Chapter VIII. What Excuses from Observing the Law

THE natural law continues to have binding force even though its observance entails great inconvenience. We must not commit murder to save the State, nor are we allowed to tell a lie in order to preserve human life.¹ Positive law, however, does not bind with the same rigour. Our Lord taught us² that even the positive divine law does not bind men when great inconvenience would follow from its observance. It is an axiom that necessity has no law. This is all the more true of positive human law, which must be accommodated to the moral strength of the majority of the people, otherwise it will be impossible to observe it, and nobody can be bound to do what is impossible. So that not only physical impossibility excuses from the observance of the law, but also any relatively great difficulty or serious inconvenience which constitutes moral impossibility (Can. 2205).

No general rule can be given for estimating the degree of difficulty which would excuse from the duty of observing any particular law in the concrete. The importance of the law, the intention of the legislator, the results of non-observance of the law, the degree of difficulty in the special case, must all be considered, and a prudent judgement given in view of all the circumstances.

¹ Inn. III, c. Super eo, de usuris.

² Matt. xii.

A law binds those to its observance who are subject to it, but it does not oblige people to remain subject to it. If I do not like living under a particular law, the law does not prevent me from going elsewhere into territory where it does not bind, and thus freeing myself from the duty of observing it. If I do not like abstaining from flesh meat on days of abstinence, I may lawfully go and live in Spain, get my Bulla Cruciata, and enjoy my. flesh meat. Such an action will be perfectly lawful, even if I directly intend to withdraw myself from the authority of the law. I have the right to use my liberty to go and live where I choose as far as the law is concerned. And when I am outside the particular territory subject to the law, it no longer binds me.

As long as a person remains subject to a law he must have the will to fulfil its obligations as far as he can, so that he must not do anything with the intention of making it impossible for him to observe the law. Moreover, he must take reasonable means to be able to do what the law commands, for one who is bound to secure some end is bound to use the necessary means. And so a priest who is going to travel must take his breviary with him so as to be able to say his Office; and time must be made by all Catholics for hearing Mass, receiving the sacraments, and fulfilling other religious duties. The question as to what obstacles to the observance of a law I am bound to remove as far as I can, or whether and when I commit a sin by doing something which will make the observance of the law impossible, is one of great practical difficulty. We have already seen that it is not lawful to put obstacles in the way of observing a law with the intention of escaping the obligation. But suppose there is no such intention, does the precept of hearing Mass, e.g., forbid me to go to a seaside place where there is no Catholic church, and where I foresee that I shall not be able to satisfy the precept ?

This is a type of many practical questions which occur and for which it is difficult to find a general answer. The law in question, the intention of the lawgiver, the practice of good men, and other circumstances, must be weighed in each case. The answer given by theologians to the special question proposed may be taken as a guide toward a solution in other similar cases. They say that such a precept does not oblige us to foresee and make arrangements for its observance a long time ahead; such an obligation would be a great inconvenience and seriously interfere with our liberty. So that any time within the week I may go where I like without regard to the necessity of hearing Mass on the following Sunday. However, when Sunday is practically at hand, say on Saturday evening, the precept of hearing Mass begins to be urgent, and forbids me to do anything without necessity which would make it impossible for me to fulfil the precept.

In this question, as in others, we are considering what is of strict obligation under pain of sin; a good Catholic would of course try as far as possible to have the opportunity of fulfilling his religious duties on a Sunday,