Introduction

This essay presents St. Thomas Aquinas conception of the law with reference to his five
categories of the law. Aquinas defines law as nothing else than an ordinance of reason for the
common good and promulgated by whoever is charged with the care of the community. It is the
scope of this essay to examine in brief the five categories of law namely eternal law, natural law,
human law and divine law, which is subdivided into old and new law, thus completing the five
categories as per Aquinas conception. It seems more appropriate to begin the discussion with
the eternal law, moving then to natural law and human law, since this order of consideration
comports with how these types of law flow from one another. Finally, the essay discusses the
divine law, that is, Gods personal revelation to man, and how the divine law illumines mans
darkened intellect and disordered will to his dignity, eternal value and destiny. However, before
delving into the five categories it is imperative to begin with an explication of each of the four
components.
Law is an ordinance of reason
St Thomas argues outright in the first article of the first question of the Treatise on law, that law
essentially can be seen as an ordinance of reason directing activity toward some end goal or
purpose and the highest end or purpose we have as humans is our ultimate fulfillment, the full
realization of our nature or happiness. Hence all law is meant to sub serve human happiness1.but
law has by common acknowledgement and usage a social function as well: it directs the activity
of some collectivity to a common goal and it does this authoritatively.
Article 1 of question 90 in Aquinas Summa Theologica answers whether law is something
pertaining to reason:
Law is a rule and measure of acts where man is induced to act or is restrained from acting
for law is derived from ligare, that is, to bind, because it binds one to act. Now the rule
and measure of human acts is the reason, which is the first principle of human
actssince it belongs to the reason to direct to the end, which is the principle in all

Aquinas, T. (1947). Summa Theologica (Vol. 3). (Fathers of the English Province, Ed.) New York: Benziger
Brothers.
P 1-11 Q 90 article 1

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matters of action, according to the philosopher, Aristotle, consequently it follows that

the law is something pertaining to reason.
Law has its end in the Common Good.
Aquinas envisages that since the law is chiefly ordained to the common good ,any other precept
in regard to some individual work must needs to be devoid of nature of law, save in so far as it
regards the common good. Therefore every law is ordained to the common good.2
Law is made by Him who has the Care of the Community
A law, properly speaking, regards first and foremost the order of common good. Now to order
anything to the common good belongs either to the whole people or to someone who is the viceregent of the whole people. And therefore the making of law belongs either to the whole people
or to a public personage who has the care of the whole people3.
Law must be promulgated
Law is imposed on others by way of a rule and measure. A rule and measure is imposed by being
applied to those who are to be ruled and measured by it. Wherefore, in order that a law obtain the
binding force which is proper to a law it must needs be applied to the men who have to be ruled
by it. Such application is made by its being notified to them by promulgation. Therefore
promulgation is necessary for the law to obtain its force.4
By the foregoing analysis Aquinas has provided conditions necessary for the validity of law. In
order to be valid law, a practical directive must be an ordinance of reason; it must be issued by
the person or group who holds law making authority within the community; it must be directed
toward the common good and it must be promulgated. It is worth mentioning that all the
categories of law under Aquinas conception meet these criteria and therefore constitute valid
law.

Ibid article 2
Ibid article 3
4
Ibid article 4
3

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The Eternal Law

St Thomas says that, law is a rule and measure of acts, whereby man is induced to act or is
restrained from acting5He also characterizes law as something brought into being via reason
when he says law is something pertaining to reason, since the rule and measure of human acts
is reason. Now, the eternal law is nothing other than the divine governance of all things. This
governance is an act of intellect (reason) in God, according to St. Thomas, and since the Divine
Reason's conception of things is not subject to time but is eternal, according to Proverbs 8:23,
therefore it is that this kind of law must be called eternal.6
Eternal law is law known to only to God but in which man could participate by exercising his
practical reason. Man should accept that there are certain things which he may not understand as
they form part of the eternal law. For instance Aquinas stated that man should not question such
things as the rising of the sun from the east, why calamites such as volcanoes occur as these are
beyond the comprehension of man as only God understood them. Man can participate by merely
accepting that there are certain things only known to god and should not attempt to understand
these things. The eternal law is the rational order that the creator established for his creation. All
things are therefore subject to the eternal law.7 The eternal law is nothing other than the
exemplar of divine wisdom, as directing all actions and movements. 8 This eternal law of God is
imprinted in the rational nature of man, according to Thomas. This leads us to what he calls the
natural law.9
The Natural Law
According to St. Thomas, natural law is nothing else but the rational creatures participation of
the eternal law.10 The natural law is summarized by Thomas in his Summa:

