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Chapter 2 Human Person as Moral Agent Learning Objectives At the end of this chapter, the learners are expected to:
- define the human person,
- explain the different attributes of the human person,
- compare and contrast “actus hominis” and “actus humanus,” and
- assess the human person as a moral agent. Thales, an ancient philosopher from the ancient Greek City of Miletus (now Turkey), claims that the most difficult thing to do in life is to know oneself. Why? As what Avery Dulles (1918 – 2008 A.D.), a Jesuit professor in contemporary ethics and a Catholic Theologian once says, in effect, the human person is full of mystery. A mystery is an occurrence or a being that is difficult to comprehend because it has no clear explanation. Like the origin of the human world or person. But the human person is moved by this mystery the yearning to know, explore and understand himself or herself. Necessary Elements of a Moral Agent
The human person according to Karl Rahner (1904 – 1984 A.D.), another influential Jesuit priest and theologian of the 20th^ century, is a union of body and soul. The body is the visible realities in a person like the eyes or limbs, while the soul is the spiritual part, the invisible part, like the mind. They are not the same but always together. Separate them then the person will cease to exist. Although the term ‘soul’ is purely conceptual, nonetheless, two great western philosophers, Aristotle (384 -322 B.C.) and Aquiñas (
- 1274 A.D.), claim that the soul is really existing, and the one that animates the body. Aristotle even adds that the body becomes the extension of the soul, that is, through the body the soul is being expressed or even felt. In this sense, the body becomes the door where the soul interacts or communicates with the physical world. Whereas, Aquiñas states, that the place of the soul is in the human mind. That’s the reason why the human mind has the functions of:
- seeking the truth due to his or her capacity to reason out, and
- choosing the good due to his or her free will. A. Thinking Being The human person is a thinking being. This is obvious to everybody. This attribute makes the person different from other beings. It is a power bestowed to everybody to figure out problems, discover laws within nature, improve one’s life as human beings, form and articulate language, express emotions and dream dreams. It is a power that assists a person to communicate, feel and progress.
- Human person is restricted by his or her behavior. Psychology is the science of human behavior and the study of the human mind. Let us talk about human behavior. Human behavior can either be physical or emotional. Behaviors are any actions or mannerism of a person as a response to his or her own feelings, other persons’ behaviors and environment. Example of a physical behavior is talking at full volume. Nobody is restricted from talking loudly except, for example, when you are in the library. Because the person may disturb the people quietly studying there. To get angry is an emotional behavior. Anybody has the right to express his or her anger to anybody, as long as, it does not result to violence, such as hitting the face of another person. From the examples, human person is not totally free to do what he or she likes to do in all situations.
- The person’s present concrete situation. There are times, when a person’s present situation restricts him or her to do something he or she likes. For example, a person wants to be a valedictorian in the class, but he or she is lazy to study, so it is impossible for him or her to get high grades.
- Due to a person’s habits. Habits are things a person repeatedly do. Sometimes harmful, sometimes not. Nonetheless, habits affect greatly the person’s choices. Like in smoking, if the person is addicted to it, his or her desire to quit will be hampered.
- Due to the person’s motivations. There are many reasons why a person do something, such as smoking, maybe because of curiosity or stress. The person’s motivations restrict him or her to choose freely and clearly.
- The concept of predestination. Predestination is a religious teaching that everything happens to a person is caused by a powerful force outside himself or herself. There are forces outside the person that guide his or her direction in life. Forces that influence him or her to act or not to act on a certain situation, such as the person’s belief that all occurrences in his or her life are fixed and designed by a Supreme Being. This influence the person’s ability to choose freely. Human Person is Free Human person is free. For Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712 – 1778 A.D.), an 18th^ century Swiss-born rationalist philosopher (a rationalist is a person who believes that reason alone is the source of knowledge). He says, that human freedom refers to the ability of human beings to act differently and do anything they want. For Thomas Hobbes (1588 – 1679 A.D.), an English materialist philosopher (a materialist is a person who believes that everything is made of matter and everything that happens in this world is caused by the interactions of matters), freedom is an act based on self interest. Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274 A.D.), the angelic doctor of the Catholic church, defines freedom as an act based on the person’s ability to decide for himself and make a choice. In modern times, human person is considered free because of the following reasons:
- The person’s openness to the possibility that anything can happen to him or her everyday, the so called “aha” experience. The truth is, nobody knows what will happen to him or her the next day. Yet, he or she is free to accept or ignore that reality.
