Rory Faust
2/3/06
I. The Law of Human Nature
A. Quarrels
1. both parties have in mind some kind of Law or Rule of fair play about which they agree upon
2. pointless if there is no sense of Right or Wrong
B. Mans’ Laws
1. there are physical laws that man must obey (gravity)
2. there are biological laws that man must obey (breathing)
3. man can disobey human ideas of decent behavior if he wishes
C. Human Nature
1. there is a sense of what is right or wrong in everyone
2. humans do not behave in the way they know they should
II. Some Objections
A. Is the Moral Law just a human instinct?
1. feeling a strong desire to do the right thing is our instinct whereas knowing what we ought to do is the Moral Law
2. we can not point to one impulse in us that is always good
B. Is Moral Law a social convention put into us by society?
1. we often judge some moral systems as better than others
2. the things the different cultures of the world are bound to prove the existence of a Moral Law
III. The Reality of the Law
A. Man is not forced to follow it
1. Law of Nature tells man what he ought to do and not do but does not force him to do anything
2. man sees the benefits of acting decent and thus tries to
B. It is Inescapable
1. we can not rid the Moral Law from our minds
2. there is something above and beyond the ordinary facts of mens’ behaviour and there is a real law that influences us
IV. What Lies Behind the Law
A. What the Law of Human Nature reveals about the universe
1. Materialistic view- universe happened randomly and formed us
2. religious view- some mindful being created the universe and us
B. What Can We Know?
1. We know man (ourselves) and we can study ourselves
2. we find the power behind the universe in the fact that all men experience the same internal desire to be unselfish
3. something is directing the universe and appears in man as a law encouraging man to do right and make man feel responsible and uncomfortable when he does wrong
As a human myself, I too feel the pressure of the Law of Human Nature. In most all of my difficult decisions that I face in my everyday life, I am influenced by the Law. I know what the right decision is and often I am tempted to make a wrong decision despite my knowledge that this decision is the wrong one. This is the power of the Law of Human Nature and my decisions also prove another of C.S. Lewis’s points. Lewis said that we often disobey the Law and that we are not bound completely to it.
Several days ago, I thought about working on some homework that I had due on Friday. Two essays, including this one had to be completed. It was Wednesday night and I knew that I should start to work on at least on of the essays. I even knew that I might be overwhelmed with two essays, other homework, and volleyball practice on Thursday night. The right decision would have been to start working on one of my essays, but I instead chose to avoid both of them altogether, deciding to procrastinate until Thursday night.
We all possess this unavoidable sense of Right and Wrong in ourselves which is the Law of Human Nature. It manifests itself in us almost everyday and despite the wise ideas it gives us, we often make the wrong decision like I did on Wednesday night and paid the price of staying up later than normal on Thursday night to finish my work. Back To Theology Website