Natural Moral Law

Question 1

How does Aquinas base his thinking on reason?

Answer 1

We use reason to observe the empirical evidence/observation of Common human nature which gives rise to common human purposes. Humans have been designed with these purposes in mind by God.

Question 2

How does Aquinas think of the five precepts?

Answer 2

They are our telos - purposes/ends which are deontological and absolute, each is supported by the Bible.

Question 3

What are the 5 precepts?

Answer 3

To worship God, continuation of the species, preservation of the self, to live in an ordered society and to educate.

Question 4

What are the secondary precepts?

Answer 4

In order to fulfil the 5 primary precepts Aquinas claimed you have to use the secondary precepts - laws of the land and these are relative.

Question 5

Give some examples of secondary precepts.

Answer 5

To fulfil the precept self-preservation and preservation of the innocent the laws would be do not Kill, do not murder, do not abort the unborn, do not commit suicide, do not commit euthanasia. To continue the species the laws must be to not use artificial contraception, not to have homosexual sex, not to masturbate etc.

Question 6

Which secondary precepts are relative?

Answer 6

Can kill in self defence or in war.

Question 7

What are the purposes of the precepts?

Answer 7

They ensure that Good is to be done and evil avoided. This is known as the Syneidesis Rule. This is the Absolute Good which is decreed in the mind of God - the Eternal Law and which is inherent in the moral laws of the universe.

Question 8

For Aquinas what is our common human nature?

Answer 8

To innately seek the Good

Question 9

What is the Syneidesis Rule?

Answer 9

To do good and avoid evil

Question 10

How was Aquinas influenced by Aristotle?

Answer 10

Borrowed ideas form Aristotle e.g. telos - everything tends towards an end. Aristotle - Final Cause. For Aquinas God designs everything with a telos. For Aristotle we make observations from the world, so use reason to do this and Aquinas borrowed this idea by observing common human nature.

Question 11

What did Aquinas do differently to Aristotle?

Answer 11

Didn’t want faith to be replaced though with reason in resurgence of Aristotelian ideas and so stressed Bible too, unlike Aristotle.

Question 12

What is Eudaimonia for Aristotle?

Answer 12

To be healthy, wealthy and wise.

Question 13

What is Eudaimonia for Aquinas?

Answer 13

The Summum Bonum - the Highest Good - union with the divine.

Question 14

What is the final purpose for Aquinas?

Answer 14

The final purpose of man is union with divine through following the Natural Moral laws.

Question 15

What is the Doctrine of Double effect?

Answer 15

Every act must have a good intention. The principle of double effect is when there is a good intention, and the outcome occurs as a side effect of this action with a good intention.

Question 16

Give an example of the doctrine of double in action.

Answer 16

If a woman with a cancerous womb has to have her foetus removed in order to preserve her own life. The unintended side effect is the death of the foetus. This is not an abortion - intention in abortion is that foetus dies.

Question 17

What are exterior acts?

Answer 17

A good outward looking act.

Question 18

What is a Good interior act?

Answer 18

God intention in keeping with syneidesis rule.

Question 19

Give an example of exterior and interior acts.

Answer 19

A businessman who gives to charity to look good in the media has a good exterior act but a poor interior act and both should be good for Aquinas.

Question 20

What does Aquinas say about the ends?

Answer 20

The ends never justify the means - never do evil that good may come about.

Question 21

What was John Finnis’ Natural Moral law with no God?

Answer 21

7 basic goods - lead to good life - worked out using reason - friendship, sociability, life, play, knowledge, religion, practical reasoning. 9 principles of practical reason include Syneidesis, acting for common good, using conscience, dismissing consequences etc.

Question 22

How does Russell criticise Aquinas?

Answer 22

Claimed that the universe was brute fact - the world was not made with any purpose - no telos

Question 23

How does Dawkins criticise Aquinas?

Answer 23

Claims that the universe has no grand designer behind it - so the world wasn’t designed with any purpose.

Question 24

How do Kai Nielson and Hans Kung criticise Aquinas?

Answer 24

Claim that there is no common nature, Hans Kung writes that our nature is not static - it changes

Question 25

How does the Bible not support a common purpose?

Answer 25

In the Book of Jeremiah God tells Jeremiah that his purpose is to be a prophet, whereas, Mary has been told she is to give birth to the Son of God.

Question 26

How does Karl Barth criticise Aquinas’ use of reason?

Answer 26

Claimed that people should recognise and accept the revelation of God in the Bible and this was the only source of truth - shouldn’t apply reason to it.

Question 27

How does Moore criticise Natural Law?

Answer 27

Naturalistic Fallacy - this claims that one cannot derive an ought from an is i.e. we cannot claim that this is the empirical evidence and then jump to the claim that this is how we ought to behave.

Question 28

How does Peter Singer criticise Natural Law?

Answer 28

Claims that in practice the doctrine of double effect doesn’t work - if a country bombs a media centre then innocent people will dies and the country knows this - it can’t simply be an unintended side effect. Singer claims that the ends can justify the means.

Question 29

How do Mackie and William Graeme Sumner criticise Natural Law

Answer 29

Cultural relativism - rules and values are relative to the culture e.g. polygomy is wrong in some cultures, however accepted in others.