Divine Law Research Articles

Divine Law in Canon 22 of the Code of Canon Law

Civil law norms may operate in the Church’s legal order. Canon law refers to them as a general norm expressed in canon 22 of the Code of Canon Law. This phenomenon is referred to as the canonisation of civil law. The studies concerning this topic focus on the issues of the concept of canonisation and the technique of its application or practical problems arising from the general norm. The study addresses issues concerning the use of the reference to the divine law in canon 22 and its influence on the interpretation of the norm, the influence of the canonical norm on the understanding of the divine law, and the necessity of its citation in the text of the canon. The author believes that the subject of the just canonical norm (norma iusta) should be added to the existing considerations in canonical doctrine.

The Analogate of the Divine Physician in the Clinic: Understanding the Christian Health Care Professional as a Symbol of Christ.

The Divine Physician is a traditional title that the Church gives to Jesus Christ. This metaphor helps symbolize Jesus's mission to heal our souls of sin and its effects. In this paper, I consider this metaphor as a source for understanding the vocation of the Catholic physician. Understanding that the role of the laity is to communicate the divine law to the world, I argue that this title raises the human physician's dignity to the status of an image of Christ's saving activity in the clinic. This paper roots this dignity in the supernatural life of grace by giving both a philosophical and a theological exposition of the metaphor of the Divine Physician.

An Unpublished Manuscript of Hugo Grotius: ‘On Public Partnership with Unbelievers’ (De societate publica cum infidelibus): Introduction, Transcription and English Translation

Abstract This introduction presents an analysis of Grotius’s treatise ‘On Public Partnership with Unbelievers’ (De societate publica cum infidelibus). It was probably written between 1606 and 1609, when Grotius served as a legal advisor of the Dutch East India Company (voc). In his treatise, Grotius explains what kinds of partnerships with non-Christians are permissible under divine and natural law. These include public partnerships, such as treaties and military alliances, but also private associations, such as commercial contracts, marriages and relations of servitude. As we argue in this introduction, De societate can be interpreted as a general treatise on legal partnerships with non-Christians, which relates both to the voc’s policies of treaty and alliance-making in the East Indies and to debates about the legal status of religious minorities in the Dutch Republic.

On the «Religion» of Morality: Reflections on the Normative Nature of Divine Law in the Concept of John Austin

Philosophical and legal thought knows a number of theoretical concepts devoted to a grandiose and organic ethical and legal synthesis — the supreme unity of ethics and jurisprudence or reasoning about what is essential for law, supplemented by reasoning about what law should be. The joint task of these disciplines is to find and theoretically describe the best criteria available to the human mind for evaluating human actions. This principle of practical reasonableness, despite its incompleteness and relativity (for everything derived from man bears the signature of its own creator), would serve as a possible foundation stone for humanity in determining and understanding the highest criterion for evaluating proper behavior that only exists in the world. These are divine laws and prescriptions of their norms, this highest link in any normative hierarchy. It is the divine mind, and not the mind of mortal beings, that is the true source of any duties, from the appeal to the content of which it is possible, resorting to a suitable ethical interpretation, to «deduce» (not directly, but from the «image» that the specified content acquired through human mental activity) all other forms of obligation in one or another normative system. A striking example of such a «normative» concept turns out to be the teaching of J. Austin, devoted, if we put aside the positivist or «command» theory of the author, to the basic principles of the relationship between law (including morality) and the laws of God, ultimately to the sphere of human moral forces and freedom.

The end of law and other miracles

This article explores various attempts to critique law with reference to an authority or idea that is seen as transcending law in its existing forms. As heuristic tools, I use a distinction between prophetic and apocalyptic discourses, the former referring to discourses that remain sceptical to the possibility of suspending law in any absolute sense; the latter describing discourses that articulate a belief in or commitment to a radical break with the law, envisioning a coming law-free age. To give concreteness to my argument, I focus, in the first part, on the critical interaction between Daniel Bensaïd and Alain Badiou as a typical illustration of the tension between prophetic and apocalyptic discourses. In the subsequent parts, I take the analysis a step further by relating it to various historical discourses on divine law. Drawing on Christine Hayes’ claim that there are overlooked resources in the ancient rabbinic constructions of divine law, I suggest that some of these resources are reactivated – albeit unknowingly – in Bensaïd’s political thinking. Especially in his original conception of revolutionary temporality, Bensaïd provides tools for elaborating a different way of coping with the limits of law, thereby avoiding some of the shortcomings of apocalyptic political theologies.

