Whether Christ Ought to Have Assumed All the Bodily Defects of Men?
Objection 1: It would seem that Christ ought to have assumed all the
bodily defects of men. For Damascene says (De Fide Orth. iii, 6, 18):
"What is unassumable is incurable." But Christ came to cure all our
defects. Therefore He ought to have assumed all our defects.
Obj. 2: Further it was said (A. 1), that in order to satisfy for us,
Christ ought to have had perfective habits of soul and defects of
body. Now as regards the soul, He assumed the fulness of all grace.
Therefore as regards the body, He ought to have assumed all defects.
Obj. 3: Further, amongst all bodily defects death holds the chief
place. Now Christ assumed death. Much more, therefore, ought He to
have assumed other defects.
_On the contrary,_ Contraries cannot take place simultaneously in the
same. Now some infirmities are contrary to each other, being caused
by contrary principles. Hence it could not be that Christ assumed all
human infirmities.
_I answer that,_ As stated above (AA. 1, 2), Christ assumed human
defects in order to satisfy for the sin of human nature, and for this
it was necessary for Him to have the fulness of knowledge and grace
in His soul. Hence Christ ought to have assumed those defects which
flow from the common sin of the whole nature, yet are not
incompatible with the perfection of knowledge and grace. And thus it
was not fitting for Him to assume all human defects or infirmities.
For there are some defects that are incompatible with the perfection
of knowledge and grace, as ignorance, a proneness towards evil, and a
difficulty in well-doing. Some other defects do not flow from the
whole of human nature in common on account of the sin of our first
parent, but are caused in some men by certain particular causes, as
leprosy, epilepsy, and the like; and these defects are sometimes
brought about by the fault of the man, e.g. from inordinate eating;
sometimes by a defect in the formative power. Now neither of these
pertains to Christ, since His flesh was conceived of the Holy Ghost,
Who has infinite wisdom and power, and cannot err or fail; and He
Himself did nothing wrong in the order of His life. But there are
some third defects, to be found amongst all men in common, by reason
of the sin of our first parent, as death, hunger, thirst, and the
like; and all these defects Christ assumed, which Damascene (De Fide
Orth. i, 11; iii, 20) calls "natural and indetractible passions"
--natural, as following all human nature in common; indetractible, as
implying no defect of knowledge or grace.
Reply Obj. 1: All particular defects of men are caused by the
corruptibility and passibility of the body, some particular causes
being added; and hence, since Christ healed the passibility and
corruptibility of our body by assuming it, He consequently healed all
other defects.
Reply Obj. 2: The fulness of all grace and knowledge was due to
Christ's soul of itself, from the fact of its being assumed by the
Word of God; and hence Christ assumed all the fulness of knowledge
and wisdom absolutely. But He assumed our defects economically, in
order to satisfy for our sin, and not that they belonged to Him of
Himself. Hence it was not necessary for Him to assume them all, but
only such as sufficed to satisfy for the sin of the whole nature.
Reply Obj. 3: Death comes to all men from the sin of our first
parent; but not other defects, although they are less than death.
Hence there is no parity.
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