The Truth about Mental Reservations Part 4: Conclusion

JMJ

In post 3 I ended which some questions that I wanted to understand.

Who has a right to an unambiguous answer? Examples include:

when a pastor questions parties preparing for marriage,
when a person who is about to be inducted into office is asked about his freedom from disqualifications,
when a witness in court is interrogated about matters on which he can testify,
when one party to a contract seeks from the other necessary knowledge about the contract;

What rights could be injured? Examples include:

against the common good,
in favor of a private good).

When are you bound to keep the truth from a questioner?

those who are questioned about secrets which sacramental or professional confidence forbids them to disclose (e.g., confessors, doctors, lawyers, statesmen, and secretaries) should deny knowledge, or, if hard-pressed, even the facts. .
The answer, "I do not know" or "No," in these cases simply means: "I have no personal or communicable knowledge."
In war time a government has the right to censor the news in order to keep information from the enemy
A reason of charity might also make it obligatory to disguise the truth by mental reservation (e.g., when a clear reply given to the question of a sick person would only weaken a slender hope of saving his life, or when exact information given to a gunman would enable him to overtake an intended victim);

Finally, for a recap, I have concluded that the use of mental reservations or ambiguities are governed by the following key "tests:

Answer NO to the following questions:

Does the questioner have a right to an unambiguous answer? ✅
Would the use of a mental reservation injure the rights of another? ✅
Is there no other lawful means available (ie. evasion or silence)? ✅

Answer YES to the following questions:

Is it necessary to secure some good or avoid an evil of a magnitude that compensates for the deception that may be caused? ✅
Are you bound to keep the truth from the questioner?✅

If you answer correctly, you can employ a mental reservation. However, in this day and age, I think further research is needed to under who has a right to an unambiguous answer. For example, does a police officer have a right to a clear answer when they pull you over for speeding?

Something to ponder.

P^3

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