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Acts of Man
Act of man is an act that does not proceed from the deliberate freewill
of man. In contrast with human act, act of man does not require employment
of the rational faculties of intellect and freewill. The three elements of a
human act are not present.
1. There is no element of knowledge. An act of man is not deliberately
done with human act, act of man does not require employment d
the rational faculties of intellect and freewill. The three elements of
human act are not present.
2. There is no element of freedom. An act of man is not freely done
which means that the power of the freewill to determine the act it
chooses to elicit or not is not invoked and employed. It is not a free
act.
3. There is no element of voluntariness. An act of man does not
proceed from both knowledge and freedom, requiring no decision of
the will to make the agent intend and willfully do such an act or not.
It is an involuntary act.
Human Act is Governed by the Norm of Morality
Morality is the measure of relation between human act performed and
its norm. Ultimately, norm refers to the Divine Reason and Will manifested in
eternal la w which can be recognized in order of existence of things. How the
Divine Reason and Will governed the universe is expressed in the way that
everything exists, in what is it is and in its last end toward which its
existence is directed. If a things exists this or that way because of what it is
(and cannot be what it is not) and takes a given course towards certain
direction, it must be what Divine Reason and Will mandate. However, as far
as he is concerned, man exists the way they are. Man can recognize, by his
reason and observe the Divine Reason and Will, in freedom, by the means of
human acts.
Deducing from the aforementioned, the expression of the Divine
Reason and Will takes place both in eternal law by the way the order of
existence of things and in human reason (conscience) constitute the norm of
morality the eternal law as the ultimate norm, the conscience as the
proximate norm.
As previous said, the relation may either be an agreement or
disagreement of the act to its norms, so that a good act is that which is
agreement with right reason and Gods eternal law whereas, evil act is that
which is in disagreement with or in opposition to the said norms.
Since it is a matter of measuring up the distinction between an act is in
conformity with the norm and an act in transgression of the norm, the norm
of morality applies only to those acts that can be classified as good or evil.
Now, human act is, of course, performed with the rational faculties of
intellect and freewill at play and is therefore, deliberate, free, and voluntary.
Otherwise, it is not human. Practically, every human act performed stands in
relation to the norm of morality, that is, either in agreement or disagreement
with it, either good or evil. Hence, a human act is moral act and that is the
act subjected to moral judgment as worthy of praise or blame, reward or
punishment.
Human acts are moral acts because they proceed from the rational
faculties of man within which the capacity to do good and avoid evil in the
light of truth which is inscribed. The distinction between good and evil is
determined in reference to their relation with the dictates of right reason and
Gods eternal law.
Indifferent act is that which is neither in agreement nor in
disagreement with right reason and eternal law. It is silent in terms of its
relation with them. It can be considered a human act in as much as it is
deliberately, freely, and voluntarily done.
Nevertheless, an indifferent act just exists in theory. As a matter of
experience, it become either good or evil act depending on the motive of the
agent and its surrounding circumstances.
Moreover, by reason of its definition, a human act proceeds from a
rational being. It is an act proper to the human person, an act that
distinctively and exclusively belongs to the human person in the temporal
order. It is his very act.
The agent may not know that he does not know. He is ignorant that he
is ignorant.
The agent may know that he does not know and exerts a reasonably
sufficient effort to get rid of his ignorance, but is unable to acquire
knowledge and remain ignorant.
Light Fear is that in which the evil threatening is present but slight, or
serious but remote.
Grave Fear is that which the evil threatening is serious and severe.
Intrinsic Fear is that in which the evil threatening proceeds from
within oneself.
Extrinsic Fear is that in which the evil threatening proceeds from
outside of the self. It is of two kinds:
o Necessary Extrinsic Fear is that agitation brought about by the
outside forces of nature.
o Free Extrinsic Fear is the agitation that proceeds from freewill of
another. The others choice of action is that which is feared by
one experiencing free extrinsic fear.
Ethical Principle: Fear diminishes the voluntary nature of an
act.
An act done out of fear or because of fear is one way simply voluntary
and in another, conditionally voluntary.
4. Violence is an external force extorted by a free cause to
coerce the other into doing that which is contrary to his will. The
free cause refers to the person who has the freewill to inflict the
said force upon victim.
Ethical Principle No. 1: Acts elicited by the will are not subject to
violence; external acts caused by violence to which due resistance is
offered are in no wise imputable to the agent victim.