Bioconversion of agriculture by-products with functionally enhanced Streptomyces sp. SCUT-3: Fish skin as a model

With the global population continuously rising, efficient bioconversion of inedible agricultural by-products is crucial for human food and energy sustainability. We here propose solid-state fermentation approaches to efficiently convert biopolymers into oligomers/monomers by accelerating the natural degradation process of the versatile Streptomyces sp. strain SCUT-3. Using fish skin as a representative by-product, 54.3 g amino acids and 14.7 g peptides (91 % < 2500 Da) were recovered from 89.0 g protein in 100 g tilapia skin sample by collagenase-overexpressed SCUT-3 for seven days at a 1:4 substrate:liquid ratio. Fish skin collagen hydrolysates exhibited excellent anti-oxidation, anti-hypertension, scratch-repairing, anti-aging, anti-ultraviolet radiation, and anti-inflammation effects on human skin fibroblasts In vitro and zebrafish larvae in vivo, indicating their potential applications in healthcare/skincare and anti-atopic dermatitis. As Laozi said, the divine law follows nature. This study underscores the efficacy of genetically engineered SCUT-3 according to its natural biomass utilization laws in large-scale biopolymer conversion.

Hardship, Recompense, and Divine Law: Al-Fārābī on the “Virtue of Struggle”

Hardship, Recompense, and Divine Law: Al-Fārābī on the “Virtue of Struggle”

Religion and Theology Facing the Challenges of Transhumanism

Transhumanism has been interpreted in various ways. On one hand, it is considered a futuristic scientific expression with eschatological aspirations, suggesting that technoscience could overcome humanity's biological limitations. On the other hand, it is seen as a materialistic movement seeking to enhance human capabilities through technological advancements. Additionally, it has faced significant criticism for allegedly overlooking the ethical and social implications for humanity. This paper aims to analyze religion and theology in light of the challenges posed by transhumanism. The methodology employed is framed within the qualitative tradition, using the hermeneutic method and design to interpret texts in their context. The conclusion emphasizes the urgent need to reflect on the potential scenarios humanity faces in a transhuman society that challenges natural and divine laws. Interdisciplinary work is crucial to guide advances in technoscience, recognizing the contributions that religion and theology can offer to contemporary society.

Tafāḋul al-Umam fī al-Qur’ān al-Karīm

This study aims to analyze the concept of differentiation, "Tafāḋul," one of the concepts of divine law in the Qur'an. This research is qualitative and uses a type of literature study. This research uses a semantic approach. The research data is in the form of the concept of differentiation "Tafāḋul" with the source of Qur'an data. The data collection technique uses documentation. Meanwhile, data analysis uses content analysis. The results of the study show that the concept of "al-Sunan Alelahia" divine laws refers to the divine laws governing history and nations. Differentiation between individuals and nations is a law established by God Almighty in the universe to enhance competition and effectiveness between humans to obtain the higher degrees of Paradise, and the divine preference for humans over all other creatures is The most comprehensive circle of preference is followed by the preference for those who carry messages, followed by the preference of nations over each other, and the preference for some groups of society, such as the preference for those who fight with their money and their lives over those who remain idle, that is, the preference for those with high determination over those who are passive and idle. So preference is for the one who carries out the message and advances the nation and elevates it. During the research, I explained the characteristics of the best nation and its descriptions in the Holy Qur’an, and how these characteristics are constant over time, deriving their stability from divine laws, but the best nations change over time according to their firmness and commitment to the divine commandments and their fulfillment of the charitable role assigned to them. If they regress and deviate from the path of righteousness, their fate is to disappear.

