Natural Law

The world is not chaotic or formless but is regulated by dispositions or laws that produce an overall result of harmony, order, and beauty, manifesting the wisdom of the Creator; (evolutionism; big bang).

Like any intelligent person, our Lord when creating acted according to a plan, with a purpose in view. And He established various norms in the universe.

• Physical laws, which affect material beings. For example, the law of gravity.
• Biological laws, proper to living beings. For example, the survival instinct that makes birds fly at the slightest danger.
• Moral laws, which concern human beings and regulate our behavior, orienting us toward happiness. For example, the duty to respect the life of our neighbor. Moral laws operate within the framework of human freedom, and man can sadly transgress them.

- Before defining natural law it is useful to make some clarifications.

• Moral law is a rule of conduct by which God directs men toward good.
• Eternal law is the moral law in the divine mind: God's plans for his creatures.
• Revealed law: the moral or eternal law, manifested to men. It includes the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Ten Commandments, etc.

There are several very similar definitions:

• Natural law is the eternal law itself inscribed in rational creatures.
• Natural law is the participation of the eternal law in the rational creature.
• Natural law, inscribed by the Creator in the heart of every man, consists of a participation in the wisdom and goodness of God, and expresses the original moral sense, which enables man to discern good and evil through reason. It is called natural because it is proper to human nature.

Similarly to other creatures, man has a proper way of being — human nature. And there are behaviors that are beneficial or harmful. For example, on the material level we need to eat; on the spiritual level it is fitting for us to love our neighbor. Man is like this.

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• Natural law possesses an objective value. — It is imprinted by God in men and does not depend on one's own ideas or subjective opinions. One may judge correctly or incorrectly with respect to it, but natural law is independent of those opinions; (relativism).
• Natural law is universal. — It covers all men. Despite differences of races and cultures, all possess the same human nature and therefore the same fundamental rights and duties; (discrimination).
• Natural law is immutable. — It endures throughout history. As long as man is man, the norms that concern him by virtue of being human cannot be altered.

Physical or biological laws can be known, and so can natural law. In this case, it is a matter of analyzing human nature, taking care not to confuse what is proper to man with human defects. For example, in an alcoholic there is an inclination to drink, but this does not mean that getting drunk is good and natural.

The best summary of natural law is contained in the ten commandments.

Man can act against natural law — and against biological laws — but with bad consequences. For example, a mother can kill her child (abortion), but her conscience tells her that she is not acting well.