Natural Law for Centuries the Dominant Philosophical Essay

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Natural Law

For centuries the dominant philosophical thought on the issue of natural law was dominated by the Catholic Church's theocracy (Gula, 1989). Natural law is the idea that law exists that is set by nature and that therefore it is universally validity (Cochrane, 1857). The first great philosopher to establish the early views on natural law was St. Augustine. St. Augustine's views on natural law were to develop over time into what is now called classic naturalism and were based on the concept that law cannot be fully articulated without some reference to moral notions (Augustine, 2005).

Augustine believed and argued that the laws of nature were dictated by God and therefore were superior to any other form of law. Such laws, as prescribed by God, were universal and timeless and that any man-made laws were valid if, and only if, they were in accordance with the laws of God. For St. Augustine, all laws, either man-made or God given, received all authority and legitimacy from God (Augustine, The City of God, 1994).

Simply stated, St. Augustine's natural law theory can be broken down into two essential elements: 1) there can be no legally binding standards that conflicts with the natural law; and 2) all valid laws derive their force and authority from the natural law. For Augustine, an unjust law was no law at all; however, he also believed that the coercive authority of the state arose as a result of man's tendency to sin. St. Augustine was the first Catholic philosophy to conceptualize the idea of original sin and he argued that because of original sin God installed obedience to the state as a form of punishment.

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Obedience, therefore, was a Christian duty

Contrasting with St. Augustine's viewpoint is the neo-naturalism of modern day philosopher John Finnis. Finnis does not believe that St. Augustine's views provided an adequate justification for the existence of natural law. Finnis believed that St. Augustine and the classical natural law theorists were not concerned with providing a conceptual account of legal validity but were more concerned with explaining the moral force of law (Bix, 1995).

Finnis believes that the essential function of law is to provide a legal justification for the actions of the state. The state must have a method of enforcing its authority and the law provides this vehicle. Unlike St. Augustine who believed that an unjust law was no law, Finnis believes that an unjust law can still be legally valid without providing an adequate justification for the use of state coercive power. Without such justification the law would not necessarily be obligatory. For Finnis, an unjust law is legally binding but is not fully law (Finnis, 1980).

St. Augustine's philosophy of natural law was based heavily on his religious beliefs. Augustine rejected human reasoning as a source of intellectual understanding. Instead, he believed that all illumination and wisdom was divinely inspired. Augustine failed to make any distinction….....

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