2 Midterm Reed

Norms of Morality
1. The Objective Norm: Law
2. The Subjective Norm:

Conscience
1. The Objective Norm: Law
 St. Thomas Aquinas defines law as “an ordinance of
reason, promulgated by competent authority for the sake
of the common good.” This definition of law has four
essential elements:
1. Law is reasonable decision, i.e. based on careful study
and research and , not a capricious whim
2. Promulgated i.e., communicated with sufficient
notice to its subject while respecting their rights and dignity.
3. By competent authority, i.e., by those who have
legitimate power to do so.
4. for the common good i.e., the social betterment of all
its subjects
5. Fair, Just and Honest – it must not be oppressive.
Classification of Laws According to its
Author
1. Divine Laws are laws that come directly from God
(Ten Commandments).
Divine Laws cannot be changed by any human person.
Only God, as the Lawmaker, can change the Divine
Law.
Hence, the Catholic Church cannot allow divorce and
gay marriage because there is a direct command from
God who says:
“Man and woman, the two of you become as
one, whatever I joined together, let no man separate.”
2. Human Laws - enacted by the Church or State authorities. These are derived
from the natural law.
a. Ecclesiastical Laws - laws enacted by the

Church
Example: Canon Law, Laws on validity of Sacraments,
Law on Fasting and Abstinence, Feastdays and
Holidays of Obligations, etc.
b. Civil Laws - laws enacted by the State or Govt.

Example: Philippine Constitution, Republic Act, Revised
Penal Code, Executive Orders, City Ordinances, etc
Classification accdg. to Duration:
A. Eternal Law
Example: Love
B. Temporal Law
Example: Marriage
C. Natural Law - natural order of created things here
on earth around us known to man by reason or
senses.
Example: Setting and Rising of Sun
2. The Subjective Norm:
Conscience
What Is Conscience?
- A practical judgment of reason upon an individual
act as good to be performed or evil to be avoided.
God speaks to man through his mind, heart and

will. Man recognizes this as a voice calling him to
love, to do good, to avoid evil… because in his
heart a law is inscribed by God – we call
conscience. It is the most secret core, a sanctuary
where man is alone with his Creator.
Conscience
It is often described as an “inner voice”

which tells one what is right and what is
wrong.
CONSCIENCE
Conscience is not some kind of a built-in

machine which gives computerized answers
to all questions. It is formed and
developed as we grow and mature.
When can we use Conscience as a criteria
to determine what is right or wrong?
Conscience can be used as a
criteria to distinguish right from wrong
only in the absence of a valid law or if
the law is doubtful and unjust.
Hence, between a valid law and
conscience, law must prevail because
ordinary conscience can be biased and
subjective.
Levels of Conscience
1.Instinctive – motivated to do
good because of the fear of
punishment and the desire for
approval.
2. Moral or Ethical – conscience is
capable of detecting the wrongness or
goodness of a certain action. The
capacity to choose good from evil is
empowered by the knowledge of moral
norms.
3.Christian or Religious – A Christian
or religious goes beyond fear and
knowledge as motivation for actions.
Love is the motivation in doing what is
right.
Kinds of Consciences
Doubtful Conscience -A kind of conscience where one is
not sure whether his act is good or bad.
Scrupulous- It is a sick conscience that sees an act as
sinful even if it is not.
Lax - A careless conscience that makes light of a serious
sin or making it not sinful at all.
Erroneous or False - A conscience that sees something
right as wrong and wrong as right.
Certain – One is completely sure that the morality of the
act is as exactly as what the conscience dictates.
True or Correct - A conscience that judges good as really
good and evil as really evil.
The Formation of
Conscience
Conscience must be informed and moral judgment
enlightened.
A well-formed conscience is upright and truthful. It
formulates its judgments in conformity to reason, to the
true good willed by the Creator.
The education of conscience is a lifelong task. The Word
of God is the light for our paths. We assimilate God’s
word in faith and & in prayer (meditation).
We are assisted by the gifts of the Holy Spirit, aided by
the witness or advice of others and guided by the
authoritative teaching of the Church.
Stages in the formation of
Conscience
1. Discernment
 S-earch
 T-hink
 O-thers( consult experts or authority)
 P-ray for enlightenment
2. Moral Demand
3. Moral Decision or Judgement
If you undergo these stages, yet you still commit errors,
your conscience is certain and you will not be
responsible.
More on Conscience
Principles:
Always follow a true or correct conscience.
Strive for a correctly formed conscience.
Never act on a doubtful conscience.
Conscience can remain in ignorance and make

erroneous judgments. Such ignorance and errors
are not automatically free of guilt. If Ignorance is
your own negligence.
Correct vs. Erroneous
Always obey the A TRUE OR CORRECT conscience!
Ignorance can often be imputed to personal responsibility –
failure to form conscience well.
At the source of errors of judgment may be found ignorance
of Christ & his Gospel, bad example given by others, a
mistaken notion of autonomy or freedom, rejection of the
Church’s authoritative teaching, and lack of conversion or
lack of charity.
If ignorance is invincible, the evil committed cannot be
imputed to the moral subject for his erroneous judgment.
However it remains an objectively evil act.
Choosing in Accord with
Conscience
Conscience can either make a correct judgment in
accordance with reason and the divine and natural law, or
an erroneous judgment opposed to this law.
In making moral judgments, we must always seek to discern

the will of God expressed in divine law.
The virtue of prudence assists us in this task.
Charity always proceeds by way of respect for one’s

neighbor and for his conscience: “Never do anything that
makes your brother stumble” (Romans 14:13).
Assignment
Determine if the ff. is valid or invalid law based on the
definition of a Law according to St. Thomas Aquinas . Briefly
justify your answer.
1. A City Ordinance effective immediately to penalize any
Motorcycle driver who wear mask covering their nose
and mouth.
2. Congress creating a law to change the current
Philippine Constitution to Federalism.
3. Law to ban media and newspaper who criticized the
Government
4. Law on Divorce
5. Law on Death Penalty
1.The Commandment provides that “You shall honor your father and
mother”. However, Mr. X’s conscience tells him not to honor his father
because his father sexually abused him. Mr. X is correct in following his
conscience rather than the 4th Commandment.
2. The 7th Commandment says, “You shall not steal”, but your conscience
tells you that it is okay because it is your obligation to save the life of
your ailing mother by stealing medicines in the drugstore.
3. During the presidency of Cory Aquino, death penalty was implemented.
When GMA became the president, she abolished death penalty upon
the request of the Church. When Manuel Pakyaw however, became
the President, he restored death penalty. The Church objected that
Pakyaw cannot restore death penalty because it is a divine law. The
Church is correct.
4. Thru GMA, our Congressmen passed a law to move the Christmas
holiday to December 26 in order to save energy. Christmas is a holiday
of obligation imposed by the Church. Celebrating Christmas on
December 25 is a divine law which cannot be changed by anybody.
5. Reproductive Health (RH) Law, passed by Congress, which favors
artificial contraception is against natural law, hence against the Divine
Law.

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2. The Subjective Norm:

a. Ecclesiastical Laws - laws enacted by the

b. Civil Laws - laws enacted by the State or Govt.

God speaks to man through his mind, heart and

It is often described as an “inner voice”

Conscience is not some kind of a built-in

 O-thers( consult experts or authority)

 P-ray for enlightenment

Strive for a correctly formed conscience.

Never act on a doubtful conscience.

Conscience can remain in ignorance and make

In making moral judgments, we must always seek to discern

The virtue of prudence assists us in this task.

Charity always proceeds by way of respect for one’s

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