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NORMS OF MORALITY

INTRODUCTION

- since childhood, we learn early the difference between good

and bad
- It could then be said that everybody has a natural inclination
towards morality = Even in primitive society, morality plays an
essential role in the form of things allowed and prohibited
- Morality then is a universal phenomenon; manifested in every
person in every society

NORMS

- in general, they are considered as standard of measurement

- it is an instrument through which the quality or quantity of a
thing is determined

NORMS OF MORALITY

- are the standards that indicate the rightfulness or wrongfulness,

goodness or evilness, value or disvalue of a thing
- these are qualities that cannot be measured by any mechanical
device because they are spiritual qualities that appeal only to reason

- norms of morality “criteria of judgment about the sorts of

person we ought to be and the sorts of action we ought to
perform.”
Criteria - a set of principles from which we may deduce a
conclusion.

- Morality therefore, consists in the relation of a thing or action with

the norm (conformity or non-conformity). It can then be defined as the
quality of things manifesting their conformity or non-
conformity with the norm or criteria. That which conforms = good;
that which do not = evil or immoral

I. OBJECTIVE NORM OF MORALITY = LAW

 LAW
- an ordinance of reason promulgated for the common good
by one who has charge of the society

 ORDINANCE OF REASON
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- rational deliberations intended to guide men towards what is

good for them and for the society
- it should not be arbitrary or whimsical but that which order
and direct human acts toward their ultimate end/Ultimate
Good
- Reason recognizes what is good
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- what we ought to follow
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- Law makes us follow what is good
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- flows from reasonable will – from illumined
understanding of the will of an end

- qualities of Law:
- just
- honest
- possible of fulfillment
- useful
- permanent

 PROMULGATED
- made known to the people who are bound to observe them
- the public must be made aware of what is expected of them;
law binds the subject until it is repealed by the lawful public
authority
- it is promulgated in a society = presupposes a community

 FOR THE COMMON GOOD

- its objective purpose of the Laws is the attainment of the
common good
- it is made not to fulfill the lawmakers’ personal interests but for
the good of all
- a law is not meant to impose hardships or needless restrictions
- True Law tends to make men good, liberate them from
perverse and mistaken judgments so as to lead them to their
ultimate end

 BY ONE WHO IS IN CHARGE OF THE SOCIETY

- a law can only be valid if they are the legitimate exercise of
authority
- only those who have the power and responsibility to govern have
the power to enact law
- lawful authority – implies lawful assumption of power and
credibility
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- Author of the Law: legislator, lawgiver

LAWS = they are necessary to man. They regulate human activity

= without laws, the best intention will be thwarted either by
oneself or by others, anarchy and chaos will reign because
each one will act according to one’s wishes without regard
for the good of others or for the common good
= without laws = man will not find his ultimate purpose in
life

CLASSIFICATION OF LAWS

 ACCORDING TO IMMEDIATE AUTHOR

a) Divine (Positive) Laws

- those promulgated, or made known to us by special command of
God
- they are explicit demands of our essential tendencies as rational
beings
- they direct man towards his proper end
Ex. Decalogue

b) Human (Positive) Laws

- promulgated by a legitimate human authority = this authority
resides either in the State or in the Church
- they are intended to preserve peace and harmony within a society
and to direct each member of that society to work towards the
common good.

b.1) Ecclesiastical Laws = enacted by the church

- embodied in the Canon Law

b.2) Civil Laws = enacted by the state

- embodied in the Constitution and Code of Civil Laws

 ACCORDING TO DURATION

a) Temporal Laws = all human laws

b) Eternal Laws = God’s plan and providence for the universe

 ACCORDING TO MANNER OF PROMULGATION

a) Natural Laws
b) Positive Laws
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 ACCORDING TO WHETHER THEY PRESCRIBE AN ACT OR FORBID

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a) Affirmative Laws
- those that require the performance of an act

b) Negative Laws
- those that require the omission of an act

 ACCORDING TO THE EFFECT OF VIOLATION

a) Moral
- fault or sin
- binds in conscience, that is, enforced by our personal conviction
about what ought to be done as good or to be avoided as wrong

b) Penal
- subject liable to penalty but not inflicted with sin
- binds by virtue of the penalty imposed, that is, enforced by our
fear of being caught and punished

c) Mixed
- both fault and penalty

MORAL AND POLITICAL LAWS

- they are those derived from the natural law
- They direct man towards the higher values of development as a
human being; rational being; a person.

