Św. Anzelma z Canterbury ontologiczno-teologiczny system moralności

St. Anselm’s moral thought is based on such concepts as reason, rectitude (uprightness), justice, truth, should/ought to, freedom of the will and love. Human being was endowed with right reason able to find the truth. The latin term ‘rectitudo’, which is exactly connected with the reason, means ‘rightness’ or ‘rectitude’ as well. This term emphesizes not only the dependence on the right reason, but fi rst of all the concordance with God’s order. ‘Rectitudo’, ‘truth’ and ‘justice’ define themselves through each other, and rectitudo defines should (ought to, debere). Another important concept in Anselm’s system of morality is ‘freedom’. He views freedom as freedom of choises (libertas arbitrii) and defi nes it as the ability to keep rectitude of the will for the sake of that very rectitude (potestas servandi rectitudinem voluntatis propter ipsam rectitudinem). This is the ability that a willing and rational subject has for keeping or preserving rectitude (or uprightness) of the will by using their will to will rightly, to will the right things and in the right way. The central component of the freedom is precisely willing that one will rightly, for the sake of preserving this very rectitude of will. Anselm speaks of ‘keepeing’ rectitude of will because in his view being able to will rightly and being able to will rectitude of will means that one already possesses rectitude of will. The rectitude of the will is also called justice. God bestowed rational being with the will for hapieness (voluntas beatitudinis) and will for justice (voluntas justitiae). This twofold charakter of the will, which depends on rectitude, does not mean that there are two kinds of will in human being. There is the only one will, which causes that rational being desires both: hapieness and justice (rectitude) for its own sake. The will becomes unjust when it desires good without rectitude. Keeping the rectitude of the will for its own sake is nesessary to be just.