St. Thomas Aquinas and Natural Law: A Brief Overview of a ...



St. Thomas Aquinas and Natural Law: A Brief Overview of a Theorist and His Theory

Jill Collins, RN BSN and Jerilyn Rodgers, RN BSN

Washburn University

Have you ever given thought to such ethical issues as euthanasia or abortion and if either is morally and/or ethically right or wrong? Do you view these issues in respect to the intent behind the actions and the nature of the acts themselves and not necessarily to the outcomes? If so, you may be considering these issues much the same way as St. Thomas Aquinas did himself. Thomas Aquinas was born in 1225 near Naples, Italy. He was born the seventh son of Count Landulf. He was born during a period in time where the major part of Europe belonged to a single Latin culture where the most powerful institutions were the Holy Roman Empire and the Roman Catholic Church. At the age of five, Thomas was sent by his father to the Benedictine abbey of Monte Cassino and by the age of 15, he was sent to the University of Naples where he studied several of the liberal arts including grammar, logic, and astronomy. It was also at this time that he began his studies in the art of philosophy. His education, studies, and eventual works were largely affected by another great philosopher, Aristotle. (Kenny, 1980)

At the age of nineteen, Thomas Aquinas became a Dominican friar. This caused great controversy within his family who wanted him to become a Benedictine monk instead. To most common people, there seemed to be no major differences between the two. However, amongst the aristocratic population, the monks followed a more stable calling of respectability living on estates while friars were considered evangelistics who mingled with the poor and made their way by begging. In fact, this upset his family so much, that his brothers actually kidnapped him and kept him for over a year trying to convince him to leave the Dominican order. He was eventually released by his family and allowed to return to his calling. (Kenny, 1980)

From the years 1248 until 1252, Thomas studied under Albert the Great who was one of the founding members of the Dominicans in Germany. It was under him that Thomas learned of Aristotle the most. He eventually went on to obtain his bachelor’s degree in theology at the University of Paris. He did so at what was considered to be a very young age of twenty seven and by the age of thirty was working toward his masters and became the chair of theology. This came at a time when there was a large anti-Dominican movement in Paris. (Kenny, 1980)

Over the course of the next several years, Thomas delivered many lectures and composed many different works based on the text of the Bible. His works were also, as mentioned above, largely influenced by his studies of the works of Aristotle. He came to be known as a renowned philosopher and the church’s greatest theologian. Of all of the writings Thomas composed, he is probably best known for the second part of the Summa Theologiae. Through this writing was born the Natural Law theory. (Kenny, 1980)

Thomas Aquinas passed away in 1274 at the age of 49. Initially after his death, his works were condemned by the authorities of Paris and Oxford. It wasn’t until almost 50 years later his writings became regarded as theologically sound and the Paris condemnation wasn’t lifted until two years after Thomas became canonized a Saint. As far as it is known, the Oxford condemnation was never lifted. (Kenny, 1980)

Thomas Aquinas was canonized as a Saint in 1323. Even after this, he and his works did not experience the special prestige among Catholic theologians. It was not until the encyclical letter Aeterni Patris of Pope Leo XIII in the nineteenth century that he was made the official theologian of the Roman Catholic Church. (Kenny, 1980)

In this ethics course, we have been asked to look at the theory of natural law which was created largely by St. Thomas Aquinas and how this theory relates to nursing and the healthcare industry. We have given a brief background on the life and studies of St. Thomas Aquinas, now let’s evaluate the theory itself.

The first thing to understand is the natural law theories largely stem from theological foundations St. Thomas Aquinas gained through his studies to become a Roman Catholic Priest. According to St. Thomas, the natural law is “nothing else than the rational creature’s participation in the eternal law”. The eternal law is God’s wisdom. Like the rest of creation, man is destined by God to an end, and receives from Him a direction towards this end. (J.Fox, 1910) These directions come from such things as the Ten Commandments and the seven deadly sins. Natural laws focus on the actions humans take and whether or not the action is good or bad in its accordance to human nature. It does not necessarily take into account the outcomes. Natural law states everything has a purpose, and mankind was made by God with a specific objective in mind. Aquinas also points out in his writings humans, as differentiated from other animals, are rational beings. They have intellective minds. (Eberl, 2004) Natural law theories propose to identify principles of right action- moral principles- specifying the first and most general principle of morality, namely, one should choose and act in ways which are compatible with a will towards integral human fulfillment. Among these principles is a respect for rights people posses simply by virtue of their humanity. (George, 2008) The natural law essentially consists of one supreme and universal principle from which all our natural moral obligations or duties are derived. In its very basic sense, the theory guides us to “do good and avoid evil.” Aquinas believed the real “goods” are virtues such as prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. From the primary principle can be derived the secondary or subordinate principles. As described below, these principles are the primary and secondary precepts. (Studies)

