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THE NORMS OF MORALITY

-are the standards that indicate the rightfulness or wrongfulness, the goodness or evilness, the value or
disvalue of a thing (Richard M. Gula)

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

Eternal Law

– the plan of God in creating the universe and in assigning to each creature their specific nature.

- The exemplar of Divine wisdom as directing all actions and movements. – St. Thomas Aquinas
- The Divine reason or will of God commanding that the natural order of things be preserved and
forbidding that it be disturbed. – St. Augustine

Participation of Creatures in Eternal Law

 Man manifest a new dimension in the cosmic order – moral order whereby man becomes self-
conscious of natural moral laws binding him to seek the good ‘fitting’ his rational nature. – St.
Thomas Aquinas

Natural Law

- the Essential Need to Become a Person

According to George Berkeley (1685)

 Eternal laws of reason or will of God ‘Paul Tillich’ elaborates that will of God is our essential
being with its potentialities our nature declare as very Good by God.
 Command to become to what one potentially is, a person within a community of person.

Content of Natural Law is Filipino Concept of Magpakatao

1. Masamang tao – immoral actions

2. Mabuting tao – conducts himself according to his rational demands of his human nature.

Properties of Natural Law

1. It is universal
2. It is obligatory
3. It is recognizable
4. It is immutable or unchangeable

Contents of the Natural Law

Man discovers by the light of reason these moral principles contained in the natural law.

1. Formal Norms – those that relate to our character, to what kind of person we ought to be.
o Absolute principles/unchangeable
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Example: Do good and avoid evil.

Be honest.
Do not be selfish.

Absolute Values: Justice, Truth, Diligence

2. Material Norms – relate to the sorts of actions we ought to do.

o the application of the formal norms to individual concrete action

Example: speech, killing helping

Interpreting the Material Norms

1. Theory of Physicalism
o Physicalist suggests that the physical and biological nature of man determines morality if
its opposes it immoral.
2. Theory of Personalism
o Personalist suggest that reason is the standard of morality.

Reason (recta ratio) right reason

o Dynamic tendency in the human person to know thatruth, to group the whole of reality
as in:
o The Order of Reason – man participates in the Eternal Law through
reason in a way proper to him as a human being.

Moral Conscience – task of discerning and interpreting natural law.

Conscience – proximate norm of morality.

Conscience

- Latin “conscientia” means “trial of oneself” proximate norm of morality

- An act of the practical judgment of reason deciding upon an individual action as good and to be
performed or as evil and to be avoided.

Function – examine to judge and to pass a “sentence” on all moral actions.

Kinds of Conscience

1. Correct or True Conscience – judges incorrectly that what is good is evil and what is evil is good.

2. Erroneous or False Conscience – judges incorrectly that what is good is evil and what is evil is
good.

Error Conscience Come from the Following Factors:

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a. Mistake in
inferential thinking
b. Ignorance of the fact and other circumstances modifying human actions.
c. Ignorance of the fact and other circumstances modifying human actions.
d. Ignorance of future consequences.

o inculpable conscience – error is not willfully intended

o culpable conscience – error is due to neglect and malice

3. Certain Conscience - subjective assurance of the lawfulness or unlawfulness of certain act.

4. Doubtful conscience – unable to form definite judgments on a certain action.
5. Scrupulous Conscience – extremely afraid of committing evil
6. Lax Conscience – one which refuses to be bothered about the distinction good and evil.

The Compulsory Nature of Conscience

o It is the voice of God

o Operates within the realm of truth/sound reason
o Infallible

Conscience is linked with human authority

1. It is linked with the State as it derives with the authority as it affirmed by natural law and Divine
revelation
2. It is linked with human community because conscience depends for help in community and
social authority in order to be informed correctly of its judgment.

Education of Conscience

- Obligation to cultivate a clear and true conscience

- The cultivation of good habits
- Militate against evil, condemning it where we find it
- Learn how to use our freedom

The foundation of morality. Human Freedom – true freedom in action is not submission to the coercive
pressure of external force but self fulfillment through inner love of the good in accordance with the
pattern of the Divine Holiness which is the eternal law reflective in man’s own nature.

THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENT OF MORALITY

1. Reason. It is the basis or motive for an action, decision, or conviction. As a quality, it

refers to the capacity for logical, rational, and analytic thought; for consciously
making sense of things, establishing and verifying facts, applying common sense
and logic, and justifying, and if necessary, changing practices, institutions, and beliefs
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based on existing
or new existing information. It also spells the difference of moral judgements from
mere expressions of personal preference. In the case of moral

judgments, they require backing by reasons. Thus, reason commends what it

commends, regardless of our feelings, attitudes, opinions, and desires.

2. Impartiality. It involves the idea that each individual’s interests and point of view are
equally important. Itis a principle of justice holding that decisions ought to be based
on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice, or preferring the
benefit to one person over another for improper reasons. Impartiality in morality
requires that we give equal and/or adequate consideration to the interests of all
concerned parties. The principle of imparti ality assumes that every person,
generally speaking, is equally important; that is, no one is seen intrinsically more
significant than anyone else. https://www.coursehero.com/file

To God be the Glory!