Whether God Is Infinite?
Objection 1: It seems that God is not infinite. For everything
infinite is imperfect, as the Philosopher says; because it has parts
and matter, as is said in Phys. iii. But God is most perfect;
therefore He is not infinite.
Obj. 2: Further, according to the Philosopher (Phys. i), finite
and infinite belong to quantity. But there is no quantity in God, for
He is not a body, as was shown above (Q. 3, A. 1). Therefore it
does not belong to Him to be infinite.
Obj. 3: Further, what is here in such a way as not to be
elsewhere, is finite according to place. Therefore that which is a
thing in such a way as not to be another thing, is finite according to
substance. But God is this, and not another; for He is not a stone or
wood. Therefore God is not infinite in substance.
_On the contrary,_ Damascene says (De Fide Orth. i, 4) that "God is
infinite and eternal, and boundless."
_I answer that,_ All the ancient philosophers attribute infinitude to
the first principle, as is said (Phys. iii), and with reason; for they
considered that things flow forth infinitely from the first principle.
But because some erred concerning the nature of the first principle,
as a consequence they erred also concerning its infinity; forasmuch as
they asserted that matter was the first principle; consequently they
attributed to the first principle a material infinity to the effect
that some infinite body was the first principle of things.
We must consider therefore that a thing is called infinite because it
is not finite. Now matter is in a way made finite by form, and the
form by matter. Matter indeed is made finite by form, inasmuch as
matter, before it receives its form, is in potentiality to many forms;
but on receiving a form, it is terminated by that one. Again, form is
made finite by matter, inasmuch as form, considered in itself, is
common to many; but when received in matter, the form is determined to
this one particular thing. Now matter is perfected by the form by
which it is made finite; therefore infinite as attributed to matter,
has the nature of something imperfect; for it is as it were formless
matter. On the other hand, form is not made perfect by matter, but
rather is contracted by matter; and hence the infinite, regarded on
the part of the form not determined by matter, has the nature of
something perfect. Now being is the most formal of all things, as
appears from what is shown above (Q. 4, A. 1, Obj. 3). Since
therefore the divine being is not a being received in anything, but He
is His own subsistent being as was shown above (Q. 3, A. 4), it is
clear that God Himself is infinite and perfect.
From this appears the Reply to the First Objection.
Reply Obj. 2: Quantity is terminated by its form, which can be
seen in the fact that a figure which consists in quantity terminated,
is a kind of quantitative form. Hence the infinite of quantity is the
infinite of matter; such a kind of infinite cannot be attributed to
God; as was said above, in this article.
Reply Obj. 3: The fact that the being of God is self-subsisting,
not received in any other, and is thus called infinite, shows Him
to be distinguished from all other beings, and all others to be
apart from Him. Even so, were there such a thing as a
self-subsisting whiteness, the very fact that it did not exist in
anything else, would make it distinct from every other whiteness
existing in a subject.
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