exam: aquinas Flashcards
Why should anyone study theology?
Leads to the love of God, true human happiness (joy)
Necessary to live theology is necessary nourishment for the human soul
It is what we need to give to others who are starving(love of neighbor)
salvation
According to Aquinas, What is Sacra Doctrina?
The sacred doctrine
The body of truths that are revealed through Christ
What are the main areas of study that Thomas presumes the reader has done already before reading the Summa Theologiae?
Philosophy and all its parts: Aristotle and plato
Then theology: all scripture
Then church history
Then God
Then Man
Then Christ
What is the object of all Theology?
Revelation of whats in gods mind
What we know is by gods choice and it is limited by him
To try and understand God and learn the truth to reach salvation with God
How is Sacra Doctrina “nobler” than all other sciences?
In three ways:
Greater certitude (more sure bcs it comes from God)
Its subject matter is worth more
Its end = union with God
What does “argument from authority” mean? When is the “argument from authority” the strongest argument?
It is not a matter of argument itself (objection)
argument from authority is based on who says it (God is the highest authority)
Strongest when talking about incarnation
Weakest when it is not about God
We learn this through the apostles that walked and spoke with Jesus
-Does Not argue the proof of principles, which is the articles of faith, but from them it goes to prove something else–The Apostles & Resurrection
If Aquinas is not trying to “prove” the truths of the faith, what is he trying to do with all of this “argumentation”?
Trying to show that God exists, resurrection and addresses atheism
Get what we know from the articles of faith
Why does the Holy Spirit use metaphors and analogies in Scripture?
It helps us understand spiritual things through physical/material things
This is the way God has chosen to reveal the truths to us
Its not supposed to be easy
What do we mean by “revelation”?
Gods word manifesting and communicating divine knowledge
The way god reveals truths to humans
What are the 5 senses of Scripture that Aquinas assumes we know about?
SAMAL
Literal
-This is the straightforward, historical, or direct meaning of the text — what the words signify directly. Nothing false can be in this sense
Spiritual: Derived from interpreting the text in light of Christian beliefs and truths beyond the literal meaning
-Allegorical: reveals how events in Scripture point to Christ & Church
-Moral: how the text guides ethical behavior and actions
-Anagogical: relates to ultimate destiny, particularly the afterlife, heaven, or the spiritual journey toward God
How is the Trinity revealed to us? (can you think of specific instances in Scripture where the Trinity is revealed?)
The trinity is reveled to us through the actions and words of Jesus christ
This is told through the apostles who walked and spoke with and told the truths that were given by him
What are examples of “effects of God” that we study in order to come to know God Himself?
Creation is a direct effect of God, and all of nature represents God since he created it. We are also apart of His creation.
What does it mean to be “self-evident”?
Cannot doubt it
Is the existence of God “self-evident”?
No, if it was self evident no one would ever be able to doubt it
God IS NOT self-evident because people do not accept him
God existing IS self-evident in itself, but not to us
God is self-evident to himself and to believers
God is not self-evident to non believers
What are the two extremes that Aquinas is avoiding in answering the question concerning God’s existence being self-evident (according to Kreeft)?
Knowledge of God is naturally implanted in us
God is truth itself so He is self evident (there is no way to prove that he is the truth)
Extreme Skepticism: denies the possibility of knowing anything about God or existence itself, makes it seem like God is too much to understand
Extreme of Unqualified Certainty: asserts that God’s existence is immediately and inherently obvious to everyone
gives us some important principles for Theology: “______ presupposes _____ _____, even as grace presupposes ______, and perfection supposes ______ ______ ____ ___ ______”
faith
natural knowledge
nature
something that can be perfected
In what way can it be demonstrated that God exists? (When we demonstrate the existence of God, how do we proceed?)
Yes by philosophy and reason which is by faith
Demonstrate:
A priori: know the essence of thing through knowing the cause
A posteriori: from knowledge of the effects (what we can do); essence of cause by the effects; essence is unknown
Explain each of the 5 ways that Aquinas shows God’s existence as reasonable.
- Motion: I’m choosing this one to explain
Everything is in motion (observable)
Every motion is caused by something else (potential/actuality)
An infinite regress of movers is impossible. (cannot go to infinity)
Therefore, there must be a first unmoved mover. (think of dominos)
This unmoved mover is what we understand to be God.
For example, a ball moves because someone kicks it. However, there cannot be an infinite chain of movers; there must be a “first unmoved mover” that set everything else in motion. This unmoved mover, Aquinas argues, is God. Aquinas argues that this first mover must be pure actuality (having no potentiality, only actuality), because if it had potentiality, it would need something else to actualize it, which would contradict it being the first. Since God is pure actuality, He is the source of all motion and change in the universe without being dependent on anything else. - Efficient Causes:
Everything has a cause, must be caused by another, must be an uncaused cause - Being Perfection:
Taken from Plato, Gradation to be found in things - Necessary Being:
There must be a necessary being that has always existed and from which all contingent beings derive existence. Aquinas identifies this necessary being as God. - Intelligent Design:
Think of an arrow & finality (made for a specific end!)
The arrow user knows the arrows end, but the actual arrow does not know its end.
Natural order implies a directing intelligence
What are the philosophical presuppositions behind such a demonstration?
That you know the effect exists, but you cannot be entirely true what/who was the cause (lawnmower analogy)
when an effect is better known to us than its cause, we proceed to the knowledge of the cause
from every effect the existence of its proper cause can be demonstrated so long as its effects are better known to us
if the effects exist, the cause must pre-exist
What are the only 2 objections that Aquinas grants to the existence of God?
evil
nature(science)
And how does Aquinas answer each of them?
Evil: by explaining that God allows evil to exist to bring about a greater good. Since God is the greatest good, he allowed evil to exist and through that it is produced good must go back to the original cause other than reason or will
Nature: by asserting that natural causes ultimately depend on a first cause, which he identifies as God, who is the source of all existence and order. Nature and science can explain the mechanisms of the world, but not the underlying reason for existence itself.
What are the three truths that must be known about the divine God as soon as we establish that fact that He exists?
how He is not
how He is known by us
how He is named
What does it mean to say that God is altogether simple?
His essence and existence are the same, he is perfection
He is not composed of anything, he does not have a body, no motion, no parts
What does it mean to say that God is perfect?
He lacks nothing; he is existence itself
