Summa Contra Gentiles

Book 3: Providence, Part II

St. Thomas Aquinas, Vernon J. Bourke

• Publisher: University of Notre Dame Press
• Year: 1975
• ISBN:
  9780268074814
• Topic: Filosofía
• Subtopic: Filosofía medieval y renacentista

Book Three, Part 2 of the Summa Contra Gentiles series is the second part of a treatise on the hierarchy of creation, the divine providence over all things, and man's relation to God.

The Summa Contra Gentiles is not merely the only complete summary of Christian doctrine that St. Thomas has written, but also a creative and even revolutionary work of Christian apologetics composed at the precise moment when Christian thought needed to be intellectually creative in order to master and assimilate the intelligence and wisdom of the Greeks and the Arabs. In the Summa Aquinas works to save and purify the thought of the Greeks and the Arabs in the higher light of Christian Revelation, confident that all that had been rational in the ancient philosophers and their followers would become more rational within Christianity.

Book 1 of the Summa deals with God; Book 2, Creation; and Book 4, Salvation.

Contents

PART II

Chapters 84–163

84. That the celestial bodies make no impression on our intellects

85. That the celestial bodies are not the causes of our acts of will and choice

86. That the corporeal effects in things here below do not necessarily result from the celestial bodies

87. That the motion of a celestial body is not the cause of our acts of choice by the power of its soul moving us, as some say

88. That separate created substances cannot be directly the cause of our acts of choice and will, but only God

89. That the movement of the will is caused by God and not only the power of the will

90. That human acts of choice and of will are subject to divine providence

91. How human events may be traced back to higher causes

92. How a person is favored by fortune and how man is assisted by higher causes

93. On fate: whether and what it is

94. On the certainty of divine providence

95. That the immutability of divine providence does not suppress the value of prayer

96. That some prayers are not granted by God

97. How the disposition of providence has a rational plan

98. How God can act apart from the order of His providence, and how not

99. That God can work apart from the order implanted in things, by producing effects without proximate causes

100. That things which God does apart from the order of nature are not contrary to nature

101. On miracles

102. That God alone works miracles

103. How spiritual substances do certain wonderful things which, however, are not truly miracles

104. That the works of magicians are not solely due to the influence of celestial bodies

105. Where the performances of the magicians get their efficacy

106. That the intellectual substance which provides the efficacy for magic works is not morally good

107. That the intellectual substance whose help the arts of magic use is not evil in its own nature

108. Arguments whereby it seems to be proved that there can be no sin in demons

109. That sin can occur in demons, and in what way

110. Answer to the previous arguments

111. That rational creatures are subject to divine providence in a special way

112. That rational creatures are governed for their own sakes, while others are governed in subordination to them

113. That the rational creature is directed by God to his actions not only by an ordering of the species, but also according to what befits the individual