Normative framework of Catholic institutions of higher education

Catholic institutions of higher education are in the world with a purpose that stems from an identity rooted in the life and the faith of the Church. Their reality is partially constituted and guided by a set of principles and rules of law. This ‘normative framework’ defines the path of each university toward the common good. Norms are also essential for stabilizing the life of these organizations and for protecting their identity and mission throughout time. This article presents a summary of that normative framework, to furnish a specific perspective—the legal point of view—for observing, understanding, and assessing the reality of these institutions. The article starts with a reflection on general issues that foster such an understanding and then proceeds to present the principles and norms that constitute such normative framework: natural and divine positive law, public international law and state law, and, finally, the basic norms of Church law: the Code of Canon Law (1983), the Code of the Canons of Eastern Churches (1990), and the Apostolic Constitutions Ex Corde Ecclesiae (1990) and Veritatis Gaudium (2017), with some reference to its predecessor Sapientia Christiana (1979).

QUR’ANIC EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND ITS RELATIONSHIPS WITH ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS AT AL-MADINAH INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY IN MALAYSIA

The current study aimed to investigate the Qur’anic Emotional Intelligence and its Relationships with the Academic Achievement of Undergraduate Students at al-Madinah International University in Malaysia. A correlation methodology was used to answer the research objectives of the study. The population of this study consisted of 363 undergraduate students in the faculty of Islamic sciences at Al-Madinah International University. Out of this population, 187 undergraduate students were purposively selected as the sample size of this study. The study used a self-administer questionnaire to measure the students’ Emotional Intelligence and their academic achievement. The survey contains 40 items for 5 different domains of Qur’ānic emotional intelligence (QEI). The findings of the study were in three-fold: the result indicated that the respondents have a high level of EI in both religious domain and environmental domain, followed by moderate level for psychological domain and divine laws domain. The finding further showed that there were no significant relationships in correlation between QEI and GPA, the p= value is greater than the threshold of (.05). In terms of the differences in the student QEI and their demographic, the result indicated that significant, at .05 alpha level while other demography variables were not insignificant. Thus, the study recommends the importance of QEI implementation in educational sections especially for students in higher education institutions.

Shaykh Yūsuf of Makassar (d. 1111 AH/1699 CE): A Bio-bibliographical and Doctrinal Survey

Compared to the pre-modern Arab and Persianate worlds, relatively little is known about the intellectual life of the Malay-Islamic world between the 13th and 19th centuries, and even less is known about its individual figures and their contribution to different fields of learning. This article seeks to redress this scholarly neglect by introducing Shaykh Yūsuf (d. 1111 AH/ 1699 CE), a scholar and Sufi warrior of Makassar, who led the armed opposition against the Dutch colonial forces, for which he was captured and exiled to Ceylon and later to South Africa, where he breathed his last. In this article, we examine his intellectual career and legacy, focusing on the key concepts in his teachings such as the need to observe the Divine Law (Sharī‘ah) as well as to attain the Truth (Ḥaqīqah) in order to draw near to God and become one of His “friends” (awliyā’), which can be achieved through constant liturgical remembrance of God (dhikr Allāh) as a means to attain the Truth. This study uses the historical-critical approach to investigate Shaykh Yusuf’s ideas on Sufism, which may explain his political activism and resistance against colonial rule. Drawing upon the extant manuscripts of his treatises that are now preserved in the National Library of Indonesia in Jakarta, this study concludes that Shaykh Yūsuf's life embodied the values central to Sufism, i.e., relentless trust in God, unfading sincerity, and unabated sense of sacred duty.

