Prima Secundae
224. Natural Law II and Human Law: Replies on Grace and Unjust Laws; Why Human Laws Are Needed and How They Derive from Natural Law
Class of 2015-06-11
https://berquistcourse.com/course/theology/11-prima-secundae/224-natural-law-ii-and-human-law-replies-on-grace-and-unjust/

[0:00] The first therefore it should be said that guilt defeats the law of nature in particular, but not in universal. Except perhaps as regards the second precepts of the natural law, right?

[0:17] To the second should be said that although grace is more efficacious than nature, nevertheless nature is more what essential to man, and therefore more permanent. Huh? That's what we're saying about the virtues too, right? Acquired virtues, right? Is kind of is that related to what when we say nature was first and then yeah, grace is something added. Yeah, yeah. We wouldn't call habit a second nature, right?

[0:50] I think you say that acquired habit is more second nature than yeah. Don't think of faith as being a second nature so much. Did you did you did you celebrate Saint Barnabas today? Bartholomew. We had Barnabas yesterday. Don't ask me why they did this, but yesterday we had Barnabas and today we have Bartholomew. Yeah, Doesn't Barnabas have another name too? Son of encouragement. That's what it means.

[1:25] But justice. What was it? No, Barnabas. Was it justice? I mean, there are there are even in the gospels. I guess a lot of different names, you know. Huh? I'll tell you the name straight there. I was giving a list in the the Matthew there, you know. Bartholomew is another name. Not Barnabas. How Barnabas? Bartholomew. Bartholomew. So I said to my wife, "at mass there today." I said, "We have to have root beer floats tonight."

[1:58] I used to have with the kids, you know, when they were little, you know, on Apostles' Day we'd have root beer floats, you know. because Rose is not that crazy about root beer, so I said, "You will, you." will

[2:14] Oh Joseph his name was Joseph who was surnamed by the Apostles Barnabas So Barnabas is like a nickname Yeah And he was a Levite Yeah One of the 72 From Cyprus He was Cypriot Interesting Joseph To the third, it, should be said that that argument proceeds about the second precepts of the natural law, against which some legislators make somewhat wicked laws, statutes which are iniqua So we're involved in the United States now.

[2:52] Yeah Tommy? was telling me I guess one of our friends there in the pro-life committee there wrote to the local congressman. You know about this business. In fact, a lot of them are just just awful. You know the way they twist things and so see things don't see things. Should take a break before we begin the human law. Then we're not to consider about human law, and first about the law itself, by itself.

[3:38] Secondly, about its power. Third, about its mutability. About the first four things are asked. First, about its usefulness. Secondly, about its origin. Third, about its quality. And fourth, about the division of the same.

[4:16] To the first end, one goes forward thus. It seems that it was not useful for some laws to be laid down by men. Who has that opinion?

[4:32] For the intention of any law is that through it men become what good, huh? Aristotle and Thomas speak of this kind of obvious, you know. But if people would believe it nowadays, you can't you know moralize. You can't make a law You can't impose your morals on me. But men are more induced to the good of the what voluntary through admonitions, I guess, or force. force than forced by laws.

[5:06] Therefore, it is not necessary for laws to be laid down. Just get a bigger stick Yeah. So it'd be better to suggest people do something than tell them you must do this.

[5:25] Suggest you read Aristotle. You must read Aristotle every day. Secondly, Aristotle, excuse me, the philosopher says wherever he is, in the fifth book of the Ethics, huh? To what the judge right? Men flee right. As to and how many minutes to the law then? As to, oh, as to an animated just one. But the animated justice is better than the inanimate one, huh? Which is contained by laws.

[6:01] Therefore, it is better for the execution of justice to commit yourself to what the judgment of the judge right. Mm-hmm. Then, what the law has

[6:16] what. is established Yeah. It would be better for execution of justice to be entrusted to the decision of judges than to frame laws in addition.

[6:30] Moreover, every law is directive of human acts. This has been said above. But since human acts are in the singular, which are infinite, right, it is not possible for the direction of human acts, what pertains to the direction of acts, to be sufficiently what considered, except by someone who is wise, who can look into each singular matter. Therefore, it is better that the judgment of the what human acts can't be directed by the judgment of the wise than by some law laid down.

[7:09] Therefore, it is not necessary for human laws to be positive. This is the rationale of having the Supreme Court do all the stuff that does that.

