Write a comparative essay entitled, “Augustine vs. Aquinas: The Better Ethicist.”. q. Therefore, living in a manner that violates the natural law is inconsistent with a human being’s achieving his or her supernatural end too. q. What human beings can know of God’s eternal law only by way of a special divine revelation from God is what Thomas calls divine law (ST IaIIae. Finally, a frog’s jumping is something the frog does insofar as it is a frog, given the frog’s form and final cause. I employ the reminiscitive power when I think about the names of other musicians who play on recordings with the musician whose name I cannot now remember but want to remember. Where prudence perfects intellect itself thinking about what is to be done, justice is intellect disposing the will such that a person is “set in order not only in himself, but also in regard to another” (ST IaIIae. q. Now, we have shown that God is not composed of parts. Given Thomas’ belief in a good and loving God, he thinks such a state can only be temporary (see, for example, SCG IV, ch. This chapter considers Alasdair MacIntyre’s critique, from a Thomistic-Aristotelian perspective, of the mainstream of the liberal tradition in moral and political philosophy in his important book Whose Justice? Second, there would have been inequalities having to do with the souls of those in the state of innocence. 12), nameable by us (q. Where many philosophers have been content to treat topics in meta-ethics and ethical theory, Thomas also devotes the largest part of his efforts in ST, for example, to articulate the nature and relations between the particular virtues and vices. In addition, things that jump and swim must be composed of certain sorts of stuffs and certain sorts of organs. (Beethoven may or may not have been a morally bad man all the while he composed the 9th symphony, but we need not consider the moral status of Beethoven’s appetites when we consider the excellence of his 9th symphony qua work of art). His specific prescriptions to do good, avoid evil, pursue knowledge, and live at peace with our neighbors suggest, for instance, that governments should uphold scientific and technological endeavors that intend to produce advantageous outcomes. q. This is because one cannot have courage, temperance, or justice without prudence, since part of the definition of a perfect virtue is acting in accord with rational choice, where rational choice is a function of being prudent. 4). Since human beings are rational animals by nature, then virtuous human actions are actions that perfect the rationality and animality of human beings. According to Thomas, a slave is contrasted with a politically free person insofar as the slave, but not the free person, is compelled to yield to another something he or she naturally desires, and ought, to possess himself or herself, namely, the liberty to order his or her life according to his or her own desires, insofar as those desires are in accord with reason. q. According to Thomas, the science of sacred theology does not fit this characterization of science since the first principles of sacred theology are articles of faith and so are not known by the natural light of reason but rather by the grace of God revealing the truth of such principles to human beings. 3, respondeo). Before we speak of the intellectual powers and operations (in addition to ratiocination) that are at play when we come to have scientia, we must first say something about the non-intellectual cognitive powers that are sources of scientia for Thomas. Thomas is famous for being extremely productive as an author in his relatively short life. We might think of Thomas’ commentary on the Sentences as roughly equivalent to his doctoral dissertation in theology. As we noted above, the knowledge that comes by prudence has the agent’s possession of the other moral virtues as a necessary condition, for the knowledge we are speaking of here is knowing just how to act courageously in this situation; to know this, one must have one’s passions ordered such that, whatever one chooses to do, one knows one always ought to act courageously. 4) and so the final, formal, efficient, and material causes go “hand in hand.” If an object has a tendency to act in a certain way, for example, frogs tend to jump and swim, that tendency—final causality—requires that the frog has a certain formal cause, that is, it is a thing of a certain kind. 5). Virtue ethicists have traditionally been interested in defending a position on the logical relations between the human virtues. Thomas distinguishes two different kinds of equivocation: uncontrolled (or complete) equivocation and controlled equivocation (or analogous predication). 