Aquinas, T. (1947). Summa Theologica (Vol. 3). (Fathers of the English Province, Ed.) New York: Benziger
Brothers. Q. 90, a. 1.
6

Ibid Q. 91, a. 1.
Lawhead, W. F. (2002) The Voyage of Discovery: An Introduction to Philosophy (2nded) USA:
Wadsworth/Thomson Learning:P.179
8
Golding ,M.P. (ed) (1966), The Nature of Law: Readings in Legal Philosophy. New York: Random House
Publications .p.9
9
Ibid Q 91 a.2
10
Q91 article 2
7

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Now among all others, the rational creature is subject to Divine providence in the
most excellent way, in so far as it partakes of a share of providence, by being
provident both for itself and for others. Wherefore it has a share of the Eternal
Reason, whereby it has a natural inclination to its proper act and end: and this
participation of the eternal law in the rational creature is called the natural law.
Though God again is the legislator of this law, and the natural law is a proper subset of the
eternal law, it differs from the eternal law as binding only rational creatures. The idea is that in
virtue of having reason and free will, rational creatures are not bound merely to obey eternal law
through instinct or inclination, as irrational creatures are bound, but may participate more fully
and more perfectly in the law. Through natural reason which we posses through divine creation
we are able to distinguish what is right from wrong. In so far as we exercise free will to choose
what is right we then participate fully in eternal law. In this way the law comes to be in us as a
rule and measure and is no longer merely a rule and measure imposed upon us from an external
source11 . Man participates or partakes of the eternal law and will of God through his active,
intelligent cooperation William May explains this well when he says, The eternal law is in
them both because they are ruled and measured by it and because they actively rule and measure
their own acts in accordance with it.12 It is thus in man properly and formally as law, since
mans actions proceed from reason. While the source of the eternal law, viz. God, is extrinsic to
man, it seems mans participation of the eternal law ,that is to say the natural law, is something
intrinsic to man it is imprinted on our very nature, according to St. Thomas.13 Hence, if
mans acts are in accord with what Thomas calls the imprint of Divine Light on him, his
actions will be in accord with his nature ,given him by Gods eternal design or law, with
reason and be directed toward a full realization of his eternal destiny ,revealed through the divine
law, and thus his true happiness.14 The natural law is distinct from the eternal law that exists in
11

Dimock, S.(1999).The Natural Law Theory of St. Thomas Aquinas (6th Ed.). (Feinberg. J.and Coleman J, Eds.)
London: Wardsworth.pp 8-9

12

William, M. (2003) An Introduction to Moral Theology. Indiana: Huntington, p. 73.

Cf. Summa, q. 91, a. 2.
14
The nature of a thing, according to St. Thomas, is its quiddity or whatness the essential attributes that make
a thing to be what it is. Mans nature is to be a rational, creature with free will. He knows objective reality exists
through his senses and discovers the natures of things through use of his reason.
13

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God it is not something other than the eternal law it is a reality brought into being
through reason; it is a work of human intelligence as ordered to action.15 This is the sense in
which St. Thomas says that man, participates in the eternal law via reason this act of
participation, rationally and freely is called the natural law.16 Upon establishing the origin
and definition of natural law, Thomas observes that the first thing reason ordered to action
(practical reason) grasps in this regard is the good.
Consequently, the first principle of practical reason is one founded on the notion of
good, viz. that "good is that which all things seek after." Hence this is the first precept
of law that "good is to be done and pursued, and evil is to be avoided." All other
precepts of the natural law are based upon this: so that whatever the practical reason
naturally apprehends as man's good (or evil) belongs to the precepts of the natural law
as something to be done or avoided.17
As man participates in the eternal law via natural law, he inevitably makes particular
determinations from natural law precepts. St. Thomas calls these particular determinations
human law.
Human Law
St. Thomas Aquinas describes human law by stating that, it is from the precepts of the natural
law, as from general and indemonstrable principles, that the human reason needs to proceed to
the more particular determination of certain matters. These particular determinations, devised by
human reason, are called human laws, provided the other essential conditions of law be
observed.18 Those conditions are enumerated in his basic description of law, which is an
ordinance of reason for the common good, made by him who has care of the community, and
promulgated. In this regard, we see a procession from universal to particular as we move from
15

William, M. (2003) An Introduction to Moral Theology. Indiana: Huntington, p. 74

Rice,C. (1999)50 Questions On the Natural Law.San Francisco: Ignatius Press, p. 51, describes natural law as, a
rule of reason, promulgated by God in mans nature, whereby man can discern how he should act. The natural law
is promulgated by the very fact that God instilled it into mans mind so as to be known by him naturally. (quoting
Summa, q. 91, a. 4); Cf. Smith, Lecture 2: Since natural law is based upon reason, it follows the ethics of natural law
is a universal ethics, because all human beings are rational creatures
16

17

Summa, q. 94, a. 2.
Summa, q. 91, a. 3.

