by Moses, but he notes that even Gentiles seem to have God’s law ‘written on their hearts’
  • this suggests that even if we didn’t have the Bible to tell us what to do, we would still ‘naturally’ know how to behave.
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5
Q

Aquinas used Aristotle’s ideas about natural law as the basis for his own reasoned argument. What did Aquinas argue?

A
  • everything was designed to reflect the image of God
  • I.e our purpose was to pursue perfection, which we will finally achieve in Heaven.
  • as God designed out human nature, then to be natural is to be good.
  • we will be content if we behave as God indented for us.
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6
Q

what are Aquinas primary precepts ?

A

-to worship
-to learn
-to reproduce
-to preserve life
-to live harmoniously
these seem to be an intrinsic part of our human nature

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7
Q

what must we use to work out how best to fulfil these primary precepts ?

A

our God given reason (ratio)

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8
Q

example of using ratio to fulfil primary precepts

A

I may conclude that marriage is a good thing because it leads to reproduction and assists the smooth running of society

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9
Q

example that shows secondary precepts

A

abortion, contraception and homosexuality all interfere with the primary precepts

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10
Q

what is Aquinas synderesis?

A

it is natural to avoid evil and pursue good

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11
Q

why do we sometimes make mistakes ? give an example

A
  • mistakes are simply the product of wrongly applied reason
  • e.g. a man having an affair is pursing an “apparent good”- he believes himself to be in love- but if he properly applied his reason then he would realise that this was not a “good” or natural way to behave
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12
Q

what is double effect? give and example of it

A
  • committing a good act with a bad consequence
  • e.g. performing a hysterectomy on a pregnant women will save her life, but result in the death of the foetus. The original intention was to reserve life but abortion is an unfortunate by product
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13
Q

what four approaches are usually required when applying double effect

A
  • the act must not be evil in itself
  • the good arising from the action must outweigh the evil
  • the intention must be good
  • double effect is only to be used in extreme circumstances
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14
Q

explain the hierarchy of law

A

-eternal law = beyond our human comprehension and these laws govern the universe.
-divine law = from God in the Bible. These confirm our right use of reason
human law = government laws. These can be ignored if they come into conflict with God’s law

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15
Q

deontological

A
  • based on rules

- duty

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16
Q

teleological

A
  • focuses on the goal of the situation

- consequences

17
Q

explain how natural law is both deontological and teleological

A
  • once we have worked out what is right then it is our duty to fulfil our purpose (deontological )
  • our moral behaviour is also a means to and end as we want to pursue perfection, so that ultimately we can achieve unity with God in heaven (teleological)
18
Q

what is the interpretation of the law as “lex”

A
  • strict adherents to natural law insist that the primary precepts are never broken (unless by double effect) and within the catholic church secondary precepts have become law.
  • so Catholics should never divorce, use contraception etc
  • it is to be unquestionably obeyed
19
Q

what is the interpretation of the law as “ius”

A
  • it seems that Aquinas original intention was more proportional
  • he said that the key precept was to do good and avoid evil
  • this means that in some circumstances it is necessary to break a primary precept in order to bring about a greater good
  • it is for guidance, but we should also use our wisdom when making decisions
20
Q

explain the strength that NL gives a purpose to our morality

A
  • our telos is to reflect god’s image so there is a reason why we should behave in a good way
  • NL is based on the idea that there is a natural order to the word. If we follow this natural order then we will feel satisfied and fulfilled.
21
Q

explain the strength that NL can be applied to all cultures

A
  • all that is required is that we behave naturally.
  • the majority want to learn, reproduce, preserve life etc -this is common to all cultures.
  • NL is then a useful tool for people of different religions to discuss what is right.
22
Q

explain the strength that in NL we work out for ourselves what is right

A
  • it allows us to use our reason and work out for ourselves what is right and wrong.
  • we are not simply expected to abide by a system of absolute rules I.e. blindly follow the rules of the bible.
23
Q

explain the strength that NL upholds a belief in the sanctity of human life

A
  • primary precept to preserve life
  • each person was designed by God for a purpose- to reflect his image.
  • each person is therefore special, whether they are an embryo, disabled, or close to death.
  • NL teaches us to look at ourselves and others with respect and it values the importance of every human
24
Q

explain the strength that Aquinas intended NL to be proportional

A
  • in certain circumstances it could be wrong but necessary to break a primary precept
  • more flexible
  • e.g. the Catholic Church condemn the use of condoms, but do admit that health workers might need to distribute them in a country where AIDS is endemic.
25
Q

explain the weakness of NL that is presupposes a good designer

A
  • suggest that the designer has the best interests of his creation as heart
  • many people do not believe in a designer or that things have been designed for a purpose. e.g. the appendix doesn’t have a purpose.
  • some go against the idea that everything has a natural purpose as they believe humans give things their purpose instead of them already having a purpose.
  • for them, the universe and our place in it is all just meaningless chance .
  • God designed things like cancer, volcanoes etc. Suggests bad designer
26
Q

explain the weakness of NL that it presupposes our human nature

A
  • humans are varied
  • e.g. to a homosexual man an attraction to the same sex seems completely natural even though it cannot result in reproduction.
  • e.g. preserving life may seem unnatural to someone in great pain who doesn’t want to be force to go on living.
  • the primary precepts don’t account for everyone
27
Q

what does G.E Moore argue about NL

A
  • it commits the naturalistic fallacy
  • there is a leap in logic from an “is” statement to an “ought”
  • e.g. just because orange juice is good for me, it doesn’t follow that I ought to drink orange juice.
  • e.g. just because contraception is interfering with reproducing, does not mean that I ought not to use it.
28
Q

explain the weakness that belief in the “lex” interpretation of sanctity of human life can cause individual suffering

A
  • Peter Singer pointed this out
  • if someone is suffering a debilitating disease and wants to end their life, NL would condemn this as it doesn’t fulfil the precept to preserve life.
  • similarly forcing a women who has been raped to continue with her pregnancy is causing her too much emotional damage, but strict adherents to NL insist that this is necessary
29
Q

explain the weakness that NL is a relativist system of ethics

A
  • if NL is used proportionately, then it becomes a more relativist system of ethics.
  • this means that it is open to interpretation, and people are not clear whether they are permitted to break a primary precept or not.
  • deciding wether a situation is an extreme circumstance or not

ethics (12 decks)

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