Activity 10: St.

Thomas Aquinas’ Natural Law Ethics

Directions:
1. Watch the lecture video entitled “St. Thomas Aquinas’ Natural Law Ethics” by PHILO-NOTES
(Free Online Learning Materials). Here’s the link- https://youtu.be/HoID9FkZATI

2. After watching the lecture video, please provide what is being asked in the following
statements.

a. What is the basic goal of the natural law ethics of St. Thomas Aquinas?
 According to St. Thomas Aquinas, the basic goal of natural law of ethics is "to
do good and avoid evil.
b. When can we say that a person is acting rightly or wrongly?
 Aquinas defines a right act as one that is performed in accordance with moral
law.
c. What is moral law?
 The moral law is the dictate of reason. However, Aquinas believes that moral
law is derived from God's Eternal Law. Indeed, for Aquinas, moral law is the
Divine Law expressed in human nature, which states: "Do good and avoid
evil."
d. What is conscience?
 According to Aquinas, the conscience is the inner voice of the intellect or
reason that calls the human person to follow the moral, that is, to do good and
avoid evil. In the natural law of ethics, conscience serves as the guide in
making moral decisions.
e. When can we say that one’s action obeys conscience?
 According to Aquinas, an action obeys conscience if it satisfies three natural
human inclinations: self-preservation, just dealing with others, and human
species propagation.
f. What are the three-determinants of moral actions according to St. Thomas Aquinas?
Briefly define/describe each determinant.

 Object of the human act - refers to what the will intends primarily and directly;
it can be a thing or an action.
 Circumstances - refers to the conditions that influence the morality of an
action. It is important to note that the circumstances can either aggravate or
mitigate the morality of a human act. Aquinas classified circumstances as
follows: the quality of a person (who), the quality/quantity of the moral object
(what), the circumstances of place (where), the circumstances of means (by
what means), the circumstance of end (why), the manner in which the action is
done (how), and the time element (when).
 End - refers to the purpose of the doer or agent of the human act. According to
Aquinas, it can be considered a circumstance because the end is an essential
part of every moral act.
g. Enumerate the four principles of Double effect.
 The following are the four principles of Double effects:
 The action intended must be good in itself, or at least morally
indifferent; otherwise, the act is evil at the very last outset;
 The good effect must follow the action at least as immediately as the
evil effect, or the good and evil effects must occur simultaneously;
 The foreseen evil effect should not be intended or approved l, but merely
permitted to occur; and
 There must be a proportionate and sufficient reason for allowing the evil
effect to occur while performing the action.

h. Cite a certain moral case (not the case cited in the lecture video) and assess its
morality using the four principles of double effect.

 Moral Case: The use of chemotherapy for a cancer patient

 Good Effect - Chemotherapy may shrink or slow the growth of your
cancer, allowing you to live longer and alleviate your symptoms.
Additionally, chemotherapy may reduce the likelihood of the cancer
returning.
 Evil Effects - Chemotherapy can cause fatigue, hair loss, headaches,
muscle pain, stomach pain, mouth and throat sores, diarrhea,
constipation, nausea and vomiting, blood disorders, and other side
effects.
 The First Principle of Double Effect:
 The first principle of double effect is satisfied because the intention of
using chemotherapy is good in and of itself, and we may even consider
it morally neutral.
 Second Principle of Double Effect:
 The second principle is also satisfied because the good effect, which is
to cure and reduce the chances of a patient's cancer returning, occurs
immediately after the action. Even if it causes several side effects after
chemotherapy, at least the bad effect occurs concurrently with the good
effect.
 Third Principle of Double Effect:
 The third principle is also satisfied because the various effects were not
planned and were simply allowed to occur. As we can see, the main goal
of using chemotherapy is to cure a patient's cancer disease; even though
the side effects are foreseen by Aquinas, they are simply allowed to
occur.
 Fourth Principle of Double Effect:
Finally, the fourth principle is satisfied because there is a sufficient
reason for allowing the evil effect, i.e. the various side effects, to occur.
Needless to say, if chemotherapy is not administered to a cancer patient,
the cancer cells will continue to grow rapidly; however, if chemotherapy
is administered, the patient will live longer, and Aquinas would have us
believe that we have saved one life.
Therefore, the use of chemotherapy for a cancer patient which implies
several side effects is morally right.