Natural law has both deontological and teleological aspects. These aspects are illustrated through the primary and secondary precepts of the theory. It is also a deductive theory meaning it starts with basic principles (primary precepts), and from these precepts the right course of action in a particular situation can be deduced. (Studies)

The teleological aspects are in relation to the primary precepts. Teleology tells us everything has an end or a purpose. Morality then involves working out what our human purpose is and how we are to go about fulfilling it. So what are the primary precepts or purposes as determined by the natural law theory? The first purpose of humans is to worship God. The second is to live and function in an ordered society. The third is to reproduce. The fourth is to learn and the fifth is to protect and preserve the innocent or the self. (Studies)

In regard to the deontological aspects, morality is about doing your duty which is your obligation to follow rules and do right actions. Natural law produces absolute moral rules which are the secondary precepts. (Studies) The secondary precepts then would be those duties or actions that one must do in order to fulfill the primary precepts.

Natural law is universal, meaning it applies to the whole human race and in itself is the same for all. Natural law is immutable. The two bases that rest upon the immutable ground of the eternal law are (1) assuming the continued existence of human nature, it cannot cease to exist (2) the natural law commands and forbids in the same tenor everywhere. (J.Fox, 1910)

So what does all this stuff actually mean and how do we apply it to healthcare and nursing? First, as mentioned above, natural law is simply following the eternal law. What is the eternal law? It is the set of commandments set forth by God such as “thou shalt not kill” or “thou shalt not commit adultery”. These are essentially summed up in the primary precepts which can be remembered by the acronym WORLD. “W” represents worship God. “O” is for ordered society in which we are to live. “R” is for reproduce. “L” is for learning and “D” is for don’t die or protect and preserve the innocent and the self. From these primary precepts, we then induce the secondary precepts. For example, if the primary precept is to not die or protect and preserve the innocent and the self, then the secondary precepts could be to not have an abortion or to not commit suicide. Through this process we keep in mind that the ultimate goal is to “do good and avoid evil”. (Studies)

The most common ethical healthcare issues present in today’s society, which are most illustrated in the literature review on natural law, are abortion and euthanasia. They are the easiest to apply to the natural law theory. By natural law theories, these practices are considered to be unethical. If one is to look at the primary precept of protecting and preserving the innocent or the self as mentioned above, then intentionally killing or harming another human being would be going against your duty or moral obligations. In other words, going against the secondary precepts.

How does natural law relate to the practice of nursing? If we look at the ANA Code of Ethics for Nurses, the first principle listed is respect for human dignity. In essence, this is what natural law is all about. This code states “a fundamental principle that underlies all nursing practice is respect for the inherent worth, dignity, and human rights of every individual.” (Association, 2001) The primary precept of preserving the innocent and the self is the very core of this principle. It is our responsibility, as nurses, to always do “good” for people and to avoid the “bad” or “evil”.

There are several criticisms, drawbacks, and limitations of the theory put forth by others. On a personal level, we feel the one positive point of the theory, in relation to nursing and healthcare is that nurses are, for the most part, inherently drawn to doing the good and avoiding the bad for people. As with any theory, we see a lot of grey area. For example, in response to abortion, a secondary precept in this theory is that one should not have an abortion because of the primary precept of protecting the self and innocence. There are probably several reasons a nurse might feel that an abortion could be justified. For example, let’s say your 10 year old daughter has started her menses and is now fertile. She has been raped and has become pregnant. Is it really morally and ethically right to let a 10 year old, who is learning to care for herself and gaining some independence from her parents through school, extra-curricular activities, or small jobs, carry another human being for 9 months and then go through the pain and trauma of childbirth? Not to mention the physical and psychological trauma she would be dealing with from the rape itself and the life of the baby. We feel that unless one is a very strict and devout Catholic, it would be hard to follow the natural law theory to a tee and apply it to all situations in healthcare. Additionally, another criticism brought forward is “could an atheist apply the theory of natural law”? Aquinas does say that atheists could potentially practice with the natural law theory, however, moral responsibility doesn’t make sense without God. (Studies)

