Norms of Morality (Law & Conscience) PDF

Learning Objectives: 1. Distinguish between subjective morality (based on personal conscience) and objective morality (based on external laws and principles). 2. Understand how subjective and objective norms work together to guide moral decisions. 3. Apply both subjective and object...

Learning Objectives: 1. Distinguish between subjective morality (based on personal conscience) and objective morality (based on external laws and principles). 2. Understand how subjective and objective norms work together to guide moral decisions. 3. Apply both subjective and objective moral norms to evaluate human actions.  Norm an authoritative standard a principle of right action binding upon the members of a group and serving to guide, control, or regulate proper and acceptable behavior  Custom a usage or practice common to many or to a particular place or class or habitual with an individual long-established practice considered as unwritten law  Custom repeated practice the whole body of usages, practices, or conventions that regulate social life Norms of Morality 1. The Objective Norm: Law 2. The Subjective Norm: Conscience CIRCUM OBJECT Does my Human Act conform the Law and STANCES Conscience? HUMAN ACT ? GOOD OR EVIL? Does it violate the Law and ?GOOD OR Conscience? EVIL? MOTIVE  NORMS OF MORALITY (STANDARD/RULE/DIRECTIVES OF MORALITY) IS MY HUMAN ACT GOOD OR EVIL? 1. WHAT DOES THE LAW SAY? LAW: OBJECTIVE GUIDE TO MAN’S ACTION OBJECTIVE MORALITY CONSIDERS THE ACT ITSELF PERFORMED BY A MORAL AGENT WITH REGARD TO THE OBJECT, MOTIVE AND CIRCUMSTANCES 2. WHAT DOES MY CONSCIENCE SAY? CONSCIENCE: SUBJECTIVE GUIDE TO MAN’S ACTION SUBJECTIVE MORALITY CONSISTS IN RELATION OF THE HUMAN ACT TO THE CONSCIENCE, FREEDOM AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE MORAL AGENT Human Act @ Norms of Morality 1. Does Human Act follow Law and Conscience? Human Act is 2. Does Human Act moral, immoral, violate Law and legal, illegal, legal Conscience? 3. Does Human Act but moral and follow Law and violate etc... conscience? 4. Does Human Act violate law and follow conscience? GENERAL PRINCIPLES HUMAN ACTIONS ARE GOOD WHEN THEY AGREE WITH THE STANDARDS OR NORMS OF MORALITY WHICH ARE CONSCIENCE AND MORAL LAW. IMMORAL OR EVIL ACTIONS LACK PERFECTION; THEY DISAGREE WITH THE NORMS OF MORALITY AND DEVIATE MAN FROM HIS FINAL END.  BY SHOWING THE RIGHTNESS AND WRONGNESS OF HUMAN ACTS, MORALITY: 1. POINTS MAN THE ROAD TO HAPPINESS OR TO THE LAST END 2. DESCRIBED AS THE AGREEMENT AND DISAGREEMENT OF A HUMAN ACT WITH THE NORMS THAT REGULATE HUMAN CONDUCT IN RELATION TO MAN’S ULTIMATE END 3. A KIND A TEST OR STANDARD BY WHICH OUR ACTS ARE MEASURED AS CONFORMITY OR DISCONFORMITY WITH OUR LAST OBJECTIVE IN LIFE.  HUMAN ACTIONS ARE GOOD AND MORAL WHEN THEY LEAD MAN TO HIS LAST END, OTHERWISE HUMAN ACTIONS ARE IMPERFECT AND BAD. BY FOLLOWING THE LAWS OF HIS REASON AND THE DICTATES OF HIS CONSCIENCE, MAN CREATES A SUPERIOR AND MORE BEAUTIFUL ORDER, THE MORAL ORDER.  HUMAN REASON IS NOT THE AUTHOR OF THE LAWS AND PRINCIPLES OF MORALITY. LIKE THE PHYSICAL LAWS, THE MORAL LAWS ALSO COME FROM GOD. HUMAN REASON IS ABLE TO DISCOVER THESE PRINCIPLES AND BY APPLYING THEM TO DIFFERENT SITUATIONS IN LIFE, PRODUCES THE RIGHT CONDUCT AND THE POSITIVE LAWS. OBEDIENCE TO THE MORAL AND CIVIL LAWS BRINGS ABOUT THE SOCIAL ORDER.  “IS THERE ANY OBLIGATION ON OUR PART TO CONFORM OUR CONDUCT TO THE NORMS OF MORALITY?” HUMAN ACTS ARE DIRECTED TO THE LAST END BY LAW AS APPLIED BY CONSCIENCE. LAW AND CONSCIENCE ARE THE DIRECTIVES, THE NORMS OF MORALITY, AND THE MAN HAS AN OBLIGATION NOT ONLY TO OBEY THEM BUT ALSO TO KNOW THEM. What are the norms of Morality? What is the Law? What is Conscience? 1. The Objective Norm: Law St. Thomas Aquinas defines law as “an ordinance of reason, promulgated by competent authority for the sake of the common good.” LAW IT IS AN ORDINANCE OF REASON DIRECTED TOWARDS THE COMMON GOOD AND PROMULGATED BY THE ONE WHO HAS THE CARE OF THE COMMUNITY. 4 ELEMENTS OF A GOOD LAW ORDINANCE OR MANDATE (REASON ) SHOULD DICTATE THE LAW. COMMON GOOD OF ALL CITIZENS AND NOT THE EXCLUSIVE BENEFIT OF SOME FAVORED GROUPS. THE COMMON GOOD IS THE SUM TOTAL BENEFITS DERIVED BY INDIVIDUALS FROM THE GOVERNMENT AND FROM THE NATION AS A WHOLE CONCERN ITSELF PROPERLY WITH THE ORDER DIRECTED TO UNIVERSAL HAPPINESS.” PROMULGATED, I.E., OFFICIALLY PUBLISHED LAWS ARE ENACTED BY THE COMPETENT AUTHORITY OF THE LEGISLATIVE BODY OF THE NATION AND ARE FINALLY APPROVED BY THE PRESIDENT OR BY ANYONE WHO HAS THE CARE OF THE COMMUNITY.  