In some countries, political leaders claim that the rule of law is a purely procedural concept. Therefore, they argue that any government can deprive its subjects of their fundamental freedoms or harm their vital interests, as long as it does so through a properly implemented legal mechanism. For example, some of the former leaders of Nazi Germany at the Nuremberg trials, in an attempt to justify their crimes against the Jewish and Roma population of Europe during World War II, argued that they had not broken any of the laws that were in place when Hitler was in power. Only by invoking the rule of superior law could Allied prosecutors overcome such defenses. [9] The act of adultery has always been a grave sin. But in the new law, the Lord teaches a higher standard—purity of mind and heart. « Whoever turns to a woman to desire her has already committed adultery in his heart. » (3 Ne. 12:28.) Those who are guilty of acts or lusts must repent completely to enjoy the Spirit of the Lord here and the blessings of exaltation in the hereafter. In other countries, however, political leaders assert that all written laws must be respected in accordance with universal principles of morality, fairness and justice. These leaders argue that the rule of law, as a necessary consequence of the axiom that “no one is above the law,” requires the government to treat all people equally before the law.
However, the proclaimed right to equal treatment may become immediately invalid whenever the government denies a sufficient degree of respect, dignity and autonomy to a particular class of persons or to human rights in general. [10] Therefore, the unwritten and universally explicit principles of equality, autonomy, dignity and respect are said to prevail over the conventional written laws of government. It is these principles that are often referred to as the “natural law.” They also form the basis of “higher legal theory”. For each example the Savior uses as an application of the new requirements, we could ask similar questions and quote the scriptures. How then do we know what to do in such circumstances? The answers are open to all who “go unto Christ” (Moro 10:32) and “enter by way,” for they receive the Holy Ghost who “will show you all things ye ought to do” (2 Nephi 32:5). This gracious promise is open to all who “follow the Son, with the full intention of their hearts, without hypocrisy and without deception before God, but with real intention.” (2 Nephi 31:13.) The rule of law is an ambiguous term that can have different meanings in different contexts. In one context, the term rule means to govern according to the law. No one may be ordered by the government to pay civil damages or to be prosecuted except in strict accordance with established and clearly defined laws and procedures. In a second context, the term means domination before the law. No branch of government is above the law and no public official may act arbitrarily or unilaterally outside the law. In a third context, the term domination means according to a higher law.
No written law can be enforced by the government if it does not conform to certain unwritten universal principles of fairness, morality, and justice that transcend human legal systems. Sometimes, in our attempts to imitate the world, contrary to the advice of the Prophet, we run after the false educational, political, musical and clothing ideas of the world. New worldly norms take over, a gradual collapse occurs, and finally, after much suffering, a humble people is ready to learn a higher law again. The law of Sinai forbade killing each other. But Jesus` new law forbids even getting “angry with [a] brother.” It is impressive that neither the Book of Mormon nor Joseph Smith`s translation of the Bible contains the qualifying phrase “without reason” found in the King James Version. (Matthew 5:22.) Under the higher law, it seems, there is no justifiable reason to get angry. Higher Law rule is a practical approach to the implementation of superior legal theory, creating a bridge of mutual understanding (with regard to universal legal values) between the English-language rule of law, traditionally for common law countries, and the original German doctrine of law, translated into other continental European languages as the rule of law (French). estado de derecho (Spanish), stato di diritto (Italian) and Правовое государство (pravovoe gosudarstvo) (Russian). [7] The latter doctrine is the product of continental European legal thought, which it had borrowed from German philosophy of law. (Galatians 3:24.) But even strict obedience to the law of the schoolmaster is neither the goal nor the sufficient law to exalt us.
(See Mosiah 3:13–17; Mosiah 12:31–33; Mosiah 13:28–35.) The minor law is a temporary measure, a minimum to prepare us to voluntarily live the fullness of Christ`s law. All who desire to be exalted must become, through repentance and obedience, the kind of people who desire and obey “the law of a celestial kingdom.” (D&C 88:22.) “Higher Law”. Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/higher%20law. Retrieved 11 October 2022. Knowing that it is ultimately possible to become perfect through Christ and that the Savior “draws us unto us” is a compelling thought. King Benjamin`s warning is also compelling and comforting as we respond to the Savior`s invitation to live according to the higher law: The Russian concept of the rule of law has adopted many segments of constitutional economics, which serves as the practical implementation of higher legal theory in economics. The law of evolution is, of course, a pure invention, but there is in fact a law superior to that of the constitution. The Founding Fathers called it “the law of nature and the God of nature” or “the laws of divine providence.” Studies of English jurisprudence (codified particularly in the works of Blackstone and Rutherford) clearly show that English common law was no more and no less than applied biblical law. Our nation was essentially built on the legal framework created by the Creator in the scriptures and was therefore greatly blessed. At the end of this part of his sermon, Jesus repeated that the old law had been fulfilled in His coming and that there was now a new order of things—a higher law—to guide our relationships with one another. govern in accordance with the law; govern in accordance with the law; or rule according to a higher law. These sample phrases are automatically selected from various online information sources to reflect the current use of the word “superior law”.
The views expressed in the examples do not represent the views of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us your feedback. President Bruce R. McConkie applied this principle to divorce: “Divorce is not part of the gospel plan. But because people in practice do not always live by gospel principles, the Lord allows divorce for one reason or another, depending on the mental stability of those involved. Under the most perfect conditions, no divorce would be allowed unless it was a sexual sin. In modern times, divorce is permitted in accordance with civil laws, and divorced persons are allowed by the Church to remarry without the stain of immorality that would follow such a course in a higher system and in a better civilization. 6 Prior to the Civil War, African Americans were denied equal rights and freedoms under formal codes that dictated master-slave relations. While these codes are de jure adapted to legal practice, their application by the U.S. government de facto violates the fundamental human rights of a significant portion of the population.