Ethics Report
NATURAL LAW ETHICS
● NATURAL LAW
- God’s imprint on the whole of nature and the principles of its proper action.
- This means that God has left a "mark" or guide on everything in nature, showing
how things should act to be good or right.
- This is proven by the “natural inclination”
● NATURAL INCLINATION
- It refers to the inherent tendencies or inclinations that human beings possess by
virtue of their nature.
This means that humans have instincts like the desire to survive or seek
knowledge, simply because of the way we are created.
● ST. THOMAS’ CHRISTIAN ETHICS
- Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) was a Catholic theologian who combined
Aristotle's philosophy with Christian beliefs, emphasizing the role of both reason
and faith in living a moral life.
- Aquinas follows Aristotle’s Nichomachean Ethics, that
is, to live a life of activity is expressing reason well.
Iyang gifollow ang nichomachean kay he saw a strong foundation of
understanding human virtue and reason. He believes that it is aligned to Christian
values, and that he believed that using reason to act morally could help people
fulfill God's will.
- For Aristotle, if one functions according to his own nature, then performing that
function actualizes that nature.
This means na if you act the way it fits your natural abilities and purpose kay
you've become the best version of yourself - actualizing your nature. In short,
performing the function you are naturally meant for helps you achieve your full
purpose and live a good life.
● WHAT IS THE CONTEXT OF ST. THOMAS?
- For Aquinas, man is created by God with intellect and will. In this manner, the
fullness of expression consist in the activity of knowing and loving her own
creator.
For Aquinas kay our ultimate purpose in life is to use our intellect and will to know
and love our god/creator.
- Compared to Aristotle’s notion of Eudaimonia, it is important to note that “human
flourishing” or “the Good Life” could only be attained by inclining one’s will
towards God.
Eudaimonia is commonly translated as good life or human flourishing. Kay
Aristotle kay primarily on virtue ethics and how individuals can achieve personal
happiness by being a good person which means irrelevant ang gods.
● WHAT IS THE HUMAN PERSON?
- For Aquinas, the human person is a teleological being created by God with a
particular function and purpose of achieving his perfect happiness → union with
God!
This means na ang view ni Aquinas sa human person is rooted daw in his belief
in theology that everything has a purpose where Humans are created by God w/
specific purpose to achieve perfect happiness and maachieve lang daw ni if we
unite ourselves w/ God
- Note: Again, as much as Aquinas follows Aristotle in his line of thinking, the
distinction between them simply characterized by Aquinas’ presupposition of
God’s existence.
● MAN’S CONDITION SHOULD BE VIEWED IN HIERARCHY
Hierarchy of being
- God —> the source of all life and existence.
- Angels —> Non-corporeal beings—spiritual beings with no physical body.
- Humans —> Corporeal—beings with a body but also the ability to think and make
decisions.
- Animals —> Non-rational beings—creatures that act based on instinct, not
reason.
- Plants —> Organic life—living things that grow but cannot think or make choices.
● WHY IS THE HUMAN SPECIES A HIGHER BEING?
- For Aquinas, the human being is a higher being because of their innate rational
capacities
- There is the capacities of thinking (intellect) and willing (judgment)
This means that we can think and make choices using our intellect and will.
Unlike animals, who act on instinct, humans can make decisions based on
reason.
● NATURAL OPERATIONS OF THE INTELLECT & WILL
For Aquinas:
❖ Through intellect – we comprehend the truth behind/about everything in the world
Aquinas believed that our intellect, or our ability to reason, helps us understand the
world. He broke this down into two types:
- speculative intellect/reasoning
ability to think about abstract ideas or theoretical truths. Speculative intellect
involves asking questions like "What is true?" or "Why do things happen the way
they do?”
- practical reasoning
- This is more focused on action. While speculative intellect is about discovering
truths, practical reasoning helps us figure out what to do with those truths. It’s
about applying knowledge to everyday decisions, like choosing how to behave or
what goals to pursue. For
➔ Both are assisting us in recognizing what we ought to pursue and what
courses of action is needed to achieve it.
❖ Through the will – we are capable of responding to judgments
- it also disposes us to the objects of our desire
- moves us to act
➔ Human actions are essentially results of a natural deliberate will.
According to Aquinas, we use our intellect (thinking) to understand the truth about the world and
decide what we should aim for. We use our will (decision-making ability) to act based on what
we know and desire. Together, these allow us to make deliberate choices and take actions.
● NATURAL OPERATIONS OF THE INTELLECT & WILL
❖ In such a way, through “deliberate will” – man is inclined to do good and bad.
Even though we have the ability to think and make decisions, people can still make bad
choices, like drinking too much alcohol, smoking, or overeating. This shows that while
we are naturally inclined to do good, we can still choose to do harmful things.
- Drinking Alcohol (excessively)
- Smoking
- Eating too much
● CONCLUSION
- For Aquinas, man is, therefore, a moral agent and has the natural tendency to do
good!
Note: the will allows man to perform moral acts
- Question:
- What is the basis of this natural inclination?
- How could we be both rational and at the same time moral and still act
wrongly?
