PHIL 1002 Lecture 1: Natural Law Theories
6 Feb 2018
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Document Summary
What is a "natural law theory": the idea that there are moral rules written into nature, i. e. a "natural" order of things. If you"re born to be a king, you must figure out what makes the best king and live according to it because you"ve been destined to this life. Eternal law: not distinct from the mind of god, the reflection of god on his own mind, god"s supreme reason that is unchangeable and thus eternal. Since god is the supreme ruler then it stands to reason that he is the supreme originator of law. In itself, eternal law is unknowable to humans: you have to be god to know everything about eternal law, you are stuck speculating whether it exists. Divine law: that which is derived from eternal law and rendered knowable to humans through revelation (i. e. the bible, necessary because human judgment is incomplete and cannot reason law/justice/morality just from nature and society.