- Therefore, Moral Laws are universal laws binding all men alike;
they regulate the mind, heart and body of man insofar as he is a
man.
- The so-called “natural moral laws” are those that are written in
the hearts of all men. They are the inherent and essential
tendencies of human nature towards the good proper to it.

- Political Laws, (simply referred to as human positive laws)

both civil and criminal laws, are those enacted by men to guide
their actuations in society and in relation to one another. They
regulate man’s external actions. Their objective is peace and
order and material prosperity. They presume moral laws.
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II. CONSCIENCE (Subjective Norm of Morality)

- it is the proximate norm of morality

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- it is what confronts an action as good or bad
 Function = to examine, judge and pass a sentence on all moral
actions

 Etymology
- from latin “conscientia” which means “trial of oneself” both in
accusation and defense

 Definition
- an act of practical judgment of reason deciding upon an individual
action as good and to be performed or as evil to be avoided

 Practical judgment
- it is an interference whose conclusion leads to something
practicable
- because its function is to “determine what ought to be done in a
given situation.” = after the commission of an act, the
conscience assumes the role of approving or reproaching

- it is also a practical judgment because it is an interference

leading to a practicable conclusion = as an interferential
reasoning, it makes use of the principles of natural law. Thus,
the conscience is but an extension of the Natural Law which
guides man to seek the good of his nature

 KINDS OF CONSCIENCE

1) CORRECT OR TRUE
- judges what is good as good and what is evil as evil

2) ERRONEOUS OR FALSE
- judges incorrectly that what is good is evil and what is evil is good.

Factor from which errors in conscience flows:

a) Mistake in inferential thinking (such as deriving a wrong

conclusion from a wrong principles)
b) Ignorance of the Law
c) Ignorance of the Fact and other circumstances modifying
human actions
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d) Ignorance of future consequences especially those

dependent on the freewill of others

Inculpable Conscience – error is not willfully intended

Culpable Conscience – if error is due to neglect or malice

Difference between them:

- the distinction between voluntary and involuntary error
- culpable = voluntary
- inculpable = involuntary = honest mistake

3) CERTAIN
- subjective assurance of the lawfulness or lawlessness of a certain act
- the person is sure of his/her decision
- it is possible however to be sure of something as god when in fact it
is just the opposite, and vice-versa
Theologians – believed that a certain conscience should always be
followed so as to preserve the integrity of the human reason – to
contradict is morally guilty.

4) DOUBTFUL
- a vacillating conscience, unable to form a definite judgment on a
certain action.
- it should be first allowed to settle its doubts before resorting to
action

5) SCRUPULOUS
- a rigorous conscience – extremely afraid of committing evil
- meticulous and wants inconvertible proofs before it acts

6) LAX
- one which refuses to be bothered about the distinction of good and
evil
- rushes on and is quick to justify itself
- having this kind of conscience, one follows the impulse of “bahala na”
attitude on matters of morals

FORMATION OF CONSCIENCE
- It is our obligation to cultivate a clear and true conscience = we can
accomplish it:

a) Studying and searching for truths in the laws and in the sciences
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b) Cultivation of good habits – this means that the practical truths we

discover must be internalized and then externalized in actions

c) Militate against evil, condemning it where we find it – not only turn

our back on evil but to fight against it

d) Developing proper use of freedom

Human Freedom – if it is true freedom in action, it is not submission
to the coercive pressure of external force, but self-fulfillment through
inner love of the good in accordance with the pattern of divine holiness
which is the eternal law reflected in man’s own nature

CONCLUSION

 Conscience = our exalted participation in the eternal law of

God because its function is to reveal our likeness our likeness to
God. It is therefore, the voice of God within us.

- it is compulsory – because it operates within the realm of truth

and sound reason = only when it impels us to act according to
our rational insights that it is truly the voice of God – but if it
deviates from the correct norm, it ceases to be rational and no
longer now the voice of God.
- As long as it operates according to sound rational insight = it is
infallible, it should then be followed

 Conscience – insofar as it is the “voice of God” - it assumes the

authority of God. God is the ultimate norm to which
conscience must conform to.