How God Became a Lawgiver

The Torah is God’s law. This biblical concept is so prominent and is considered so self-evident that it has hardly been perceived as a historical problem until now. Traditionally, it was considered to be a basic element of the Bible within its historical context. But in fact, it represents an innovation in the ancient Near East, and for this very reason it should be investigated historically: In the ancient world, kings, not deities, were lawgivers. Only the legal tradition of ancient Israel developed the idea that God himself formulated laws and passed them on to his people. In the Torah, Moses plays a prominent role in this mediation. Divine laws then became a central element of religion in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, but what historical circumstances and factors gave rise to them? The loss of kingship in Israel might have provided a major impact, but in addition to political and socio-historical developments, fundamental transformations in ancient Israel’s intellectual history must also be considered, which could have led to the formation of the idea of God as a lawgiver. Due to new insights into the historical emergence of the Torah, which research has developed in recent decades, but also due to new findings on the legal tradition of the ancient Near East, there is both the possibility and the need for reconstructing the historical forces and factors that made the Torah God’s law.

Этические теории Иммануила Канта и Христиана Вольфа: сходства и различия

The article compares the ethical concepts of Christian Wolff and Immanuel Kant and identifies not only coincidences, but also, mainly, their fundamental differences. On the one hand, Wolff denies the possibility of attributing good or evil to an action depending on the will of God. On the other hand, the Creator is the one who actualizes the existing relationship between things, and therefore moral assessment is still inseparable from him. For Kant, the divine will is completely excluded as a source of moral law, but at the same time it is a natural result of the consistent fulfillment of the moral dictates of reason. The concept of freedom is equally important for both thinkers. Wolff insists on its necessity, but hardly justifies its possibility, since he attributes any immoral action not to freedom of choice, but to a lack of knowledge. The philosopher does not assume a mismatch of will and reason. In addition, the thinker assumes a universal determinism of nature, the latter expresses itself in a natural law, which also coincides with the divine law. The basic principle of Wolfian ethics is perfection, which is not strictly defined and which Kant himself considers unclear. Thus, the moral character of an action, according to Wolff, depends not only on these laws, but also on the principle of perfection. At the same time, for Kant, the morality of an action depends on compliance with the moral law, and first of all, the intention preceding the action or inaction is evaluated. In Wolff'’s case, the consequence arising from the act is subject to evaluation, which is the opposite of Kant’s ideas.

Az ellenállási jog értelmezése és gyakorlata a Vetus Testamentumban és a Novum Testamentumban

This study shows that the right to resist tyranny has deep biblical roots. It derives directly from the biblical principle of the primacy and supremacy of divine and natural law, reflecting universal divine eternal order and justice. From the fact that even public authority is subject to these laws and that, in the event of a conflict with such laws, man-made laws and authority cannot claim obedience. In this case, resistance to them is not only a right but also a conscientious duty. This paper provides a broad outline of the biblical principles that underpin resistance to tyranny. It then describes some of the cases of resistance in the books of the Old and New Testaments which, among many others, have been recurring in the works of the leading authors on the right of resistance throughout European history.

Human and Divine Law at the Secular University: The Divide between Classical Liberalism and Post-Classical Liberalism

The American university has been guided by classical liberalism in its defense of the freedom of speech and academic freedom. The idea is that a university is a place where all ideas and perspectives can be debated. However, this idea is increasingly being challenged by those who want the secular university to be a place that advances a social philosophy that promises to transform society by dismantling structural racism and providing for greater equity. In this article, I will argue that both of these models have been shaped by democratic legal ideals and both share a common skeptical assumption about the basic questions of meaning that each person must answer. The legal structures developed by Westphalian modernity attempt neutrality on questions about meaning. This can be seen even in recent Supreme Court decisions affirming the individual’s right to determine meaning for themselves. This skeptical root has produced the conflict between classical liberals and the social transformation that we are witnessing at our universities. I argue for a third option that I find in the Declaration of Independence, which affirms that we can and should know the answers to basic questions which then provide the foundation for education and law.

