The traditional scientific method involves observation, forming a hypothesis, testing, and concluding. Here’s how that process can be adapted to investigate the existence of a universal Moral Law.
1. Observation (The Moral Phenomenon)
The starting point is the recognition of universal moral experience that is independent of specific religious or cultural texts.
- Observation: Humans across nearly all known cultures and periods instinctively share basic moral prohibitions and obligations. These include taboos against murder, theft, dishonesty, and a universal expectation of reciprocity (the Golden Rule).
- The Incongruity: Furthermore, humans often judge certain actions as “wrong” even when they benefit the agent or do not harm anyone they know (e.g., disgust at protected incest). This suggests morality is more than mere survival or social contract.
2. Hypothesis
The Moral Law Hypothesis states:
Hypothesis: There exists a universal, objective moral structure inherent in human nature (Natural Law) that guides human reason toward flourishing and social order, much like physical laws govern the natural world.
3. Testing (Empirical and Logical Evidence)
Testing for a moral law must rely heavily on comparative social science, psychology, and logic, using human action and judgment as “data.”
| Test Method | Focus of Investigation | Expected Empirical Result (Evidence for Moral Law) |
| Comparative Ethics | Analyzing the laws and codes of diverse, isolated civilizations across history. | Consensus on Primary Precepts: A near-universal affirmation of basic rules necessary for society (e.g., protection of the innocent, care for offspring). |
| Functionalism (Social Science) | Investigating what happens to societies when they systematically violate a basic moral precept (a “natural experiment”). | Predictable Societal Disintegration: Cultures that, for instance, encourage lying, random violence, or the destruction of the family unit consistently fail or devolve into chaos. The moral law appears necessary for human flourishing. |
| Moral Psychology & Neuroscience | Using brain imaging (fMRI) and behavioral studies to identify the neurological basis of moral judgment (the “moral sense”). | Universal Neural Networks: Discovery of specific, consistent neural pathways activated when processing moral dilemmas (e.g., the overlap of moral decision-making with empathy and theory of mind), suggesting morality is an innate, universal faculty—not just a learned rule set. |
| Logic (The Test of Justice) | Examining the concept of justice—the idea that some laws (positive laws) are inherently unjust (e.g., Jim Crow laws, the Nuremberg Laws). | The Appeal to a Higher Authority: The fact that people consistently appeal to a standard higher than the written law to judge an injustice suggests the existence of a transcendent standard (the Natural Law) by which all human laws are measured. As the Catholic tradition holds, lex injusta non est lex (an unjust law is no law at all). |
4. Conclusion (Scientific Law vs. Moral Law)
If the evidence from these tests consistently points to a universal, predictable, and necessary moral structure—one that is resistant to cultural differences in its most basic form—the existence of a Moral Law gains significant empirical and rational support.
However, a moral law can never be a “scientific law” in the strict physical sense:
- Scientific Laws (like gravity) describe what must happen (no choice).
- Moral Law is an unchangeable reality that specifies what ought to happen—a standard of conduct to which free choice must be directed for human flourishing.
The scientific method, therefore, can’t prove the metaphysical source of the Moral Law (i.e., God) or force its obedience, but it can provide powerful evidence for the Law’s objective reality, universality, and foundational necessity for human life and social order.
Sharing
Jesus last words on Earth were to his disciples, can be found in Matthew Chap 28 when Jesus told his disciples, “Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
Jesus calls all of us to share in his redemptive mission here on Earth. I would ask you to share this Scripture reflection with your family, your friends and your acquaintances, and then share it with a couple of individuals that you may may not be comfortable sharing with, keeping in mind always the words of Jesus, And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age
Author was assisted by AI in the drafting of this Post