15), such that life is properly attributed to that being (q. First of all, good or happiness conducive human actions are pleasant for Thomas. Thomas thinks the answer is “no.” This is because naturally acquired virtues are virtues acquired through habituation, and one sinful act does not destroy a habit acquired by way of the repetition of many acts of one kind (see, for example, ST IaIIae. As Thomas would put it, such actions are bad according to their genus or species, no matter the circumstances in which those actions are performed. If, on the other hand, John eats the right amount of food on a day of mourning (where John rightly eats less on such days than he ordinarily does) for the sake of vain glory, this would be deficient (compare ST IaIIae. In contrast, being in act exists now. (1911; reprint, Allen, TX: Christian Classics, 1981). What does this mean for Thomas? Socrates can be hit by a tomato at t because he has, among other passive potencies, the ability to be hit by an object. For example, the movements of a plant do not meet the necessary condition of being voluntary, according to Thomas. It is in the article that Thomas works through some particular theological or philosophical issue in considerable detail, although not in too much detail. If Socrates were composed, say, of Democritean atoms that were substances in their own right, then Socrates, at best, would be nothing more than an arrangement of atoms. On the other hand, if we merely equivocate on wise when we speak of John and God, then it would not be possible to know anything about God, which, as Thomas points out, is against the views of both Aristotle and the Apostle Paul, that is, both reason and faith. Thomas attributes to Plato of Athens the following view: (P) A human being, for example, Socrates, is identical to his soul, that is, an immaterial substance; the body of Socrates is no part of him. 13, a. Thus, sexual pleasure must hinder reason insofar as it distracts us from using reason or weakens reason. Thomas argues that in order to make sense of any genuine action in the universe we must distinguish its end or goal from the various means that a being employs in order to achieve such an end, for if a being does not act for an end, then that being’s acting in this or that way would be a matter of chance. 87). 1, respondeo). However, if those in authority in a community have set a timetable for an execution, say, that it should occur no sooner than Wednesday at 5 PM, and John the executioner, on his own authority, kills the prisoner on Wednesday at 10 AM (where John is not also an authority in the community), then the circumstances of John’s act of killing make what might otherwise have been a morally permissible act to be an immoral act. Thomas composed four of these during his lifetime: his commentary on Peter Lombard’s Sentences, Summa contra gentiles, Compendium theologiae, and Summa theologiae. Thomas thinks the answer is “yes,” and he defends this answer in a number of ways. Thomas thinks so, and he believes that, in one sense, this should not be controversial. C would not, in such a case, have the force of law. Thomas follows Aristotle in thinking that we know something x scientifically only if our knowledge of x is certain. Again, although the same word is used to speak of these four realities, the term being does not have precisely the same meaning in these four cases, although all four meanings are related to the primary meaning of being as substance. If esse and essentia do not differ in a being B1, then B1’s esse is not limited by a finite essentia, B1’s esse is not participated and so uncreated, and B1’s esse is unreceived. This chapter begins by explaining the historical context within which Thomism originated and some of the general issues arising in Thomistic discussions, and then considers the two main approaches to … A third sense of formal cause for Thomas is the pattern or definition of a thing insofar as it exists in the mind of the maker. In other words, Thomas is here fielding objections to his own considered position. q. Whereas the scientist qua scientist must avoid the former, a discipline that uses words in the latter sense can properly be understood to be scientific or disciplined. Thomas notes there that both Aristotle (Politics, book iii) and divine revelation (Deuteronomy 1:15; Exodus 18:21; and Deuteronomy 1:13) agree that the ideal form of government combines kingship, aristocracy, and democracy insofar as one virtuous man rules as king, the king has a few virtuous men under him as advisors, and, not only all are eligible to govern (the virtuous can come from the populace and not simply from the wealthy class), but also all participate in governance insofar as all participate in choosing who will be the king. 1, ad1). In Thomas’ view, we cannot explain the behavior of perfect animals simply by speaking of the pleasures and pains that such creatures have experienced. According to separatism, philosophy and natural science, on the one hand, and revealed theology, on the other, are incommensurate activities or habits. q. For example, the prudent person knows what temperate eating will look like on this given day, at this given time, and so forth. If someone lies in order to get an innocent person killed, one commits a mortal sin (the effect of which is, if one dies without repenting of such a sin, one will go to hell). English translation: M. Pattison, J. D. Dalgairns, and T. D. Ryder, trans. q. However, it seems to be a hallmark of the modern notion of science that the claims of science are, in fact, fallible, and so, by definition, uncertain. 