233. Human Law, Divine Law, and the Necessity of Three Laws

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Necessity of Human Law (Article 3) #

The Problem: If natural law suffices (as a partaking of eternal law), why do we need human law?

Thomas’s Response: Natural law provides only general, universal principles. Human reason must derive particular, concrete applications for specific circumstances.

• Analogy to Speculative Reason: Just as speculative reason derives particular conclusions from universal axioms (e.g., deriving the Pythagorean theorem from known principles), practical reason derives particular laws from natural law precepts.
• Natural Law as Beginning, Not Completion: Natural law consists of general principles (e.g., “do not kill”) but does not specify how to apply these to particular situations.
• Human Reason’s Role: Human reason is not “the measure of things” but rather participates in divine reason. It must extend from natural law’s general precepts to particular, concrete regulations.

Key Distinction: Human reason is not the measure of things; rather, things measure themselves against reason. Just as a statement is true because reality corresponds to it (not vice versa), human law must conform to the natural and divine order, not create it.

Examples of Human Law Derivations:

• General principle: “Do not kill innocents”
• Particular application: Speed limits in school zones (20 mph during school hours)
• Rationale: Protects children who walk and cross streets; different limits apply to highways (where pedestrians don’t walk) vs. city streets (where they do)
• Particular application: Restrictions on firing guns in cities
• Rationale: Self-defense is natural right, but its exercise must be regulated to prevent harm to innocents

Measures and Certainty: A valid objection claims human reason cannot be a measure because measures must be most certain. However, Thomas responds that measures must be certain “according to their genus”—practical matters involving contingent, singular things cannot have the infallibility of geometric proofs. A measuring rod loses precision in extreme temperatures, but this doesn’t invalidate its use; measures must be appropriate to their subject matter.

The Necessity of Divine Law (Article 4) #

The Problem: If eternal law and natural law suffice, why is divine law (beyond these two) necessary?

Four Reasons Divine Law is Necessary:

1. Supernatural End Exceeds Natural Capacity

   • Humans are ordered to eternal beatitude, which transcends natural human ability
   • This parallels the argument for why theology is necessary beyond philosophy
   • Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics addresses an end within natural human capacity (contemplation through natural reason)
   • But our true last end—eternal beatitude—surpasses what natural reason alone can achieve or understand
   • Therefore, law directing us to this supernatural end must come from God

2. Uncertainty of Human Judgment (Especially Regarding Contingent Things)

   • Human judgment about concrete, particular, contingent matters varies from person to person
   • Different people judge differently about what should be done and avoided
   • Divine law provides certitude that human judgment cannot achieve
   • God, being infallible, cannot be mistaken in His law
   • Illustration: Church authority provides certainty about matters where human judgment would be divided

3. Divine Law Directs Interior Acts (Not Merely Exterior Acts)

   • Human law can regulate only exterior acts, which are observable
   • Human law cannot adequately direct interior motions of the soul (interior acts, intentions, desires)
   • Perfection of virtue requires rectification of both interior and exterior acts
   • Therefore, divine law is necessary for sanctifying the interior will and dispositions
   • Christ’s teaching in the Sermon on the Mount exemplifies this: “If you look at a woman with lust, you have already committed adultery in your heart”
   • Natural law alone says “do not commit adultery”; divine law demands purity of heart

4. Divine Law Can Prohibit All Evils Without Impeding Common Good

   • Human law cannot prohibit all evils because doing so would impede the common good
   • For example: prohibiting all instances of lying would prevent beneficial deceptions (e.g., deceptions that protect innocents)
   • Divine law, however, can forbid all evils (omnia peccata) without such unintended harmful consequences
   • Only perfect divine wisdom can distinguish between apparent goods that are truly evil and permit all genuine goods

Key Arguments #

Why Human Law Derivation Parallels Speculative Reasoning #

• Speculative Reason: Proceeds from indemonstrable first principles (e.g., “the whole is greater than the part”) to particular conclusions (diverse sciences, specific theorems)
• Practical Reason: Similarly proceeds from indemonstrable first principles (precepts of natural law) to particular sanctions (human laws)
• Both reason processes differ by their end (speculative seeks knowledge; practical seeks action), but both move from universal to particular

The “Measure” Objection and Thomas’s Response #

Objection: Human reason cannot be a measure of things; measures must be most certain (like a standard meter); therefore human law cannot proceed from human reason.

Response:

• Measures must be certain “according to their genus”—appropriate to their subject matter
• Practical matters are inherently contingent and singular, unlike mathematical necessities
• A measuring rod may expand or contract with temperature, but this doesn’t negate its utility; it remains a valid measure within reasonable conditions
• Human law, similarly, need not achieve geometric certainty to be a valid measure for human actions

Important Definitions #

Natural Law (from previous article, referenced here): A partaking of the eternal law in the rational creature; consists of general, universal principles known naturally (e.g., do good and avoid evil; do not kill innocents).

