Entre Arpinum e Aquinas: lei natural, direito e ética nas origens do jusnaturalismo

Abstract

How and from where did the idea of Natural Law arise, and what form did it take at its peak? These are the questions we seek to answer in this study. For this reason, we have chosen to analyze the legal philosophies of Cicero and Thomas Aquinas. The Arpinate is considered by much of the doctrine to be the father of Jus Naturale, which makes the investigation of his thought particularly relevant. In the following lines, we will discuss his philosophical foundations, inherited from the Hellenic tradition, his Ethics, which blends the richness of Greek praxis theory with Roman pragmatism, and the notion of Law that emerged in Rome. The aim of this first part is to explore the very origins of the concept of Lex Naturalis through Cicero's perspective, as he was the one who endowed the idea of justice with juridical meaning, conceiving it, in fact, as a Law. We will then proceed to examine the legal philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, whose selection was also deliberate. After all, if Cicero deserves credit for bringing to light the still incipient notion of Natural Law, Thomas Aquinas must be recognized as the one who elevated it to its full splendor. It is with the Angelic Doctor that the Jus Naturale gains its proper conceptual precision, distinguishing itself from both the Lex Aeterna and the Human Law, and coming to be understood, conclusively, as a normative system. And not only that. Aquinas redefines the very concept of Positive Law, incorporating elements that, despite their natural evolution, remain part of contemporary legal thought. This is why the combined study of Cicero and Thomas Aquinas proves to be so fundamental to the topic at hand. They reflect the ascending movement that begins at the roots and reaches the very top of Natural Law theory, attaining, with it, its highest point.