A tract on human acts is necessary, but it does not lead to the thought that morality is only a matter of actions, as if, because of the trees one will miss the forest. The person is more than the sum of his actions. In truth, more than an embodied spirit, with the ability to reason out and make a choice, the person is also a social being. A being that interacts with other beings including his or her environment. It is his or her very nature. From infanthood to adulthood, the person never miss to interact. During his or her infanthood, if he or she needs milk or food, he or she interacts with his or her mother to survive. During adult life, if the person needs food to grow, and be healthy and productive, he or she interacts with other beings like the animals and plants. If he or she needs to learn from experiences, the person interacts with fellow human beings. If human person is isolated from all other beings, he will not survive. However, if other beings influence the life of one person, he or she influences also other beings in this world, either good or bad. Thus the person is more than his brain, freedom, body and spirit. The human person is also a social being. He either affects or be affected by others in society. For this reason, the person must assess first his or her action or behavior in society, if it is appropriate or inappropriate; good or bad; right or wrong. The capacity of the human person to discern what is ‘good and bad,’ ‘right or wrong,’ ‘appropriate or inappropriate,’ and be responsible for one’s actions or behaviors are the basis for which human person is called a moral agent. All actions of the human person can be called “human acts.” But the concept here is restricted to those actions that proceed from reason and freewill. Acts for which the human person is responsible.
In Christian ethics, under the influence of Thomas Aquinas, there are two types of actions which are being tackled, they are the “act of man or actus hominis” and the “human act or actus humanus”. “Actus Humanus” refers to human actions that one does consciously and wilfully or deliberately. So, it suggests that the human person is consciously and wilfully performing the act. Nobody forces the person to act. He or she alone does the action with all his or her knowledge and with full freedom. Thus the person is morally liable or accountable for her own actions, because it is resulted from his own discretion or choice. For this reason, the action has a moral significance. Like looking lustfully to a woman or killing intentionally a person. Under this type of action comes a more complex act known as “forced act.”A “forced act” is an action which is not wilfully or deliberately committed by the actor itself. A third party compels the person to act against his or her will or desire. Like Shotgun marriage, the groom is coerced to marry the bride. Another example is when a male teacher forces his female student to have sex with him in exchange of a passing grade. On the contrary, “actus hominis” or the “act of man” is an involuntary action of the person, thus it is regarded as “amoral” or “neutral”. It is not “willed” nor “desired.” It is not “yearned” nor “prayed for” to happen. It just happens to us from “dusk to dawn” spontaneously or instantaneously. Thus it entails no responsibility or accountability on the part of the one carrying out the action. It means, that the person is not responsible for his or her action. In simple words, the action is neither ethical (an action which conform to standards) or unethical (an action which does not conform to standards). For example, in the mastication of the food inside our stomach, we don’t need to command our stomach to act neither willed it to happen, since it will act by itself. Other examples are “somnambulism” or
Ethicists today are facing more and more challenging questions that need a lucid and precise solution in the coming years. And they will need to mull over moral agency as it applies to these circumstances. Everyone is called to be a good person and ‘bringer’ of goodness spontaneously and constantly to everybody in society. Of course, it is not an easy task. And not just to obeying and following stiff rules and regulations. Thus ‘good’ behaviors must become a habit to everybody. Summary The human person as an embodied spirit is composed of body and soul, different entities, yet united and undivided. One is material, the other is immaterial. Remove one from the other and the person dies. Thomas Aquinas says that the place of the soul is the mind. The functions of the mind is to reason out and to choose, that makes the person a thinking and free being. As a thinking and free being, the person is capable of choosing an action or behavior, consciously and willingly. This makes a person a moral agent, somebody who can discern and choose an action and be responsible to it.
