Importance Of Natural Law

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Throughout Christian history, natural law has been one the most influential moral and philosophical theories, providing a link between God and human morality. It is a theory which traces back to the works of Aristotle, who argued that everything in life has a purpose or goal, a notion which St Thomas Aquinas developed on in the 13th Century. However between this transition, the Roman philosopher Cicero stated that; "true law is right reason in agreement with nature. It is applied universally and is unchanging and everlasting",1 implying that natural law should apply to all modern ethical dilemmas. This essay will explore the credibility of natural law within a modern setting, looking at two modern day ethical problems. A credible theory is one which is thought to be convincing and believable and this essay will firstly look at how the Catholic Church and natural law have responded to modern day fertility practices, exploring the practices of in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and male sterility tests. Secondly it will explore the issue of modern medical abortions. Concluding how it is dependent on the individual and social groups as to just how far natural law can offer a credible response.

Throughout the history of natural law, all scholars have agreed that its primary principle is that everything in this world has a purpose, often agreeing that this purpose was divinely designed. The natural law that we think of today is predominantly the version presented by Aquinas, who “considered that natural law was the moral code which human beings are naturally inclined towards. God reveals specific commands but these do not go against natural law but rather further and develop it”.2 For Aqunias' theory of natural law, one of his key princip...

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...it is a similar response to their own personal one. However there are equally groups who will not find natural law credible because they would find it difficult to believe that the Church has a right to tell women what to do with their own body. In my personal opinion and experience, I would argue that the Church and natural law are loosing creditability. They still have a massive influence on society and decision making across the world, but with regards to ethical problems, humanitarian approaches are starting to dominate. However I think that it is unfair to deem natural law useless because it still has a strong basis in the world. Many humanitarian laws stem from principles such a natural law. Also ethical issues are complex by nature, each one having their own pros and cons, thereby it cannot be said that natural law is completely useless or completely relevant.

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