natural law

Question 1

what does telos mean?

Answer 1

the purpose or end goal

Question 2

what did Aquinas believe about telos?

Answer 2

everything in the universe has a purpose given by God and achieving this purpose is the ultimate good

Question 3

what are the 4 tiers of law?

Answer 3

1. eternal law
2. divine law
3. natural law
4. human law

Question 4

what are the 2 key precepts?

Answer 4

do good, avoid evil

Question 5

what are the 5 primary precepts?

Answer 5

1. preservation of life
2. ordering of society
3. worship of God
4. education of children
5. reproduction

Question 6

what is natural law?

Answer 6

an ethical theory developed in christian form by St Thomas Aquinas

Question 7

what is natural law based on?

Answer 7

• the belief that the world and human life have a purpose (Telos) given by God
• the world has a natural order, designed by God
• God is the creator of all things, including morality

Question 8

what is the synderesis principle?

Answer 8

the idea that we have this innate drive and impulse to do good and avoid evil

Question 9

what is the importance of the 5 primary precepts?

Answer 9

they are universal and should be followed by everyone, people will achieve flourishing if they follow them

Question 10

what are the secondary precepts?

Answer 10

more specific rules that can be deduced from the primary precepts, subjective and relative

Question 11

what is eudaimonia?

Answer 11

human flourishing - the fulfilment of your potential - seen as the purpose of human life

Question 12

how is eudaimonia achieved?

Answer 12

by following the 5 primary precepts, but can only be fully fulfilled in heaven (beatific vision)

Question 13

what did Aristotle believe about reason?

Answer 13

our ability to reason is what distinguishes us from animals and plants
- the world is ordered and rational

Question 14

what is eternal law?
(four tiers of law)

Answer 14

• laws as known in the mind of God
• God’s knowledge of right and wrong - his ‘blueprint’ for morality

Question 15

what is divine law?
(four tiers of law)

Answer 15

• God’s special revelation of His law - disclosed through the Bible
• 10 commandments and Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount

Question 16

what is natural law?
(four tiers of law)

Answer 16

• God’s law revealed through right reason in accordance with nature
• reflection on what it means to ‘do good and avoid evil’

Question 17

what is human law?
(four tiers of law)

Answer 17

• systems of laws built by human societies
• rules and regulations for everyday life, devised by governments

Question 18

What are real goods?
(Synderesis principle)

Answer 18

• those that lead to fulfilling our God-given purpose and ultimately achieving eudaimonia
• right reason in accordance with nature

Question 19

what are apparent goods?
(Synderesis principle)

Answer 19

• humans are flawed and fall short of God’s intentions for them
• they confuse what seems to be good with what is actually good
• enjoyable but doesn’t lead to eudaimonia, leads to sin

Question 20

what are some examples when using the secondary precepts?

Answer 20

1. preservation of life: do not kill, abortion and euthanasia are sinful = become a doctor
2. reproduction: homosexuality and use of contraception is sinful = become a parent
3. ordering of society: stealing and lying is sinful = become a police officer

Question 21

who is John Finnis?

Answer 21

• 20th century development of natural law
• finnis believed that ethics should be about facilitating human flourishing
• 7 basic goods for flourishing are universal and apply to all people

Question 22

what are Finnis’ 7 basic goods that lead to human flourishing?

Answer 22

1. life
2. knowledge
3. play
4. aesthetic experience
5. sociability
6. practical reason
7. religion / spirituality

Question 23

what is the double effect?

Answer 23

focuses on what we are responsible for
- relevant in situation where a single action has 2 effects
- it is the effect that you intended that matters

Question 24

what is an example of the double effect?

Answer 24

killing an attacker in self-defence
- intention is to defend yourself and preserve your life
- unintended side effect of this is that the attacker is killed
- the agent is morally justified because their intention was to defend themselves, rather than to kill the attacker

Question 25

what is proportionalism?

Answer 25

- contemporary development of Natural Law - the proportionate reason is based on the context or situation - always follow the moral laws unless there is a proportionate reason not to

Question 26

what are 3 strengths on natural law?

Answer 26

1. John Waters: it provides a foundational, universal and absolute approach to ethics. E.g - primary precepts provide clarity and consistency for moral decision-making. 2. has consistency and flexibility: still flexibility in the form of the secondary precepts 3. emphasis on reason is empowering: natural law treats humans as rational agents who can think for themselves. This empowers the individual as a moral decision maker

Question 27

what are 3 weaknesses on natural law?

Answer 27

1. depends on belief in God: it assumes there is a God who has created the world. It assumes that the universe has a God-given purpose and that the morality comes from God. 2. outdated: primary precept of reproduction has led to the Catholic Church banning contraception and condemning homosexual relationships. 3. it is too absolutist: Catholic Church states that natural law is ‘universal in its precepts’. Natural Law assumes we should all follow the same path.