Natural law

Question 1

What is the first part of the essay scaffold?

Answer 1

Aquinas/Aristotle. Telos(final cause/purpose). Laws (civil/natural). Absolute/objective. God given reason.

Question 2

What is the second part of the essay scaffold?

Answer 2

Primary precepts: Preservation of innocent/self preservation. Ordered society. Worship God. Education of the young. Reproduction.

Question 3

What is the third part of the essay scaffold?

Answer 3

Why do we err? Make bad choices. Real goods confused for apparent goods.

Question 4

What is the fourth part of the essay scaffold?

Answer 4

Motive is as important as action.. Interior acts vs exterior acts.
Both have to be good for an real good.

Question 5

What is the fifth part of the essay scaffold?

Answer 5

Virtues: Cardinal: Justice, temperance, prudence and fortitude. Theological: Faith, hope and charity.

Question 6

What is the sixth part of the essay scaffold?

Answer 6

Doctrine of double effect.

Question 7

What type of theory is natural moral law?

Answer 7

Deontological and absolute, so normative ethical theory judging morality based on adherence to rules, thus what it is your duty to do as rules “bind you to your duty.” Absolute means things that are right are always right and things that are wrong as always wrong - objective.

Question 8

What is it based on?

Answer 8

It is based on Aristotle’s teleological philosophy. He believed everything had a purpose revealed in its natural form or design and that fulfilling the telos is the supreme ‘good’ to be sought. A good pen is one that fulfils its purpose by writing.

Question 9

What did Aquinas think about our reason?

Answer 9

By using our reason we could know our purpose/telos and know how to achieve it. Aquinas thought morlaity should use human reason to understand and follow the sense of purpose God has given the world. In fulfilling our purose we become perfect.

Question 10

What idea from Aristotle did Aquinas use and develop?

Answer 10

The idea that eudaimonia - human and societal flourishing was the natural purpose of humans and this can only be achieved by pursuing particular good and Aquinas thought eudaimonia is union with God.

Question 11

What rule did Aquinas think we naturally had within us?

Answer 11

The synderesis rule - to go good and avoid evil as we know we know the basic principles of morality. We are human and sometimes get things wrong and follow apparent goods.

Question 12

What is an apparent good?

Answer 12

An apparent good is when we do a good act with a wrong intention or doing a wrong act with a good intention. Fore example doing a good action like helping the old lady cross the road, but for selfish motives to look good in front of my watching friends.Mistaken reasoning.

Question 13

What is a real good?

Answer 13

When both the intention and the act are good, for example if I helped an old lady cross the road, because I wanted to help her and make her feel better not for myself.

Question 14

What is are interior and exterior acts?

Answer 14

Interior - intention/ motive for the act. Exterior - the outside act itself/

Question 15

What are the primary precepts?

Answer 15

Aquinas believed following the five primary precepts as the way of reaching our purpose to be with God, They apply to everyone and are a reflection of divine law in the Bible. Preservation of innocent life/self preservation. Ordered society. Education of the young. Worshipping God. Reproduction.

Question 16

What do these lead to?

Answer 16

Secondary precepts. For example abortion is wrong as it goes against all the precepts - you are not preserving innocent life especially if you believe life starts at conception and they never have the chance to be educated. If everyone aborted we couldn’t function(os). Also God commanded in the Bible to go and allow the human population to grow. You are preventing reproduction.

Question 17

What are the Cardinal virtues?

Answer 17

Justice - A being fair? Temperance - Not going to extremes. Prudence - Self governance. Fortitude - Showing strength in hard times.

Question 18

What are the theological virtues?

Answer 18

Hope - to get to heaven. Faith - in God. Charity - unconditional love.

Question 19

How does abortion go against these?

Answer 19

Arguably you aren’t showing justice to the unborn child. You are not showing temperance by going to the extreme of aborting instead of giving it up for adoption or keeping it.Not showing prudence as going against the precepts. Going to extremes instead of showing fortitude and having hope and faith God will help you through. You would be showing more charity by keeping it and giving it the chance of a happy life.

Question 20

What is the ‘loophole’ in this theory?

Answer 20

Sometimes we can’t do good without a bad consequence, the doctrine of double effect - explains that this bad consequence must not be intended even though it may be foreseen it must be an unintended secondary effect.

Question 21

What are examples of double effect?

Answer 21

During an ectopic pregnancy, in treating the mother in turn you kill the foetus. Killing a civilian in war.

Question 22

What are the strengths of this theory?

Answer 22

Clear code to judge people’s actions against. Easy to apply as unchanging in any situation. Intuitive for people that certain things such as murder are always right or wrong. The basic principles e.g. preserving human life are common to all societies. It allows humans to use reason to work out how to live, showing how humans and God work on the same rationality accessible to the believer. Shows some things are of intrinsic value.. Focuses on human characters and its potential for goodness and flourishing rather than right or wrongness of actions, so some flexibility.

Question 23

What are the weaknesses of this theory?

Answer 23

It sees nature as simple and fixed, but this isn’t the case. It doesn’t seem to take into account the fall, too optimistic. Can be interpreted too rigidly and not cope with individual problems. Assumes belief in God and all men seek to worship God, God created the universe and the moral law in it, not natural for atheists. Problems with homosexuality and reproduction, not natural or moral? Based on strict terms of ‘never’ and ‘always’ is this really realistic or possible?