65, a. 3, respondeo). 7. Slaves do not have it. His ST alone devotes some 1,000 pages in English translation to ethical issues. We thus use the word “good” as an analogous expression in Thomas’ sense. Souls are therefore substantial forms that enable plants and animals to do what all living things do: move, nourish, and reproduce themselves, things non-living substances cannot do. For example, all human beings know they should seek happiness, that is, they should do for themselves what will help them to flourish. 4, a. 1, respondeo. 6]). Third, Thomas cites some authority (in a section that begins, on the contrary) that gives the reader the strong impression that the position defended in the objections is, in fact, untenable. Canonized in 1323, Thomas was later proclaimed a Doctor of the Church by Pope St. Pius V in 1567. 65, a. Thomas is aware of the possibility that a good man can become a tyrant (De regno, book I, ch. 58, a. The principle is simple: the closer an action approaches our end, the more moral it is; the further it departs, the more immoral. In a world where the strong try to take advantage of the weak, law, of course, does do these things. In fact, Thomas argues that three awkward consequences would follow if God required that all human beings need to apprehend the preambles to the faith by way of philosophical argumentation. 1; emphasis mine). We can begin to get a sense of what Thomas means by scientia by way of his discussion of faith, which is a form of knowledge he often contrasts with scientia (see, for example, ST IIaIIae. The metaphysician, minimally, can speak intelligently about the proper relationships between these many different but related meanings of “being.”. 3), Thomas argues that a capacious account of human cognition requires that we mention various interior senses as preambles to proper intellectual activity (see, for example, ST Ia. 34, a. 105, a. As Aristotle states in Politics ii, 6, a form of government where all take some part in the government ensures peace among the people, commends itself to all, and is most enduring. q. Talk about God, for Thomas, requires that we recognize our limitations with respect to such a project. Because the being of the human soul is numerically the same as that of the composite—again, the soul shares its being with the matter it configures whenever the soul configures matter—when the soul exists apart from matter between death and the general resurrection, the being of the composite is preserved insofar as the soul remains in existence (see, for example: SCG IV, ch. But science in the sense of a habit is more than the fruit of inquiry and the possession of arguments. Science as a habit is a person’s possession of an organized body of knowledge of and demonstrative argumentation about some subject matter S, where possessing an organized body of knowledge of and demonstrative argumentation about some subject matter is a function of knowing (a) the basic facts about S, that is, the characteristic properties or powers of things belonging to S, as well as (b) the principles, causes, or explanations of these properties or powers of S, and (c) the logical connections between (a) and (b). (Note that the traditional theological doctrine of creation ex nihilo, which Thomas accepts, does not contradict the Greek axiom, ex nihilo nihil fit. However, there is no form of government other than a limited kingship or limited democracy that takes the truths of (G1), (G2), and (G3) into account. As Thomas famously says in one place, “The natural law is nothing else than the rational creature’s participation of the eternal law” (ST IaIIae. In fact, in his view there are good reasons to think a human being is not identical to his or her soul. 5). Before saying more about human virtue, which is our focus here, it will be good to say a few things about infused virtue since this is an important topic for Thomas, and Thomas’ views on infused virtue are historically very important. However, it certainly could have lasted a long time. 9). This is because Joe cannot be temperate if he is not also prudent. 