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A2 Religious Studies: Paper 3, Developments: Ethics: Natural Law

Natural Moral Law: Summary sheet.

By studying our nature and purpose, using reason, we can work outthe right way to live.

Philosophical background and contet: !eontologicaland absolutetheor! "dut!#$i%ed laws&

Plato's theor! o$ (orms seems to contri)ute to the idea o$ a moral law

e%isting in nature, to )e discovered by reason "(orm o$ *ood isa)solute&

Aristotle: all things have a purpose "#inal cause$ Purpose helps us

de$ine action +wo t!pes o$ ustice- conventional and natural

Stoics- .icero %&rue law is right reason in agreement withnature.'

&homas ()uinas:

/3th.entur! theologian, heavil! in$luenced )! Aristotle and Plato

0ne o$ $irst to appl! reason to .hristian )elie$ and .hristian ethics: 1

a!s and Natural oral Law

(ssumptions: there is a *od, who created the world, there is a soulwhich must )e preserved, we all share the same common nature, weall have the same purpose

Purpose o$ li$e is communion with *od- achieved partl! )! livingaccording to the nature given to us )! *od

0ur nature can )e determined )! right reason "4t is possi)le tomisuse reason eg 5itler, Eichmann and the 5olocaust&

1 Primary Precepts are human nature discovered )! reason: this

nature is common to us all, so all must live in accordance with it 1Precepts are absolute Pursuing natural law develops virtues

Natural Law "phusis& is separate $rom man6made laws "nomos&

Natural Law is general- secondary preceptsare speci$ic applicationo$ primar! precepts

Synderesis: conscience, all humans naturall! tend towards good Sin

results $rom misuse o$ reason, pursuing apparent rather than realgoodsor per$orming eteriorrather than interior acts

+oman atholic -thics.

NL used )! R#. .hurch to decide R#. moralit! .arried out )!

Magisteriumand en$orced )! Pope

Primar! principles applied to produce secondar! or remote principles

7nown as casuistr!: techni8ue o$ deducing speci$ic rulings )! appl!inggeneral principle "$irst done in ar9 2:2362&

.atholic teaching on se%ual ethics "eg contraception#4;(& arrived at

using NL *enitalia has purpose o$ reproduction, to use it $or an!other reason "pleasure#homose%ual se%& is morall! wrong

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A2 Religious Studies: Paper 3, Developments: Ethics: Natural Law

.hurch teaches that some acts are intrinsicall! evil eg mastur)ation

";eritatis Splendour /L ac9ie

+he idea that there is a common human nature ma! )e challenged"eg homose%ualit!#disa)ilit!&

+he idea o$ a common human purpose ma! )e challenged "Aristotle

suggested that it could change&

A8uinas' underl!ing assumptions "*od's e%istence#soul etc& ma! )e

challenged, removing the ethical motivation and )asis $or dut!

Proportionalism can )e argued to )e a )etter approach "a com)ination

o$ NL and situation ethics&

.ommits the naturalistic $allac!: !ou cannot get an ought $rom an is

Strict NL results in casuistr!, which is o$ten seen as a wa! o$

introducing e%ceptions to the rules

4mposes one purpose upon parts o$ the human )od!, when the! ma!have man! eg procreation and pleasure

4n general, Natural oral Law is important )ecause it attempts to esta)lish alaw that we can all access and which applies to us all "phusis over nomos&

+his idea is important in human rights law +he Nurem)erg +rials, where Na?ideath camp o$$icers were tried $or their crimes, used the principles o$ natural

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A2 Religious Studies: Paper 3, Developments: Ethics: Natural Law

law to tr! them, as the laws o$ their own countr! "Na?i *erman!& at the timepermitted them to do evil5owever, there are serious $laws with the theor!, as appl!ing it too strictl!does seem to allow people to unintentionall! commit evil acts )ecause the!are not re8uired to consider the conse8uences o$ their actions oderateo)ectivism "proportionalism& ma! )e the solution to this impasse