Pembagian Harta Bersama Akibat Perceraian menurut Hukum Islam Kajian terhadap Putusan Pengadilan Agama Yogyakarta Nomor 0297/Pdt.G/2017/PA

All creatures of God, including humans, pets, and other animals and plants, are encompassed by the universal divine law of marriage. This is the way that Allah has chosen for His creatures to reproduce and sustain their lives. The issue of property between each husband and wife is one of the consequences of marriage law. Article 35 of the Marriage Law regulates joint property. Marital property is also acquired as joint property. The Compilation of Islamic Law states in Article 1 letter (f) that "Marital property is property acquired separately or jointly by husband and wife during the marriage bond, and in this case, it is called joint property, regardless of whether it is registered in someone's name." In this research method, the researcher will use a qualitative method located at the Yogyakarta Religious Court, and the techniques used to collect data include interviews and documentation. In this study, the researcher will examine the decisions of the Yogyakarta Religious Court related to joint property, where 40% is for the former husband and 60% for the former wife, using the perspective of Islamic law and the Compilation of Islamic law. because Islamic Sharia stipulates that joint property is divided into two for separating couples. Unlike Islamic law, which does not specify how much of the couple's property should be distributed after divorce, half is given to the former wife. Considering that 83 percent of the Indonesian population is Muslim, it is important to look at issues related to the division of joint property decided by the judges of the Yogyakarta Religious Court.

Popular Sovereignty, Islam, and Democracy (2003)*

This article examines the idea that Islam’s rejection of popularsovereignty makes it incompatible with democracy. I showinstead that sovereignty (“absolute despotic power,” popular orotherwise) is a sterile, pedantic, abstruse, formalistic, and legalisticconcept, and that democracy should be seen as involving“popular control” rather than “popular sovereignty.” Divinesovereignty would be inconsistent with democracy only if thatmeant unlike in Islam rule by persons claiming to be God orHis infallible representatives. A body of divine law that humanscannot change would be incompatible with democracy only if itwere so comprehensive as to leave no room for political decisions. *This article was first published in the American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 20, no. 3&amp;4(2003): 125-139

رابطة شریعت اسلامی با شرایع قبل از آن

In explaining the relationship between divine laws, assuming the divergence and equality of falsehood, and the existence of common and different rulings, it is assumed that the common rulings are due to a unified legislator, and the differences are not due to pluralism in divine laws or the abrogation of laws. Rather, the reality is that Shari'a is a unified truth, and the evolutionary process of legislation has led to some differences in it. The question is what are the commonalities of Islam with past laws, and why did prophethood end with the advent of the Prophet of Islam? It seems that in all divine and Abrahamic religions, there is a part that involves legislation or practical rulings, known as jurisprudence in Islam. This research uses a descriptive-analytical method and relies on library resources. The findings of the research show that fundamentally, there are no differences in the Shari'a of religions. All religions call upon humans to believe in the One God, reject polytheism, and recommend them to engage in righteous deeds and abstain from undesirable actions and thoughts. If any differences are observed, they are due to the capacities of humans in each era.

Polis, Loimos, Stasis: Thucydides about Disintegration of the Political System

This paper discusses Thucydides’ analysis of the disintegration of the political community under the unbearable stress in cases of the plague epidemic in Athens and civil war in Kerkyra. Due attention is paid to Thucydides’ methodology: the application of the art of medicine and antilogies. The destruction of the morality, fading away of virtue and neglect of both human and divine laws caused by the enormous fear of plague are presented through contrasting the state of lawlessness to the picture of the ideal order from the famous Pericles’ speech in honor of the fallen Athenians. It is being analyzed marked similarity between the state of lawlessness in Athens and the destruction of the political order in stasis in Kerkyra concerning the destruction of the public morality, disappearing of lawfulness, and cancelling of the common good, despite the difference in predominant motivating passions – fear and lust for power, and different ways of corruption of the order in polis – apolitical stance and apathy vs. radical politicization. Finally, it is underlined Thucydides’ understanding of repetition of the historical events after the same pattern because of the changelessness of human nature. It is milder in peace and regular ordered state of affairs, so that people are usually sensible and honest, acquire moral stance and embrace lawfulness, whereas when it is exposed to danger and faces the hardest challenges, it loses its considerations and restraints and shows its evil, violent and cruel side.