[7:23] Against this is what Isidore says in the book of Etymologies. The laws were made that by the what fear of them, right, human audacity, right, could be coerced, right,

[7:43] and that the what safe The innocent. would be safe among the bad, right, and in the are they translated in probis the wicked, The innocent might be safe fearing punishment, their faculty of harming would be what refrained. But these things are most, very most necessary for human race. Therefore, it is necessary to lay down human laws, right?

[8:22] Answer should be said that as is clear from the things said above, that in man there is naturally a certain what aptitude, what for virtue, huh? But the perfection of virtue necessarily comes to man through some what Discipline. discipline, huh?

[8:46] Just as we see that through some what industry, man is taken care of, right, in his necessities, as in food and what clothing, huh? The beginnings of which he has from what nature. That is to say, he's got reason and hands, right? Tool of tools.

[9:11] Not however the complement of it, the fulfillment of it, as in the case of the other animals, right? To which the nature gives sufficient what clothing and what food, Food, huh? So we need farmers to practice this, huh?

[9:32] Now, for this discipline, man does not easily find himself as being sufficient for himself, because the perfection of virtue especially consists in withdrawing man from unsuitable pleasures, Pleasures to which especially men are prone, huh? Most of all youth. and most of all youth,

[9:59] concerning whom discipline is more efficacious. What did they say? Remember when we were saying, high school, adults are like cement, you know, all mixed up and set.

[10:22] And therefore, it is necessary that through discipline of this sort, to which one arrives at virtue, that men be what led out from another. From another, set apart divided maybe split apart. Yeah. This training from another. And as regards those youthful ones who are prone to the acts of virtue, from a good disposition of nature, or custom, or more by what divine aid, there suffices the what paternal discipline, right?

[11:01] Which is through admonitions, warnings. But because some are found what stubborn, I guess, protervi, and prone to vices, huh? Who are not able to be what easily moved by what words? It is necessary that they be what held back from evil by strength, huh? By force and fear, right? That at least thus they will what cease to do things badly, huh? And render to others life quiet, right?

[11:41] And it is finally through what this. Yeah. accustoming I think. Would be led to this they voluntarily do those things which before they fulfilled by what fear, huh? And thus they would become what virtuous, huh? For discipline of this sort, forcing people by the fear of punishment, is a discipline of laws, right? Whence it is necessary for the peace of men and virtue that laws be laid down, because as the philosopher says in the first book of the Politics, man, if he is perfected by virtue, is the best of the animals.

[12:27] But If he be separated from law. and justice, he's the worst of all. Yeah. Because man has the weapons of reason for fulfilling his concupiscence and his what, savagery, which do not have the other animals.

[13:00] So he distinguishes then and creates the first objection there, right? To the first, therefore, it should be said that men, well disposed, are better led to virtue by what, voluntary. Admonitions than by coaction. Yeah, What would be a more concrete word for admonition? Advice. It's more than advice, yeah. Yeah. What? Reproof Yeah, but it doesn't necessarily in a bad sense, is it though? You know. It's more than advice, but it's.

[13:46] See, urging. Exhortation. It's a warning to go a little bit. That's it a little bit. What do you do if a little boy hits his sister? What do you do? Just smack him Get a hand out of hand. Your father comes home from work, you know. My father told me, you know, he's in a chair, stay there, and I would sit there. And my mother was amazed, you know.

[14:33] The power. Yeah, yeah, yeah. She didn't know what to expect from your father, right? I had to take my belt off, you know. I just whack it on the edge of the table, you know, and and that was enough to. hear that sound of belt hitting the table. You're late. Returning to plant life We have to do use some force with this guy. I think. Use your belt.

[15:23] Okay. So, it's, saying you need law, especially for those who are ill disposed, right? Okay. To the second, it should be said that, as the philosopher says in the first book of rhetoric, it is better that all things be ordered what by law than to be left to the judgment of what the judges, and this for three reasons. First, because it is easier to find a few wise men who are enough for laying down what the right laws, huh?

[16:02] Solon, right? He gave his name, huh? They still call the lawgiver the Solons, right, huh? And many were required for rightly judging about what singular things.

[16:19] Secondly, because those who lay down the law consider from what length of time. Which ought to be borne by the law, right? But the judgments about singular things to be done come from what cases suddenly rising.