There are several assumptions and definitions one has to be look at in order to understand and utilize the natural law theory. One of these is to look at real and apparent goods. The thought is most people try to do what is really and truly good by others. Other people work of the basis of apparent goods. For example if one was having an affair they may hold the position that they are seeking good (i.e. pleasure) but is it not actually a real good for human nature. Some people argue with Aquinas that all people seek good and that there are people who knowingly seek the bad. Aquinas has been able to explain why these people disagree about morality. For example, Utilitarians see pleasure as good so in their thought, one should bring about pleasure. Aquinas believes, as mentioned previously, the real goods are virtues such as prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. Sometimes suffering can lead to these goods and pleasure is clearly only an apparent good. (Studies)

Interior and exterior acts should also be taken into consideration when looking at natural law. One’s intentions (interior acts) may be good but their action (exterior acts) may be wrong. For example one may have good intentions of obtaining pain medications for their family member who is uninsured, dying, and in a lot of pain. However, the external action of stealing the medication is wrong. (Studies)

Some of the criticisms brought forth by others are: (1) using reason to determine God’s purpose for humans does not give consistent results-something may have a number of functions or uses, so how can one determine which is its God-given purpose, (2) you could get a different set of rules if you look at the purpose of human society rather than of the individual, (3) many argue that there is no “purpose” in life; to support this argument, they point to tragedies such as 9/11, “acts of God” such as natural disasters, and genetically inherited diseases and say that there is no designer behind the universe, and (4) in some cases it seems cruel to follow a rule when the consequences are terrible. If we accept that it is occasionally alright to break Natural Laws then the whole theory is weakened. (Studies)

In our own evaluation of this theory, we will look at several different components. First of all, is the theory consistent? We don’t feel that the theory can be applied the same in every situation that arises, especially in the healthcare setting. There are too many variables to consider when involving human life and dignity. We feel like natural law is too black and white. There are too many situations in the healthcare setting that fall into a grey area. An example that we could think of is that it is a secondary precept that thou shalt not kill, however, the Bible also talks about an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth so wouldn’t it be possible to assume that something like the death penalty is okay because you are taking someone’s life who took the life of another?

The second component is determinacy. In other words, does the theory have defined limits? The theory does have definite limitations. What is presumed to be moral and ethical are only those precepts that are set forth by eternal law that is brought about by the text of the Bible. It does not leave much room for the actual rational thinking of the human being. Again, the theory seems very black and white and if you are not of religious belief, you may have trouble with the application of natural law.

Is the theory applicable? In our opinion, this theory is not as applicable as other theories in relation to nursing practice. There are portions, such as the guiding principle of do good and avoid evil, that is at the very core of most nurses and is quite applicable in everyday practice. However, what is defined as being absolutely evil or bad, is not something that we feel most nurses would be agreeable to.

The theory, in our opinion does have internal support. Having internal support means that a theory’s principles, together with relevant factual information, logically imply our considered moral beliefs. (Timmons, 2002) The principle of doing good and avoiding evil is inherent in human moral beliefs. How we go about that may not be the same for all people, however.

The theory of natural law does not seem to have a lot of external support. In the literature review there seems to be more in the way of criticism and not much in the way of support. In fact, natural law theory is not one of the more commonly practiced theories anymore. External support is the support a theory receives from other sciences and from normal beliefs and assumptions. (Timmons, 2002) This theory is largely theology based and generally requires a belief in God to be applicable in its fullest sense.

We do not feel like this theory has a great deal of explanatory power. The answer to most “why” questions in reference to the action of an individual would have to be “because that is God’s purpose for us” which is not something everyone would be agreeable to.

In summary, the theory of natural law is not one that we feel could be widely utilized in the field of nursing. It seems to have more rigid boundaries and too much of a theology basis. It is interesting that though we consider ourselves religious people, Catholics even, it is still hard to apply the theory in its entirety to everyday nursing practice. We feel this is largely because every human being is very unique and every situation one encounters in a healthcare setting is unique and it is hard to apply concrete rules and say they apply the same in every situation.

Association, A. N. (2001). Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements. Washington D.C.: American Nurses Publishing.

Eberl, J. T. (2004). Aquinas On The Nature Of Human Beings. The Review of Metaphysics , 333.

George, R. P. (2008). Natural Law. Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy , 172.

J.Fox. (1910). Natural Law. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 7, 2009, from New Advent:

Kenny, A. (1980). Aquinas. New York: Hill and Wang.

Studies, A. S. (n.d.). Natural Law: Theory in detail. Retrieved August 31, 2009, from :

Timmons, M. (2002). Moral Theory: An Introduction. Lanham, Maryland: Rowan & Littlefield Publishers Inc.

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