There are five primary precepts to Natural Law, Aquinas believed that these precepts came from God. They were derived from looking at our nature and surroundings. Primary Precepts are defined as being five rules that everyone should strive to have in their nature, they are: the preservation of life, reproduction, to educate and nurture the young, to live peacefully in society and to worship God. These primary precepts are classed as always being true, regardless of situation, and are instilled into all human beings, which provides Natural Law theory with its absolutist view point. One strength of this absolutist view point is that it provides us with a very straight forward and simple approach to decision making; as rules are common to all people in all communities they are therefore easier to follow.
With moral absolutism, there are set absolute laws that are universal and always true. Every human being has an obligation to adhere to these laws. Moral absolutism agrees with the theory that some actions are moral or immoral regardless of the circumstances that come with these situations. In moral absolutism, the Ten Commandments are considered not to be broken no matter what. For example, one of the Ten Commandments ‘Thou shall not kill’ should not be broken and is applied to situations such as the death penalty or abortion.
Natural Law Theory is a complete theory within itself, in that it contains everything you need to deal with character, motive and actions, and gives a day to day system for living a complete moral life, of which there is the benefit of fulfilling the purpose of which humans are designed to be on the Earth, according to the belief of Aquinas. Another strength of Natural Law Theory is that it is also very flexible, in that the primary precepts are unchanging, but the secondary precepts which create the apparent absolute rules of Natural Law, can change dependant on any culture, circumstance or perspective, so that it can be literally applied anywhere. Also, Natural Law Theory has no definition of slight or partial acts that may be considered wrong; there are only absolutes, such as it is wrong to murder. Thus it can call certain acts intrinsically wrong, like fraud, sexual exploitation, thievery, torture, etc. A final strength of this proposition is that the humans are capable of using reason to work out how to live, and are therefore not in strictures by our passions or our genes.
Absolutism is a theory which although may not seem fashionable is evident in many people’s views and opinions. It also is a theory which allows there to be a shared understanding and values which enables a dialogue between societies. It also allows clear judgment and legislation of acts which are deemed wrong, although this could be misused. In summary absolutism is a matter of right and wrong with no
Natural law is a law based on five key principles called the primary precepts. These are: Preservation of Life, Reproduction, Care and Nurture of the Young, to Live Peacefully in Society and finally to Worship God. These laws must always be followed and in the order in which they are stated. These laws are absolute, but in addition to these rules there are another set of principles called the secondary precepts. These aren’t named and so have to be decided upon the individual but they must follow the primary precepts.
Furthermore, Natural Moral Law is absolute in its nature because it allows no exceptions to its rules and can be applied universally. Aristotle believed ultimate happiness (known as eudemonia in Ancient Greece) to be the aim of life, Aquinas developed this idea though, claiming this was achieved through eternal fellowship with God and ‘beatific vision’. He postulated that the application of Natural Moral Law in our lives was the way in which we could achieve this ultimate goal of ultimate happiness. Aquinas identified four laws by which humans live; his general definition of law is “a rule put into place by one who has care of the community”. The lowest level of law, according to Aquinas is human law; the law created by us and abided by in everyday life in order to from a recognisable structure in society.
Fatalism and compatibilism are the foundation reasoning’s behind mans well being on earth and weather the choices they make are forced and the outcomes of an action be the result of moral responsibility. Man occupies a unique position in the universe where man consists in the principle of morally responsibility for his every thought, word and deed. In this case everything happens out of compatibilism where man has free choice over the pre-determined events and it is their moral responsibility to carry out the determined events the best way possible. On the contrary, events are pre-determined by natural forces, that there is a rational being that sets the goal for everything that happens in nature and that being is God. These irresistible forces are like a boat being tossed around on the waves in a storm where it is ridiculous to fight against the relentless law of fate.
Ethics Awareness Inventory Analysis THE ACCEPTABLE PLATFORM OF ETHICAL ANALYSIS IS TO FOCUS ON IMPROVING THE WELL-BEING OF INDIVIDUALS. ESTABLISHING AN INDIVIDUAL’S MORAL THOUGHT PROCESS CAPABILITIES IS VITAL BECAUSE AS HUMAN BEINGS THERE IS A SOLID PROPENSITY REGARDING BIGOTRY, SELFISHNESS, AND SELF-ABSORPTION. IN MANY INSTANCES, PROFESSIONAL ETHICS IN ORGANIZATIONS CONFLICTS WITH HIS OR HER PERSONAL ETHICS. PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL VIEWS FROM MY PERSONAL ETHICAL PERSPECTIVE, IT IS A DUTY OR AN OBLIGATION TO DO EVERYTHING WITHIN HIS OR HER POWER TO STRIVE TO DO WHAT IS RIGHT. PERSONAL ETHICS STRUCTURE PERSONAL DECISIONS AND BEHAVIORS, AND PROVIDE A GUIDE POST FOR MORAL ACTIONS (RUGGIERO, 2008).
Thus, the fear of punishment by sovereign makes promise keeping possible. In his argument for relativism, Hobbes, thus, argues that morality exists only in society and that the people, through a covenant, ensure their security by appointing a leader who will enforce a given moral law.
My Personal Code of Ethics First we need to consider what ethics is and what it means to us as individuals. Ethics is basically the study of morality and moral issues. It helps us understand how wrong and right relate to human behavior. Giving us a much better understanding of why people react the way they do in many different situations. I believe that ethics are very important in creating the moral fiber of each and every individual.