NORMS OF MORALITY Definition by Richard M.

Gula the criteria of judgment about the sorts of person we ought to be and sorts of actions we ought to perform.

Morality Consists in the relation of a thing with the norm. This relationship is one of conformity or non-conformity May be defined as the quality of thing manifesting their conformity or nonconformity with the norm or criteria That which conforms is good or moral That which do not conform is evil or immoral. The remote norm of morality is Natural law The proximate norm of morality is Conscience Both Natural Law and Conscience are rooted on ETERNAL LAW, the ultimate norm. Thus, there is only one norm : Eternal Law Eternal Law Is the plan of God in creating the universe and in assigning to each creature therein a specific nature According to St. Thomas Aquinas the exemplar of divine wisdom as directing all actions and movements St. Augustine the divine reason or will of God commanding that the natural order or things be preserved and forbidding that it be disturbed. Provides for the cosmic order where every creature stands different and independent but not apart from the unified purpose of creation. There is harmony in diversity in the universe so that the earthly Greeks referred to it as cosmos, meaning beautiful. Prof. Bill Long is the ideal type or order of the universe pre-existing in the mind of God Imagine that God is like a divine architect who must plan a structure before it is built. The eternal law of God is God's wisdom in both "planning" and then creating the universe. God imprints, as it were, on the world of nature "the principles of its proper actions."

We obey the eternal law by following what Thomas Aquinas calls our "natural inclinations"--either in making a reasoned judgment or even chewing our food thoroughly. A word of love gives inspiration to life, A word of care gives happiness to the heart, a word of God gives direction to our Life.-Airene T. The Concept of Law Law from Latin word lex The etymology of the word lex is taken from Ligare : meaning to bind, to tie up Legere : implying that for a law to have binding character it will have to be properly promulgated in a written document where everybody can read it. Law according to St. Thomas Aquinas An ordinance of reason, promulgated for the common good by one who has charge of society. Law are ordinance of reason because they are rational deliberations intended to guide men towards what is good for them and for society. The objective or purpose of the laws the attainment of the common good Are promulgated They are made known to the people who are bound to observe them Are passed by one who has charge of society because they can only be valid if they are the legitimate exercise of authority. Are necessary to man They regulate human activity The four types of Law as defined by St. Thomas Aquinas 1. Eternal Law 2. Divine 3. Natural 4. Human Divine Law is basically the will of God as revealed in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments.

This law was necessary for four reasons: (1) humans need explicit divine guidance on how to perform proper acts (2) uncertainty of human judgment needs a check This law was necessary for four reasons: (3) humans need divine insight on issues on which they are not competent to judge--i.e., the interior movements of the mind (4) it proves that God will punish some deeds that even go beyond the ability of human law to punish. We distinguish between the Old Law, contained in the Pentateuch, and the New Law, which was revealed by Jesus Christ and is contained in the New Testament. The Divine Law of the Old Testament, or the Mosaic Law, is commonly divided into civil, ceremonial, and moral precepts. The civil legislation regulated the relations of the people of God among themselves and with their neighbors; The ceremonial regulated matters of religion and the worship of God; The moral was a Divine code of ethics. Natural Law Those that are written, so to speak, in the hearts of all men They are inherent and essential tendencies of human nature towards the good proper to it. According to St. Thomas, the natural law is "nothing else than the rational creature's participation in the eternal law" Aristotle, - the tendencies of the rational soul Stewart Dugald (1753 1828) original principle of our constitution George Berkeley (1685) The eternal laws of reason or the will of God Paul Tillich elaborates that what we call Will of God Our essential being with its potentialities, our nature declared as very good by God who created it Tillichs Natural law is the command to become wh at one potentially is, a person within a community of person Ramon Agapay: what Tillich describes as the content of natural law is precisely our Filipino concept of pagpapakatao which is a moral obligation that arises from human nature , compelling an individual to be true to his nature as tao.

In the Filipino mind, as well as in the consciousness of many people, man is either good or bad depending on how he conforms or not with the demand of rational nature. Thus, natural law insofar as it is the principle of our human nature is the norm of morality.

Laws of Nature Principles of action of the non-rational creatures including the material element in the composition of man. Principles innate or implanted in the very nature of things by the author of creation Are fixed and determined according to the plans and designs of the author of the universe Properties of the Natural Law 1. It is universal 2. It is obligatory 3. It is recognizable 4. It is immutable or unchangeable 1. It is universal Natural law binds every man at all times and in all places, for its basis is the very nature of man. All men are precisely equal because of a shared human nature. Universal Its essential characteristics are common to all No one is free from the obligation of fulfilling his duty No one is superior to the guidelines No one is beyond good or evil 2. It is obligatory Natural law is human nature, calling for itself to be actualized, to be lived according to its basic and essential demands. Immanuel Kant calls this natural urge the categorical imperative. It is imperative because it is a duty that ought to be fulfilled. It is categorical because it accepts no exemption, since it is nature by itself