[16:41] Now it's easier from many things considered for a man to see what is right than only from what. Yeah. Secondly or thirdly, because legislators judge in universal about future things, but men, presiding as judges, right, judge about present things to which they are affected by love or hate or some what. Desire. Yeah. And thus their judgment is what. Depraved.

[17:19] Because therefore, huh? The soul animated justice of the judge is not found in many, and because is flexible, therefore necessary in whatever cases is possible for the law to determine what should be what judged, and that fewest things be left to the judgment of what. Amen.

[17:50] Don't trust the definition of marriage to men. God established it with nature. To third, it should be said that some singular things, which cannot be what comprehended by the law, is necessary to commit to judges, as the philosopher says there. About that which is a fact or not, right?

[18:27] And other things of this sort. Okay. So why are laws necessary then? What does he say? Why are they useful for men? I think it's about how many Three reasons or four. Well, doesn't he give first of all the reason that there are men who are not well disposed by nature, right, to listen even to their parents, right?

[19:10] Did you get that from your parents? You know, when it gets out of hand, you know. Be out of my hands, your parents. Yeah, get the. tells you about how I was misbehaving there in my aunt's store there, you know, little toadstool spinning them, you know, and so I'm driving her crazy. There's only one town, one one policeman, the whole town, Watertown Minnesota, land leg and uh he comes in to get a coke and sits down there at the soda fountain.

[19:40] My, worn out, aunt Helen says, you know, what do you do with a little boy who's been spinning these wheels and won't stop, and so, oh, we could put him in jail for a day. Boy, did I sober up! Did I behave right? She was helping you to become disposed to do things voluntarily.

[20:10] Put him in jail for a day. We'll feed you Maybe some bread crust. a little water The second one proceeds. It seems that not every law laid down by men, right, is derived from the natural law. That's not true, is it? For the philosopher says in the fifth book of the ethics that the what legal justice is that which from the beginning either differs whether it be thus or in some other way come about.

[20:55] Are you thinking about driving on the right side of the street or on the left side? But in those things which arise from natural law, it differs whether it be thus or thus to come about. Therefore, those things which are laid down by natural human laws, not all are derived from the what law of nature, huh?

[21:23] Or the positive law, huh? Which means like the law laid down, right? Just to compare that with the definition, you know, of syllogism, right? Speech in which some statements laid down, right, kind of the firmness of it, right? Another one follows necessarily because of those laid down, right? So based to compare that with the laid down the law, huh? And then laid down the law, now you'll be in by ten o'clock or whatever the law is, you know?

[21:58] Yeah, yeah. The laid down the law, idea of stability there, right? If the premises of the syllogism are not laid down, huh? Not have a rest in your mind firmly you can't proceed from them to the conclusion, right?

[22:22] So the positive, huh, just is divided against the natural just, right? As is clear from Isidore, right, in the book of etymologies, and by the philosopher in the fifth book of what the ethics. That's the book where Aristotle talks about what. Justice. Yeah, yeah.

[22:46] It's a famous thing there, the four cardinal virtues, right? Division of four, right? How do you understand it? It must be there's a previous division and this is some this is um I should say there's a one of these is included in there's a subdivision. there Well they usually just distinguish what the one in reason, foresight or prudence, against the ones which are in the desiring powers, right?

[23:30] One of which is in the will, one in the. irascible one in the. How does Aristotle take these up? Right. He takes up foresight in the sixth book, which is about the virtues of reason. He takes up justice in the fifth book, right? And in the third book, he takes up courage and what temperance, right? He begins with courage, right, because that's more manifestly a virtue.

[23:57] Virtue seems to be almost what come from there, courage. Arete Ares huh Virtue comes from vir the man. huh Courage is the virtue of man, right? Temperance is the virtue of the woman.

[24:22] Can't teach that nowadays, I suppose. Oh, that would be. Yeah, be arrested. Being unnatural. I mean, we've got exactly backwards. Everything's exactly upside down and inside out. Fair is foul and foul is fair Hover through the fog and filthy air. So we've got the causes, so we got the effects. Yeah.

[24:57] But those things which are derived from the common beginnings, of the natural law, as conclusions pertain to the what law of nature as has been said above. Therefore, those things which are of human law do not derive from the law of nature, right?

[25:16] What about this law about driving thirty miles an hour? It's a positive law. Yeah, yeah. But it's in some way derived from the law of not taking innocent life? Just drive like a madman through.

