3/4/06
Junior Theology
Mr. Sciuto
How C. S. LewisÕs Idea of the Law of Human Nature Applies to Me, Here and Now
C. S. Lewis stated that there is a standard of behavior that all people everywhere feel and have an inclination to follow. This standard compels us to do good and avoid evil. Yet while we kno w that this is there, more times than not, we often ignore the good impulse and side with the bad. This Law of Human Nature to me is, I feel, my conciouos and subconcious ways of thinking. I know deep within me what are the good choices I make and what the bad ones are. Every time I make a bad choice, I go against my inner, most deepest feelings of my perceptions of what is right. The Catholic teaching is to follow your conscience at all times no matter what the circumstances are. By doing this, you follow this Moral Law.
By knowing there is this Law with me always just because I am human, I feel more secure with the decisions I make throughout the day. I feel like God is always with me guiding me to make the right choices and I can look to God when I am facing a very hard decision in my life. However, Lewis says that nobody follows this Law. I know this personally because I donÕt always do the right thing (What Christianity says is right). My conscience informs me of the correct thing to do and I ignore it more often than not unfortunately. I make excuses as to why I shouldnÕt follow the Moral Law at this particular time, but this is just blinding me to the reality that I am not living according to the Law of Human Nature.
This Law applies to everyone everywhere in the world. People across the globe are dealing with the same issues I am. The Law of Human Nature is objective to every society and region, no matter the culture, or religious prefences of those peoples. Even with cultural differences, the basic idea of the Moral Law is the same. No matter what the situation is, we need to follow our gut feeling about what to do. This gut feeling, this conscince of mine, is the Law of Human Nature telling me the moral thing to do and to avoid the wrong things in my life.