255. Moral Precepts, Natural Law, and the Decalogue

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

• Moral Precepts and Natural Law: Whether all moral precepts of the Old Law pertain to the law of nature, or whether some are additions to it
• Virtue and Precept: Whether moral precepts concern the acts of all virtues or only justice
• The Decalogue’s Completeness: Whether all moral precepts can be reduced to the Ten Commandments
• Structure of the Decalogue: The threefold distinction and organization of the commandments
• The Sabbath Precept: Why the Sabbath commandment, though containing a ceremonial element, is included in the Decalogue’s moral precepts

Key Arguments #

Question 1: Do All Moral Precepts Pertain to Natural Law? #

Thomas’s Position: All moral precepts pertain to the law of nature, but not in the same way.

• Immediately Known Precepts: Some things are at once judged by natural reason of any man to be done or avoided (e.g., “honor your father and mother,” “do not kill,” “do not steal”)
• Precepts Requiring Wise Consideration: Other things require subtle inquiry and are discerned by the wise as agreeable to reason (e.g., honoring the elderly)
• Precepts Requiring Divine Instruction: Still others require divine instruction concerning divine matters (e.g., “do not make any similitude,” “do not take the name of God in vain”)
• Foundation in Natural Reason: Every judgment of practical reason proceeds from some naturally known beginnings, just as every speculative judgment proceeds from axioms

Question 2: Do Moral Precepts Concern All Virtues? #

Objection: Only justice implies a notion of debitum (debt); therefore only justice falls under precept.

Thomas’s Response:

• The divine law orders men to community with God (not merely civil community as human law does)
• Man is joined to God through reason, in which is the image of God
• Intellectual virtues order the acts of reason in themselves
• Moral virtues order the acts of reason regarding interior passions and exterior operations
• Distinction: Some precepts fall under obligation (those without which virtue cannot be observed); others fall under counsel (those pertaining to perfect virtue)
• Metaphorical Justice: In all virtues other than strict justice, there is a notion of debt—namely, that the lower powers ought to obey reason. Aristotle speaks of a “metaphorical” justice in this sense.

Question 3: Can All Moral Precepts Be Reduced to the Decalogue? #

Thomas’s Position: Yes. The first two commandments (love of God and love of neighbor) are the first and common precepts of natural law. All other moral precepts are either immediate conclusions or remote conclusions from these two.

• Those Immediately Known: Contained in the Decalogue as proximate conclusions from common beginnings
• Those Known by the Wise: Contained in the Decalogue a converso (conversely)—as remote conclusions from the two great commandments

Question 4: The Structure of the Decalogue #

Division: Three precepts ordering man to God; seven precepts ordering man to neighbor.

• To God (Three):

  1. Not having alien gods—pertains to fidelity to God
  2. Not taking God’s name in vain—pertains to reverence for God
  3. Remembering to sanctify the Sabbath—pertains to service to God

• To Neighbor (Seven): These are more “hidden” in their notion of debt than precepts concerning God or justice in the strict sense; the ratio of debt in other virtues is more obscured

The Sabbath Precept: Though it contains something ceremonial (the determination of a specific day), it is moral insofar as it commands that man give rest to divine things and worship God. The precept concerns the moral obligation to honor God; the Sabbath day itself is the ceremonial determination.

Important Definitions #

• Moral Precepts: Precepts about those things which in themselves pertain to good morals (boni mores); they concern acts that agree with reason
• Natural Law: The first beginnings of practical reason, naturally known to all; the foundation from which all moral precepts derive
• Precept (praeceptum): That which has the notion of debt (debitum) or obligation
• Counsel (consilium): That which pertains to the well-being of perfect virtue but is not obligatory
• Debitum (debt): The notion that something is owed; in justice it is owed between persons; in other virtues, it concerns that lower powers ought to obey reason

Examples & Illustrations #

Adultery and the Mean #

Aristotle teaches that moral virtue lies between two extremes, with a mean between too much and too little. However, adultery is already in the extreme—it is always wrong. There is no mean of adultery, no “moderate” amount of adultery. The same applies to murder and theft.

Anger and Reason #

Anger is a virtue when ruled by reason. The irascible appetite must obey reason, just as thirst and hunger must obey reason. If I am angry but acknowledge that it is reasonable not to be angry in this circumstance, I demonstrate that reason rules my anger.

Marriage and Commitment #

A marriage where one party believes there is “no way out” differs fundamentally from a marriage where one believes one could “get up and leave anytime.” The former takes the commitment seriously; the latter does not truly commit.

Speed Limits and Determinations #

The precept not to kill is a natural law precept. The determination that one should drive at 30 or 45 mph in the city is not itself a natural law precept but a reasonable specification of how to preserve life. Similarly, the determination that rest should be given on the Sabbath (rather than another day) is a ceremonial determination of the moral precept to honor God.

Drunkenness and Justice #

If one gets drunk while remaining on one’s own property, there may be no civil law against it. But if one gets drunk and drives a car on public roads, it falls under justice because it endangers the lives and property of others—it violates the community’s order.

The Ignorant Driver #

A humorous legal decision: a drunk driver crashed his car into a tree (on municipal property) and sued the municipality. The judge wrote the decision in verse, essentially saying: if you are going to be a fool and hit a tree, you should not drink so much.

Notable Quotes #

“For since human mores are said in order to reason, which is the proper beginning of human acts, those morals are called good, which agree with reason, and those bad, which discord from reason.”

“Just as every judgment of practical reason proceeds from some beginnings naturally known, so also every judgment of practical reason proceeds from some beginnings naturally known.”

“It is necessary that all moral precepts pertain to the law of nature, but not in the same way.”

“The divine law proposes precepts about all those things to which men are well ordered to community with God.”

“Some precepts fall under the obligation of the precept; some, however, which pertain to the well-being of perfect virtue, come under the admonition of counsel.”

“The son is always in debt to his father.” (Plato)

Questions Addressed #

Question 1: Do All Moral Precepts Pertain to Natural Law? #

Resolution: Yes, but in different ways. Some are immediately known by natural reason; some require wise consideration; some require divine instruction about divine matters.

Question 2: Do Moral Precepts Concern All Virtues or Only Justice? #

Resolution: All virtues, because the divine law orders men to communion with God through all the virtues, not merely through justice as human law does.

Question 3: Can All Moral Precepts Be Reduced to the Decalogue? #

Resolution: Yes. All moral precepts are either immediate or remote conclusions from the two great commandments of love of God and love of neighbor, which are the first and common precepts of natural law.

Question 4: How Are the Precepts of the Decalogue Suitably Distinguished? #

Resolution: Into three precepts to God (fidelity, reverence, service) and seven to neighbor. This distinction mirrors the order of reason: man’s ordering to his end (God) and man’s ordering to neighbor.