[25:34] Yeah, yeah. Our brother Mark used to quote this thing from the early days of the automobile, and people going to the countryside, eleven, twelve, and thirteen miles. an hour I mean, any time something that's endangered human life, like guns, right? There might be a law about shooting your gun off in the in the town or something, right? You shouldn't go down the street shooting your gun off.

[26:01] You'd probably be stopped by the police, right? Pretty quick. Yeah. In some sense, these are derived from the idea of not taking innocent life, right? The question is, what the law should be, what the speed limit should be, right? They're driving across quite a bit of the country. They're coming back from Missouri. Some places they had seventy miles an hour. Ooh, make good time. Yeah, learn about motion.

[26:33] You can think about motion. Yeah, yeah. Moving fast. I mean, the immediate conclusions of the general principle is going to be something maybe still pertaining to the natural law, right?

[26:59] However, the law of nature is the same before all, right? As the philosopher says, huh? in The fifth book of the ethics. That what is naturally just, huh? Is what everywhere has the same what power, huh? If therefore human laws were derived from the natural law, it would follow that they were the same. Yeah. Which is clearly what false. Not everybody drives thirty miles an hour. Sometimes, yeah.

[27:27] I mean, says the law says thirty. Sometimes it says forty. Yeah, yeah. Go up to Paxton and at first it says forty miles an hour, and all of a sudden it says thirty, and the cop's waiting for you there. So you better. It's a trap slow down from forty to thirty, or you're going to be in trouble.

[27:48] In England, they drive on the left side, right? On the wrong side. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And the sinister side. I was talking to a guy who was over to London, you know, and he rents a car, right? And he knows he's got to drive on the left side. He said he felt fine doing that. I mean, a little adjustment. But then when he got to the they call the turn around, oh yeah.

[28:11] All your your your actions are just. Yeah. Wrong, you know. That's my father when he first got to Ireland. They rented an Austin Mini, which yeah, it's about this big. Yeah. And he and my mom were in it, and he's coming out of Shannon Airport. He had to make a left turn. He just looked the wrong way. That's it. Just you looked the wrong way. Look at this way.

[28:34] Yeah. And he started to go out. And. A big truck came and it would have smashed him to pieces. Yeah. It was the last minute he saw this truck on the right, which I can't even remember which way they're coming in, and it's because it's backwards. Backwards for us, our custom. So Churchill when he was younger there, got hit in New York, you know, he looked the wrong way, you know.

[28:54] Of course, you just naturally look, you know, to the left, right? We would, I suppose, and they looked the other direction because that's what you do in England, right? Yeah, yeah. Right. And they didn't see it coming, and got hit Got to get into that. Almost lost Churchill. Those bad laws they have in England. Suppress those laws

[29:30] Yeah Are you not going to maintain that that that law of driving on the left side of the street does derive from the natural law? It couldn't possibly. They're just trying to be different Yeah your car came from America That's right. So they're not the same. They're all they're here and there, right? Moreover, of those things which are derived from the natural law, some reason can be assigned, but not of all things, right?

[29:45] Char, what? Yeah, a reason can be rendered, right? As a jurisperitus to say. So you can't give any reason why you should drive on the left side and why you drive on the right side in America, right? Danny, why do they drive on the left? There's no answer. There's no reason for it. Why do they do that? There's no reason. why they do that Is there any reason why they do that in England?

[30:07] I can't think of any And the Englishman probably couldn't. Even for me. Doesn't everybody drive on the left? Against this is what Tullius says. This is Cicero, right? In his rhetoric, right? Things that are what. Proceeding from nature and approved by custom, right? Sanctioned by fear of the laws, religion sanctify them.

[30:43] Answer should be said, as Augustine says in the first book on free judgment. It does not seem to be a law that is not what just.

[31:00] Whence, in so far as something has a justice, so much does it have the virtue of what? Yeah, power of law. Now, in human things, that is said to be just from this that it is right according to the rule of reason, huh? But of reason, the first rule is the law of what nature, as has been clear from what has gone before.

[31:31] Whence every law, humanly laid down, so far has the notion of law, the aspect of law, in so far as it is derived from the law of nature.

[31:46] If it is in something discordant from the natural law, already is not a law but a corruption of law. Tell that to Supreme Court.

[32:03] You have not declared the law, but you have corrupted the law. Serious for you, Supreme Court justices. Supreme corruption. They should not be titled titled justice so and so. that would be just injustice Corruption of justice so and so.