91, a. Aristotelian Thomism 8 Theses of Aristotelian Thomism From "The River Forest School and the Philosophy of Nature Today" by Benedict Ashley, O.P. Augustine operates a total reversal in the origin of power. However, Thomas thinks that material objects—whether natural or artificial—do have four causes. A portion of prime matter is always configured by a substantial form, though not necessarily this or that substantial form. 65, a. 32, a. Although we cannot understand the things of God that we apprehend by faith in this life, even a slim knowledge of God greatly perfects the soul. We therefore are naturally inclined to pursue those goods that are consistent with human flourishing, as we understand it, that is, the flourishing of a rational, free, social, and animal being. q. . However, ST is not a piece of scholarship as we often think of scholarship in the early 21st century, that is, a professor showing forth everything that she knows about a subject. It was once thought that Thomas meant ST to replace Lombard’s Sentences as a university textbook in theology, which, incidentally, did begin to happen as early as one hundred and fifty years after Thomas’ death. Therefore, we can apply positive predicates to God, for example, just, wise, good, merciful, powerful, and loving, although not in such a way that defines the essence of God and not in a manner that we can totally understand in this life (ST Ia. Email: chrisb@utm.edu Recall that, according to Thomas, a law is a rational command (this is a law’s formal cause) made by the legitimate authority of a community (a law’s efficient cause) for the common good of that community (the final cause) and promulgated (the material cause). 3; on the distinction between intellectual and moral virtue, see below). q. The political autonomy of men is an illusion, men must rely on God. q. Therefore, there is a God [from (13) and (14)]. For Thomas, only human happiness in heaven is perfect insofar as God brings it about that persons in heaven enjoy a perfect intellectual and volitional union with God. First, Thomas thinks it sensible of God to ask human beings to believe things about God that exceed their natural capacities since to do so reinforces in human beings an important truth about God, namely, that God is such that He cannot be completely understood by way of our natural capacities. Hope is the infused virtue that enables its possessor to look forward to God Himself—and not some created image of God—being the object of his or her perfect bliss. 7 [ch. That is to say, it is clear that the frog acts as an efficient cause when it jumps, since a frog is the sort of thing that tends to jump (rather than fly or do summersaults). Morally virtuous action, therefore, is minimally morally good action—morally good or neutral with respect to the kind of action, good in the circumstances, and well-motivated. 1; ST Ia. q. 1 and 2). For Thomas, the subject matter of the science of metaphysics is being qua being or being in common, that is, being insofar as it can be said of anything that is a being. Although Thomas authored some works of pure philosophy, most of his philosophizing is found in the context of his doing Scriptural theology. Indeed, we do not find prudence in a person without also finding in that person the moral virtues of justice, courage, and temperance. 7; and ST IaIIae. Most powerful of all, according to Thomas, the Catholic faith spread throughout the world in the midst of great persecutions. Human authority is in itself good and is necessary for the good life, given the kind of thing human beings are. For example, on Thomas’ reading, Maimonides thinks “God is good” should be understood simply as “God is not evil.” Thomas notes that other theologians take statements such as “God is good” to simply mean “God is the first efficient cause of creaturely goodness.” Thomas thinks there are a number of problems with these reductive theories of God-talk, but one problem that both of them share, he thinks, is that neither of them do justice to the intentions of people when they speak about God. Given this way of distinguishing the virtues, it still follows that one cannot have any one of the perfect cardinal virtues without also possessing the others. Given the Fall of human beings, part three (often abbreviated “IIIa.”) treats the means by which human beings come to embody the virtues, know the law, and receive grace: (a) the Incarnation, life, passion, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, as well as (b) the manner in which Christ’s life and work is made efficacious for human beings, through the sacraments and life of the Church. However, features that a being has at one time that it does not have at another are accidental forms. q. In 1879, Pope Leo XIII published the encyclical Aeterni Patris, which, among other things, holds up Thomas as the supreme model of the Christian philosopher. It is a mistake, therefore, to think that all substances for Thomas have functions in the sense that artifacts or the parts of organic wholes have functions as final causes (we might say that all functions are final causes, but not all final causes are functions). 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