Aquinas and Descartes 75here; what if the politician was fighting a criminal opposition
regime and needed the votes from the soup kitchen’s neighbor
hood in order to win and throw the rascals out? Aquinas would
want each criteria examined on its own merit. Thus our politician
would have committed an act with good results, but not a perfect
moral act.
Man should strive, through the development of his intellec
tual and moral virtues, to act in accordance with reason. This will
bring him closer to God. God is absolute truth and wisdom, and
man, with the reason which separates him from all other crea
tures should seek to cultivate that “God-like” quality. By devel
oping one’s intellect one is fulfilling his part in the natural order
of things. Through reason and contemplation one can, in a sense,
approach God, since “when human reason fails, we must have
recourse to eternal reason.” Aquinas contends that, since there is
a part of God’s absolute goodness in him, man wants to do good,
despite his flaws. If he works at developing the intellect he will
come into contact with God’s laws, all of which can be discov
ered by the intellect. Aquinas lists four types of law: eternal,
natural, human, and divine.
- Eternal law is that law of the universe which is discernable
through reason. We can see that there are certain laws of nature
which affect nature, all to some purpose and therefore, in
accordance with “God’s will.” - Natural law is a reflection of eternal law. It is the dictate of
man’s practical reason concerning the good which is to be sought
and the evil to be avoided. Since the natural law, albeit an
extension of the eternal, is discovered through the use of human
reason, man is a responsible being. He has moral autonomy. The
constancy of human nature testifies to the constancy of natural
law, and thus the validity of an absolute eternal law. - Human law. Aquinas agrees with Aristotle that the state is
natural and necessary to man, that man is by nature a political
animal and the state is the means to fulfill life in society.
Therefore, human law is as necessary in God’s plan as is eternal,
natural, and divine. Human law is meant to be obeyed as is all
law, in order to bring man closer to God. - Divine law is the written word of God as found in the
Commandments, the Bible, and in particular, in the books of
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Divine law should be the basis