Precepts Flashcards
What is the Key Precept?
Do good and avoid Evil
Are the precepts Teleological or Deontological?
Deontological as they are the same for every human being, they are universal. “There is a single standard of truth for everyone”
How did Aquinas set out the 5 Primary Precepts?
He reasoned that our natural inclinations must reflect humanities God give purposes. He argues that these five primary precepts were permanent and unchanging because they were set by God from the beginning of time
What are the five primary precepts?
Preservation of life, Orderly living in society, Worship God, Education, Reproduction of the human species
How can we remember the five precepts?
POWER
Preservation of Life
Preserve your own life and those weaker than yourself
Orderly living in society
To live together in harmony
Worship God
We all have a duty to worship our creator- God
Education
Everyone should seek to be educated and thus understand the nature of God’s earth
Reproduction of the human species
We should have babies
What are the uses of the Secondary Precepts?
To create specific deontological ethical rules. Any action that breaks a Primary Precept is wrong
Good
Acts that uphold/further a Primary Precept
Wrong/Evil
Acts that break/go against the Primary Precepts
What do following the Primary Precepts help us to do?
By following Natural Law, moral agents will re-establish a right relationship with God, gaining eternal life in Heaven when they die
What is the Doctrine of double effect?
If doing something morally good has a morally bad side-effect, it’s ethically OK to do it providing the bad side-effect wasn’t intended. This is true even if you foresaw that the bad effect would probably happen.
