Aquinas' Developments 2

Aquinas' Developments 2

1. e) Principle Of Double Effect

   • 1. Aquinas makes a distinction between the intention of an act and the act itself.
     • 2. It is not acceptable to do a bad act for a good reason or a good act for a bad reason.
       • 3. Double Effect states that even if a good act results in a bad consequence then it still might be the right thing to do. Important issue is intention.
         • 4. If the intention was not to bring about the bad consequences then the action might still be right.
           • 5. Four conditions must be met:-
             • 0.1. You don;t wish the bad effects and try to avoid them.
               • 0.2. Immediate effect must be good.
                 • 0.3. The good effect is not achieved by the bad effect.
                   • 0.4. Good effect must be as important (proportionate) as the bad effect.
   • Double effect refers to situations where there is an intended outcome and another significant but unintentional outcome. According to Natural Law, it is our intention that are important, not the consequences of our actions. Double effect would not allow you to perfom an action where an unintended outcome had devastating effects. The unintended effect has to be proportionate. What this actually means, critics say, is that Natural Law becomes like Utilitarianism.
     • This approach to understanding intentions is important when applying Natural law to moral dilemmas. It is at the heat of what is known as the 'doctrine of double effect'. This states that even if a good act results in bad consequences, then it is still right to do that act. It is still right to do that act, even if it was known that bad consequences would result. The important issue is the intention. If the intention was not to bring about these bad consequences, then the unfortunate side effects do not make the act morally wrong. An example, of this would be treating a pregnant woman for cancer in order to save her life but at the same time destroying the unborn child. Since the death of the unborn child was not the intention of the act that produced it but rather an unfortunate side effect, then the act that brought it about is deemed good and morally right, according to Natural Law ethics..

2. f) Casuistry

   • The word 'casuistry orignates from the Lation word 'casus', meaning 'case'. refers to the process of applying principles to individual cases. In the Roman Catholic Church, this means applying the universal principles of Natural Law to specific situations. This is done in a logical way, as some principles have logical consequences. For example, if it is in principle wrong to kill innocent human beings, it follows that bombing civilian targetss is wrong. However, if it is accepted that killing in self-defence is okay, we could justify an air attack on Afghanistan on these grounds. Innocent people might die, but that is not the aim of the action, so the doctrine of double effect comes into play.
     • Reason is used to apply the rule and determine judgement on the morality of the situation. This is not, however, a teleological approach due to the predetermined absolute principles that are brought to the case. For Aquinas, his ideas of casuistry involved the application of what he called primary precepts to work out secondary precepts which were then used as a guide for moral situations.
   • 1. The word casuistry comes from the Latin word meaning 'case'.
     • 2. Casuistry is when the core principles of an ethical theory are applied to a case or situation.
       • 3. Reason is used to apply the rule and determine judgement on the mortality of the situation.
         • 4. This is not a teleological approach due to the predetermined absolute principles of natural law.
           • 5. For Aquinas, casuistry involved application of primary precepts to work out secondary precepts which are then used as guides for moral situations.