[32:28] But should be know, should be known that from the natural law, something can be derived in two ways. In one way, as conclusions from beginnings, huh? In another way, as certain determinations of some what common things.

[32:50] Now the first way is like that in sciences, in which demonstrative conclusions are produced from beginnings, huh? In the second way, similar what happens in the arts, right? That common forms are determined to something what special. As the artist, huh?

[33:18] Is necessary, right, that he determine the common form of a house to this or that what figure of a house? So you got to have foundation and walls and a roof, right? But then there's. Typically, you can do this in different ways, right?

[33:37] Okay. So, some things are derived then from the common beginnings of the natural law, by way of what conclusions? Just as, well, not not do what kill. As a conclusion that is derived from this, that one should not do what bad to anyone, right? To no one should bad be done.

[34:14] Some things are derived by way of what determination. Just as the law of nature has that the one who sins should be punished, huh? But that by such a punishment he should be punished. This is a certain determination of the law of nature. I should add that in democratic times punishments are more softened right Aristocratic times are on that in democratic times, punishments are more softened, right?

[34:39] Aristocratic times are people more severe, right? people didn't really think enough the lower man was suffering something that you were suffering. He's a different, different race or something, a different, different animal or something.

[35:02] Both are found in human law, right? Laid down human law. But those which are of the first kind are contained in human law, not as were as something only laid down by law, right? But they also have something of their strength from the what natural law. But those which are the second mode from human law alone, right, have their vigor, right? Huh? So that's thing about the right side, huh?

[35:36] I'm from England, sir. That's your problem. Sorry, I often urge if the monks drive fast and get pulled over by the cop, they can always say, "Well, we're under the Eastern Code of Law." Nothing about speedos in there. Yeah, some of those countries, yeah, the the Orient, Turkey and Pakistan, basically I guess, they they don't even have stop signs.

[36:09] They don't drive. Somebody told me in some countries they don't drive; they heave. Yes, they level and they do this, but I've never done this, so I can't verify. Someone else can verify. Again, the first objection there is Tal's talking about that kind where it's determining it, right? Huh? Rather than concluding from. To the first, therefore, it should be said that the philosopher speaks about those things which are laid down by law, by determination, right, or by specification of some precepts of the natural law, right.

[36:47] By the second objection, right, is what? Object derived from natural laws from problems In the second way, right. Okay. Thomas arranges the objections, you know, so that they touch upon the distinction that's made in the body of the article.

[37:09] To the third, it should be said that the common beginnings of the natural law are not able, in the same way, to be applied to all, on account of the great variety of what. Human things. Yeah. And therefore, there arises the diversity of the parts of law among diverse people. So these, you know, rarely populated, I mean, sparsely populated, I should say, people out west, where you can have seventy miles an hour, right?

[37:34] Boys, you go mad there driving. Seventy miles an hour on a flat road. Yeah. Down Nevada, though, you see the mountains off in the distance. You say, "Well, we can travel. It didn't take long. " Driving and driving, and still they're all the distance. Drives you crazy, yeah. Yeah.

[38:02] Now the fourth one. About their not being able to give a reason for some things, right? To the fourth, it should be said that that word of the jurisperitus the experienced man of law, should be understood in those things which are introduced, right, from by the greater concerning particular determinations of the natural law. To which determinations, the what? Those experienced and what prudent judges are to what certain beginnings.

[38:37] In so far as they see what at once what is more what. In a particular what. Determination. Things to be determined. Once Aristotle, the philosopher, says in the sixth book of the Ethics, and such things, one has to pay attention to the men of experience, right, and to the what? elders. Yeah. Prudence. And two things that are not demonstrable, right? Opinions no less than demonstrations, right?

[39:11] It's not the way you drive a car. Yeah. Because if you drive a car very long, you can drive it this way. You better listen to that man telling you those things right now.

[39:23] Yeah. My wife is a little suspicious of my using my left hand sometimes to go around a corner, right? Generator, just one hand. My father went out on a business trip one time, and he slipped in the bathroom like that. And he, yeah, he had one hand, and he. So how do you drive a car with that? You know. So what he did was he put this this thing on the knob thing on the steering wheel so you could really you know turn it with your one hand, you know.

[39:55] The farmers do that with their tractor wheel. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Just got a kind of cut in a you know little knob thing like that. It'll spin, so you can do this without having to turn. Yeah, but that's how he could drive to work. You He recovered from that

[40:17] Can We stop now or what Yeah.