The theory that moral principles can be discovered through human reason by examining human nature and the natural world. It holds that there are objective moral truths accessible to rational inquiry, independent of human convention or divine command.
From Latin 'naturalis' (of nature) and 'lex' (law). Developed by ancient Stoics, refined by Thomas Aquinas in medieval times, and influential in Enlightenment thinking about universal human rights and political philosophy.
Natural-law theory suggests that moral truths are written into the fabric of reality itself - we discover them like we discover mathematical theorems! This is why the Declaration of Independence speaks of 'self-evident' truths about human equality.
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