114. That laws are divinely given to man

115. That the divine law principally orders man toward God

116. That the end of divine law is the love of God

117. That we are ordered by divine law to the love of neighbor

118. That through divine law men are bound to the right faith

119. That our mind is directed to God by certain sense objects

120. That the cult proper to latria is to be offered to God alone

121. That divine law orders man according to reason in regard to corporeal and sensible things

122. The reason why simple fornication is a sin according to divine law, and that matrimony is natural

123. That matrimony should be indivisible

124. That matrimony should be between one man and one woman

125. That matrimony should not take place between close relatives

126. That not all sexual intercourse is sinful

127. That the use of food is not a sin in itself

128. How man is ordered by the law of God in regard to his neighbor

129. That some human acts are right according to nature and not merely because they are prescr...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• 84. That the celestial bodies make no impression on our intellects
• 85. That the celestial bodies are not the causes of our acts of will and choice
• 86. That the corporeal effects in things here below do not necessarily result from the celestial bodies
• 87. That the motion of a celestial body is not the cause of our acts of choice by the power of its soul moving us, as some say
• 88. That separate created substances cannot be directly the cause of our acts of choice and will, but only God
• 89. That the movement of the will is caused by God and not only the power of the will
• 90. That human acts of choice and of will are subject to divine providence
• 91. How human events may be traced back to higher causes
• 92. How a person is favored by fortune and how man is assisted by higher causes
• 93. On fate: whether and what it is
• 94. On the certainty of divine providence
• 95. That the immutability of divine providence does not suppress the value of prayer
• 96. That some prayers are not granted by God
• 97. How the disposition of providence has a rational plan
• 98. How God can act apart from the order of His providence, and how not
• 99. That God can work apart from the order implanted in things, by producing effects without proximate causes
• 100. That things which God does apart from the order of nature are not contrary to nature
• 101. On miracles
• 102. That God alone works miracles
• 103. How spiritual substances do certain wonderful things which, however, are not truly miracles
• 104. That the works of magicians are not solely due to the influence of celestial bodies
• 105. Where the performances of the magicians get their efficacy
• 106. That the intellectual substance which provides the efficacy for magic works is not morally good
• 107. That the intellectual substance whose help the arts of magic use is not evil in its own nature
• 108. Arguments whereby it seems to be proved that there can be no sin in demons
• 109. That sin can occur in demons, and in what way
• 110. Answer to the previous arguments
• 111. That rational creatures are subject to divine providence in a special way
• 112. That rational creatures are governed for their own sakes, while others are governed in subordination to them
• 113. That the rational creature is directed by God to his actions not only by an ordering of the species, but also according to what befits the individual
• 114. That laws are divinely given to man
• 115. That the divine law principally orders man toward God
• 116. That the end of divine law is the love of God
• 117. That we are ordered by divine law to the love of neighbor
• 118. That through divine law men are bound to the right faith
• 119. That our mind is directed to God by certain sense objects
• 120. That the cult proper to latria is to be offered to God alone
• 121. That divine law orders man according to reason in regard to corporeal and sensible things
• 122. The reason why simple fornication is a sin according to divine law, and that matrimony is natural
• 123. That matrimony should be indivisible
• 124. That matrimony should be between one man and one woman
• 125. That matrimony should not take place between close relatives
• 126. That not all sexual intercourse is sinful
• 127. That the use of food is not a sin in itself
• 128. How man is ordered by the law of God in regard to his neighbor
• 129. That some human acts are right according to nature and not merely because they are prescribed by law
• 130. On the counsels that are given in divine law
• 131. On the error of the attackers of voluntary poverty
• 132. On the ways of life of those who practice voluntary poverty
• 133. In what way poverty is good
• 134. Answers to the arguments brought forward above against poverty
• 135. Answer to the objections against the different ways of life of those who embrace voluntary poverty
• 136. On the error of those who attack perpetual continence
• 137. Another error concerning perpetual continence
• 138. Against those who attack vows
• 139. That neither meritorious acts nor sins are equal
• 140. That a man’s acts are punished or rewarded by God
• 141. On the diversity and order of punishments
• 142. That not all rewards and punishments are equal
• 143. On the punishment due to mortal and venial sin in relation to the ultimate end
• 144. That by mortal sin a man is eternally deprived of his ultimate end
• 145. That sins are punished also by the experience of something painful
• 146. That it is lawful for judges to inflict punishments
• 147. That man needs divine help to attain happiness
• 148. That by the help of divine grace man is not forced toward virtue
• 149. That man cannot merit divine help in advance
• 150. That the aforesaid divine help is called grace, and what sanctifying grace is
• 151. That sanctifying grace causes the love of God in us
• 152. That divine grace causes faith in us
• 153. That divine grace causes hope in us
• 154. On the gifts of gratuitous grace, including a consideration of the divinations of demons
• 155. That man needs the help of grace to persevere in the good
• 156. That he who falls from grace through sin may again be restored through grace
• 157. That man cannot be freed from sin except through grace
• 158. How man is freed from sin
• 159. That it is reasonable to hold a man responsible if he does not turn toward God, even though he cannot do this without grace
• 160. That man in the state of sin, without grace, cannot avoid sin
• 161. That God frees some men from sin and leaves others in sin
• 162. That God is not the cause of sin for any person
• 163. On predestination, reprobation, and divine election