Natural Moral Law

Question 1

Where does ‘deontological’ come from?

Answer 1

The Greek deon meaning duty

Question 2

What do deontological theories make judgements based on?

Answer 2

Whether actions are consistent with moral laws

Question 3

What is our duty as rational beings?

Answer 3

Doing good and avoiding evil (synderesis rule- Aquinas)

Question 4

Where can the roots of NML be found?

Answer 4

The Ancient Greek and Roman world

Question 5

What does Aristotle write in Nichomacean ethics?

Answer 5

The natural is that which everywhere is equally valid

Question 6

Aquinas said humans have a natural purpose towards which god wants us to aim. How can we understand this purpose?

Answer 6

The bible- revelation
The world- designed by god
Human reason- we know what actions fulfil our natural purpose

Question 7

What does Aquinas say about reason?

Answer 7

To disparage the dictate of reason is equivalent to condemning the command of god

Question 8

Through the bible, the world, and reason it is clear that there are primary precepts. What are these?

Answer 8

Preserve life
Reproduce
Educate 
God is to be worshipped 
Orderly society to be created

Question 9

What is human nature oriented towards?

Answer 9

The achievement of perfection

Humans have a tendency to do good

Question 10

What can be deduced from the primary precepts?

Answer 10

Moral rules
Vardy- the secondary precepts are unpacking the primary precepts
Show the legalistic character of the ethic- doing right is a case of applying a rule to a situation

Question 11

What does Aquinas say about the flexibility of applying primary precepts to situations?

Answer 11

The general rule admits of expectations

Question 12

What are real goods?

Answer 12

Actions which are consistent with natural purposes and are morally good

Question 13

What are apparent goods?

Answer 13

Actions which the moral agent thinks are real goods but they’ve used their reason incorrectly

Question 14

What is a good exterior act?

Answer 14

Good act

Bad intention

Question 15

What is the doctrine of double effect?

Answer 15

The action isn’t wrong so long as the intention was good

Question 16

What is proportionalism?

Answer 16

Hoose’s theory
Modern version of NML
‘It is never right to go against a principle unless there is a proportionate reason which would justify it’

Question 17

What is a negative of proportionalism?

Answer 17

There’s no method for deciding what constitutes a proportionate reason to abandon NML

Question 18

What is positive about absolute moral rules?

Answer 18

Morality is uncomplicated

Universal nature

Question 19

What is attractive about common rules for society?

Answer 19

We live in a relativist era thats suffering from a breakdown in traditional social structures and moral uncertainty

Question 20

What’s negative about the reproductive precept?

Answer 20

Can we move from the fact people have children to say that people should have children?

Question 21

What have Protestants argued is negative about NML?

Answer 21

NML removes them need for gods grace because being good means following the rules, not being saved

Question 22

What does Kai Nielson say about the one size fits all human nature?

Answer 22

‘There is no such thing as an essential human nature which makes a man a man’

Question 23

What does Kai neilson note about Eskimos?

Answer 23

They used to kill members of their families who wouldn’t make it through the winter
Differing moral standards; is there a common natural law?