3. It is recognizable It is imprinted in the human nature and man has the light of reason to know it Scholastic philosophers referred to this light of reason as synderesis It enables man to recognize self-evident principles such as Do good and avoid evil 4. It is immutable or unchangeable Because mans essential nature can never be lost as long as man is man Contents of the Natural Law Man discovers by the light of reason those fundamental moral principles contained in the Natural Law. 1. Formal Norms Those that relate to our character, that is, to what kind of persons we ought to be. Do good and avoid evil Be honest Be chaste Do not be selfish, proud, vain or foolish Are absolute principles and are unchangeable What kind of person we ought to become is not a relative and subjective decision. 2. Material Norms Relate to the sorts of actions we ought to do Are the application of the formal norms to individual concrete action They answer the question: What should I do? Since Material norms deal with concrete and specific actions, they are not absolute. What makes killing just or unjust depends on a lot of factors Consequently materials norms are open to various interpretation This is where relativity in morality comes in Interpreting the Material Norms How do we apply the material norms in concrete situations? What determines whether an act is good or bad?

Theory of physicalism The physicalist suggests that the physical and biological nature of man determines morality. Anything opposed to mans physical, physiological, or biological tendencies is wrong or immoral It maintains that the criteria of moral judgment are written in mans nature The personalist suggests that reason, not the physical structure of the human faculties or actions, is the standard of morality. Thomistic School: reason is recta ratio or right reason It is the dynamic tendency in the human person to know the truth, to grasp the whole reality as it in. Morality based on reason is a morality based on reality as known to man. Human Law is a dictate of the practical reason those promulgated by a legitimate human authority. this authority resides either in the State or in the Church Requirements of a Good Human Law 1. It must be a just law 2. The law must be possible to be kept 3. The law must be ordained towards the pursuit of the common good. 4. It must conform with human customs, and be adapted to time and place. Properties of Human laws 1. must conform with divine laws 2. must promote the common good 3. must be just and not discriminatory 4. must be practicable 5. regulate external actions only 6. are fallible, because human legislators are liable to commit errors. Human Positive laws Are intended to preserve peace and harmony within a society and to direct each member of that society to work towards the common good. The laws of the state are embodied in the Constitution and in the Code of Civil Laws The church: the Catholic Church, are found in the Canon Law

Divine and Human laws Are either Moral Penal Moral law Binds in conscience, that is, it is enforced by our personal conviction about what ought to be done as good or to be avoided as wrong Is a directive that orders mans activity towards his final or ultimate end : the possession of the Supreme Being which will bring about the total happiness. is based on the premise that there is such a thing as right and wrong, and there are some things that you "ought" to do, and some things that you "ought not" to do. is a system of guidelines for behavior. "moral" is: relating to, or capable of making the distinction between right and wrong. The Ten Commandments do just that. In a simplistic and straightforward way, they clearly make the distinction between right and wrong behavior. It focuses on specific areas of human behavior and says, "Thou shalt do this, and Thou shalt not do that." The moral law makes it very easy for us to understand how we OUGHT to behave ourselves. Penal law Binds by virtue of the penalty imposed, that is, enforced by our fear of being caught and punished. Medical laws Dictated by the very nature of the medical profession and by the complexity of the situations it has to encounter. Examples World Medical Association Code of Ethics of the Philippine Medical Association Man is a moral being (E.A. Green ) When God created Adam, He created him with a moral faculty. Stated simply: Adam was created with the capacity to distinguish between behavior that is right, and behavior that is wrong. His moral faculty had the qualities of purity and uprightness. Therefore, Adam was inclined, by virtue of the moral excellence (in the image of God), to choose that which was right and agreeable with God's Moral Law.

However, it must be noted this excellence was not incorruptible... that is, the possibility of it's corruption was present. In this case, possibility of corruption soon became reality of corruption. Original Purity and Uprightness Lost When Adam sinned, he retained his moral faculty but lost the qualities of purity and uprightness. In Genesis 5:3 we find that the children Adam begat were in his own likeness and image; that is, they bore his marred and defaced image Avoiding Accountability follows Personal Sin When Adam was confronted about his sin he attempted to shift the blame to his wife. He didn't want to be held accountable for his actions. Don't we see this same tactic today? People are quick to blame their mess-up on the "other fellow", their parents, family, or society. There are other tactics used to avoid responsibility besides "blame shifting". One of the more common methods is excuses. The definition of an excuse is: "a reason or explanation one gives to avoid some duty or responsibility." God's children need to understand that there is no such thing as a "good excuse" for avoiding their duty responsibility! A major problem our generation faces is that God's moral law has been discarded as the standard to guide us in our decisions. The result is that young men and women have no absolute value to guide them when critical decisions must be made. God's Moral Law will give our children the "vision" needed to make the right decision in every situation Never blame anyone in life. Good people give happiness. Bad people give experiences. Wort people give lesson. Best people give memories.