Human Law: Particular dispositions derived from natural law through human reason; applied to specific circumstances and contingencies. Called “human law” because it is made by human authority and concerns human acts in their particularity.

Cinderesis (κίνησις / φρόνησις reference implied): Natural understanding; in practical reason, the knowledge of indemonstrable first principles (analogous to intuition of axioms in speculative reason).

Common Good (referenced implicitly): The end to which human law must be ordered; a good that many can share without diminishment and that is necessary for human life.

Divine Law: Law given by God for directing humans to their supernatural end; includes both exterior acts and interior dispositions; operates with divine infallibility and wisdom.

Examples & Illustrations #

Speed Limits #

• General principle (natural law): “Thou shalt not kill”
• Particular application (human law): 20 mph in school zones during school hours
• Necessity: Protects children who walk and cross streets
• Variation: Highways may have higher limits (70 mph) because pedestrians do not normally walk on highways
• Berquist’s personal anecdote: He learned to obey the 20 mph limit on Floro Street near the school, recognizing the particular prudence of the regulation

Firearms Regulation #

• General principle: Right to self-defense
• Particular application: Restrictions on shooting guns in cities
• Necessity: Prevents harm to innocent bystanders
• Anecdote: Berquist’s neighbor who fired a hunting gun on New Year’s Eve—uncertain whether it was legally prohibited, but the potential for accident and harm illustrates why such regulations are necessary

Automobile Regulation in General #

• General principle (natural law): Do not kill
• Particular circumstance: Invention of the automobile, which can cause death easily
• Regulatory challenge: How to make automobile use compatible with “thou shalt not kill”
• Solutions: Speed limits vary by context (highways vs. city streets); licensing may be required in some jurisdictions

Mozart’s Last Five Symphonies (As Expression of Virtue) #

• Context: Aristotle teaches that music represents not only emotions but also virtues
• Symphonies 36 and 41 (C major): Represent magnanimity—doing great things in all virtues
• Symphonies 38 and 40: Represent courage—38 is more about approaching difficulty and fighting evil; 40 is more about patient suffering of what cannot be controlled
• Symphony 39 (E-flat major): Represents relaxation of the great man, less austere than the others
• Point: These compositions demonstrate hierarchy and order in virtue, analogous to the necessity of different laws for directing human acts to their proper end

Notable Quotes #

“From human reason, no law is able to go forward [because human reason is not the measure of things].” — Thomas Aquinas (cited by Berquist, paraphrased from Summa II-II, Q. 91, A. 3)

“If you look at a woman with lust in your heart, you have already committed adultery.” — Christ, Sermon on the Mount (cited by Berquist as example of divine law directing interior acts)

“The beginning of justice is going forward from nature; then from the usefulness of reason certain things are found; then things both proceed from nature and are approved by custom; then law is what should be observed.” — Cicero, Rhetoric (cited by Berquist via Thomas Aquinas)

“Practical reason is about things to be done which are singular and contingent.” — Thomas Aquinas (cited by Berquist as justification for why human law need not achieve geometric certainty)

Questions Addressed #

Q1: Is Human Law Necessary? #

Objection: Natural law suffices because it is a partaking of eternal law, and through eternal law all things are ordered. Also, human reason is not the measure of things, so no law can proceed from it. Finally, human judgment is uncertain, so human law cannot be certain enough to be valid.

Thomas’s Answer:

• Natural law provides only general principles
• Human reason must extend these principles to particular, concrete applications
• This parallels how speculative reason derives particular conclusions from universal axioms
• Human reason, though not “the measure of things,” participates in divine reason and can validly apply natural law to contingencies
• Measures need only be certain “according to their genus”—practical matters do not require geometric certainty

Q2: Is Divine Law (Beyond Eternal and Natural Law) Necessary? #

Objection: Eternal law and natural law suffice. God left man in the hand of his own counsel (reason). Irrational creatures do not require divine law beyond natural inclination. Why should rational creatures?

Thomas’s Answer:

• Primary reason: Man is ordered to eternal beatitude, exceeding natural human capacity
• Secondary reasons: (1) Human judgment uncertain about contingencies and interior acts; (2) Divine law directs interior dispositions, not merely exterior acts; (3) Divine law can prohibit all evils without impeding common good
• Divine law is necessary because man’s true end transcends his natural powers

Connections to Broader Thomistic Framework #

To Previous Articles: This article builds on the definition of law (Q. 90) and the existence of eternal law (Q. 91, A. 1) and natural law (Q. 91, A. 2).

To Aristotelian Philosophy: Uses Aristotle’s distinction between practical and speculative reason; references Nicomachean Ethics as insufficient (it addresses only natural end, not supernatural beatitude).

To Augustine: Cites Augustine’s teaching that God left man to his own counsel (Ecclesiasticus 15) and Augustine’s affirmation of both eternal law and temporal (human) law.

To Scripture: References the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5) as exemplifying how divine law surpasses mere external conformity to demand interior purity of heart.