FOUR ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS: A. Ordinance of Reason B. Common Good C. Promulgated D. Person – takes charge of the community ESSENTIAL CHARACTERISTICS OF LAW 1. Law is based on vision, certain presuppositions (Beatitudes) 2. Law arises from and expresses basic values (Ten Commandments)  ETERNAL LAW DIVINE REASON OR THE WILL OF GOD NATURAL DIVINE ORDER OF THINGS APPREHENDED BY REASON MORAL APPREHENDED BY REASON TO DO GOOD AND TO AVOID EVIL DIVINE POSITIVE SPECIAL COMMAND OF GOD THRU SIGNS HUMAN POSITIVE LAWS PROCEEDING FROM HUMAN AUTHORITY ECCLESIASTICAL/ CIVIL CANON (STATE) (CHURCH) D I V I S I O N S O F L A W  Laws can be classified according to: immediate manner of duration author promulgation whether it forbids or effect of prescribes an violation act According to immediate author Human Divine Law is directly Civil (on state attributed to matters) God Ecclesiastical (on church and faith matters)  According to duration God’s plan and providence of the Eternal universe Refers to human law, which gives expression Temporal to eternal law  According to manner of promulgation Directs nature to their end in accordance with nature Natural Eternal law apprehended by reason Enacted by positive act Positive Posited/given Whether it forbids or prescribes an act Requires an action to be done always binds the subject to Affirmative the lawgiver but not at all times Prohibitory laws Binds at all times Negative  According to the effects of violation The violation of such law is seen as fault or sin Moral The violation of such law renders the violator liable to an established penalty Penal Does not infect him with sin Violation of which involves both fault and penalty Mixed  Classification of Laws 1. Divine Laws are laws that come directly from God (Ten Commandments). Divine Laws cannot be changed by any human person. Only God, as the Lawmaker, can change the Divine Law. That is the reason why the Catholic Church cannot allow divorce and gay marriage because it is mandated by God saying: “Man and woman, the two of you become as one, whatever I joined together, let no man separate.” 2. Human Laws are enacted by the Church or State authorities. These are derived from the natural law. a. Ecclesiastical Laws - laws enacted by the Church Example: Canon Law b. Civil Laws - laws enacted by the State Example: Philippine Constitution Functions of Moral Norms/Laws Moral memory of the community; they are the repository of its collective, experiential wisdom Prevent moral paralysis by providing illuminating patterns of behavior and common denominators of values Provide some consistency and stability in the moral life Challenge our moral living by giving expression to the good toward what we ought to strive Subjective Norm of Morality CONSCIENCE  2. The Subjective Norm: Conscience What Is Conscience? - A practical judgment of reason upon an individual act as good to be performed or evil to be avoided. God speaks to man through his mind, heart and will. Man recognizes this as a voice calling him to love, to do good, to avoid evil… because in his heart a law is inscribed by God – we call conscience.. Conscience - Subjective norm of morality - Conscience has the final say in making moral decisions. - A person’s conscience considers all available data when confronted with a decision. - It helps the person make a final judgment on how to act on a given situation. - Along with law, which is the objective norm of morality, conscience helps a person determine whether one is doing the right or the wrong thing When can we use Conscience as a criteria to determine what is right or wrong? Conscience can be used as a criteria to distinguish right from wrong only in the absence of a valid law or if the law is doubtful and unjust. Hence, between a valid law and conscience, law must prevail because ordinary conscience can be biased and subjective. Should We Always Follow our Conscience? It depends. The answer is 'no' if we are speaking about an uninformed conscience. The answer is 'yes' if we are speaking about an informed or educated conscience. For a Catholic, conscience is formed by scripture, the Church's Magisterium and prayerful reflection on one's experience.  6 KINDS OF CONSCIENCE 1. Doubtful Conscience – A kind of conscience where one is not sure whether his act is good or bad. Ex. Is cheating wrong or not? 2. Scrupulous Conscience – It is a sick conscience that sees an act as sinful even if it is not. They’ll bathe ten or fifteen times during a Ex. Seeing mortal single sins where there day, endlessly washing are only venials away dirt that isn’t there. sins. 3. Lax Conscience – A careless conscience that makes light of a serious sin or making it not sinful at all. Ex. Bahala na attitude. 4.Erroneous or False Conscience – A conscience that sees something right as wrong and wrong as right. Ex. It is erroneous conscience which tells the husband to have a mistress, since a macho thing to do.  5. Certain Conscience – One is completely sure that the morality of the act is as exactly as what the conscience dictates. Ex. It is possible for a policemen to be sure that killing the suspect is the best alternative under the principle of self-defense, whereas such killing is in fact unnecessary. 6. True or Correct Conscience – A conscience that judges good as really good and evil as really evil. Ex. It is correct conscience which tells, that getting the property of another without consent is stealing.