Abstract
Natural jurisprudence was one of the most important intellectual traditions, along with republicanism, that weighed upon early modern European thought. If Republicans were concerned with popular Libertas and the health of states, the self-imposed task of natural lawyers was to find out what, in God’s or Reason’s eyes, was right and what was wrong. To live freely in a dynamic society was the goal of republican thought, whereas the priority of natural jurisprudence was to lead a peaceful life in a just society ruled by law. To understand the latter tradition in historical terms, one must grasp its Christian roots and moral worldview. Beyond the post-Enlightenment and French revolutionary concepts of natural rights and democracy appropriated by reformers, this article delineates the basic tenets of natural law from a historical perspective, dealing with its most crucial components such as duties and rights, human nature, social design, and political thought.
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