To mark St. Thomas’ feast, here are a few aphorisms drawn from his writings.
- Every being naturally loves God more than itself. (ST I, 60, 5 ad 1)
- Sin is nothing other than falling away from the good which is fitting to one’s nature. (ST I-II, 109, 2 ad 2)
- Evil is never loved except under the aspect of good; that is to say, in so far as it is truly a good in some particular respect, but is conceived as absolutely good. (ST I-II, 27, 1 ad 1)
- God is one in reality but multiple according to our minds; we know him in as many ways as created things represent him. (ST I, 13, 4 ad 3)
- To know God in a created likeness is not to know the essence of God. (ST I, 12, 4 ad 1)
January 29, 2011 at 5:46 pm
I resolve to really try for #1.
January 29, 2011 at 5:46 pm
that was me above.
January 29, 2011 at 7:28 pm
When Thomas says that each creature loves God “naturally”, it is not quite clear in this case that he means “by nature” — that is, automatically. If you follow the link to the particular passage in the Summa, he argues that a creature loves God more than itself because it knows God to be the source of its own being and goodness, and of the being and goodness of everything else. But our awareness of that is clouded, to say the least, and presumably our “natural” love for God is correspondingly lukewarm.
On the other hand, is it true that we “automatically” love whatever it is that gives existence and life more than we love our selves, even if we don’t consciously identify that life-giving thing with God? If so, then Thomas’ “naturally” could apply in its strict sense anyway.
January 29, 2011 at 7:30 pm
All of which was to say that yes, I think we all need to try for #1, if only so that we can be more truly ourselves.