18

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mans apprehension and participation of the eternal law through reason, which we call natural
law and its immediate precepts, to particular, human laws, which should reflect and conform to
Gods eternal law.
Since then the eternal law is the plan of government in the Chief Governor, all
the plans of government in the inferior governors must be derived from the eternal
law. But these plans of inferior governors are all other laws besides the eternal
law. Therefore all laws, in so far as they partake of right reason, are derived from
the eternal law. Hence Augustine says (De Libero Arbitrio i,6) that "in temporal
law there is nothing just and lawful, but what man has drawn from the eternal
law."19
It can be observed that authentic human law promotes and protects the rights and duties
expressed in the natural law. St Thomas stated that human laws are laws made by secular rulers
or ethnic authorities and emphasized that this law could only as law if it complied with eternal
and divine law, otherwise it would be invalid and man would not be obliged to obey it. This
leads us to ask: How can man have certitude about his rights and duties to God? The answer
seems to lay in the divine law.
The divine Law
St. Thomas affirmed the necessity of Divine Revelation for mans acts to be directed towards his
supernatural end the Beatific Vision. Besides the natural and the human law it was necessary
for the directing of human conduct to have a Divine law.20 It is imperative at this stage to
recognize the fact that Divine Law includes both the Old and the New Testament. St. Thomas
stated the Divine Law was necessary because there needed to be a law given by God,
proportionate to mans supernatural end; because of the uncertainty of human judgment; because
19

Summa, q. 93. a. 3.

20

Summa, q. 91, a. 4.

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human law cannot curb or direct interior acts, but Divine Law judges mans interior movements;
and because human law cannot forbid or punish all acts, but Divine Law supervenes, so that all
sins are forbidden.21 Thomas also gives a clarifying explanation of how faith in Divine
Revelation allows man to arrive more quickly at the knowledge of Divine truth,22 as not all
persons are able or as willing to apply themselves to study. Finally, and importantly the Divine
Law provides certitude, since, reason is very deficient in things concerning God who is
infinite.23 The concept of the New Testament is love which manifested through Jesus Christ and
all humans are called to love. A person who loves would not harm another or do evil, and thus
inevitably complies with the Eternal and Natural Law. Therefore, the Divine Law completes the
other forms of law, going beyond precept to divine love, which has no limits and elevates man to
his full actualization in God as his all.
Conclusion
In conclusion, St. Thomas Aquinas envisages five categories of law, the eternal law, natural law,
human law and divine law which is divided into two that is Old and New Testament. These
illuminate the order and splendor of Gods creation both physical and most splendidly rational.
Gods eternal law is his divine wisdom and providence, directing and ordering all of creation to
himself as their end. Eternal law is only known to God. The rational creature or human
participation of the eternal law is the natural law. Man apprehends certain self evident precepts
derived from the eternal law such as seek good and avoid evil, by applying his reason as a
rational being. Man applies his reason guided by the divine law which is the sacred scripture
revealed in the Old and New Testament, to ascertain in his conscience how he should act in
21

Ibid
Summa, II-II, q. 2, a. 4.
23
Ibid
22

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accordance with the true good. The divine law reveals to man the truth about god and invites him
to a relationship of love and reconciliation. Human law is derived from natural law precepts and
must promote the common good and protect people from violations of the natural law. A law that
contradicts the natural law or divine law is no law at all and is not binding in conscience. These
categories of law, envisaged by Thomas, interrelate and complement each other and disclose
rational ordering of things which concern the common good and point to the creator as ultimate
law giver, from whose divine wisdom and providence spring the law.

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Bibliography
Aquinas, T. (1947). Summa Theologica (Vol. 3). (Fathers of the English Province, Eds.) New
York: Benziger Brothers.
Dimock, S.(1999).The Natural Law Theory of St. Thomas Aquinas:The Philosophy of Law(6th
Ed.). (Feinberg. J.and Coleman J, Eds.) London: Wardsworth.pp 8-9

Golding, M.P. (ed.) (1966). The Nature of Law: Readings in Legal Philosophy. New York:
Random House Publications
Lawhead, W. F. (2002) The Voyage of Discovery: An Introduction to Philosophy (2nded) USA:
Wadsworth/Thomson Learning:

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