GENERAL MORAL THEOLOGY
Question I
THE LAST END OF MAN AND THE MEANS TO THAT END
Art. 1: THE LAST END OF MAN
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 1-5; _Contra Gentes_, IV, cc. 1-63.)
19. Existence of the Last End.--Every deliberate act proceeds from the
will, and, since the will pursues good as its goal, it follows that
every deliberate act is done for some good or end. But, if this end is
an imperfect good, it is desired not for itself but as leading up to a
perfect good, that is, to one which will leave nothing beyond it to be
desired; in other words, the intermediate end is willed on account of a
last end. Hence, all that a man wills, he wills directly or indirectly
on account of a last end. All men desire their own happiness and
perfection; but not all understand in what beatitude consists, since
some aim ultimately at finite goods.
20. Nature of the Last End.--As man’s Last End is that object which
will make him perfectly happy, it cannot consist: (a) in external
goods, such as wealth, honors, fame, glory and power, since one might
have all these and yet be very unhappy; (b) in goods of the body, such
as health, beauty, pleasure and strength, since all these things are
passing, and moreover satisfy only a part, and that the lower part, of
man; (c) in goods of the soul, such as wisdom or virtue, since man’s
intellect is never content with particular truth, nor his will with
particular good, the former always reaching out for the highest truth,
the latter for the highest good. Hence, the Last End of man is the
Infinite Good, or God “who satisfieth thy desire” (Psalm cii. 5).
21. Attainment of the Last End.--God being supersensible, the act by
which He is attained cannot be any operation of the senses, but must be
an act of the higher powers. Man possesses his Last End through the
vision of God, from which result beatific love and every good that is
compatible with the glorified state. For “we see now through a glass in
a dark manner, but then face to face” (I Cor., xiii. 12); and there
shall be “glory and honor and peace to everyone that worketh good”
(Rom, ii. 10).
Art. 2: ACTS AS HUMAN
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 6-17.)
22. Human acts are a means to man’s Last End, inasmuch as they are
meritorious--i.e., labors that deserve a recompense (I Cor., iii. 8),
struggles that deserve a crown (II Tim., ii. 5). But works are not
meritorious unless they are one’s own (human) and good (moral); and,
since the reward is supernatural, they must also be the fruit of grace.
Hence, we shall speak of acts in the following order: (a) acts as human
and free (Art. 2); (b) acts as morally good (Art. 3); (c) acts as
supernaturally meritorious (Art. 4).
23. Definition.--Those acts are called human of which a man is the
master, and he is master of his actions in virtue of his reason and his
will, which faculties make him superior to non-human agents that act
without reason and freedom. Hence, the following kinds of acts done by
a human being are not called human: (a) those that are not under the
control of the mind, because one is permanently or temporarily without
the use of reason or without knowledge (e.g., the acts done by the
insane; by those who are unconscious or delirious, under the influence
of hypnotism or drugs, distracted or carried away by vehement fear,
anger, etc.; by infants and uninstructed persons); (b) those that are
not under the control of the will, even though they are known (e.g.,
automatic acts, such as the acts of the vegetative powers, growth,
circulation of the blood; pathological acts, such as convulsions; acts
done under external violence).
24. Knowledge Requisite for a Human Act.--An act is human, or
voluntary, when it is deliberately desired; and, since nothing can be
deliberately desired unless it is known, an act done without knowledge
is not human or voluntary. Thus, a delirious patient does not will the
language he uses, for his mind is confused and he does not understand
what he is saying.
25. The condition of a person without knowledge is ignorance, which is
defined as the absence of knowledge in one who is capable of knowing.
Ignorance is of various kinds. From the viewpoint of that which is not
known (i.e., of the object of the ignorance), there is ignorance of the
substance of an act and ignorance of the quality of an act. For
example, Titus driving rapidly in the dark runs over and kills a pet
animal of his neighbor, but knows nothing of this happening (ignorance
of the substance of the act); Balbus, a child, fires a pistol at his
playmate, not knowing that this causes death (ignorance of the physical
quality of an act), and that it is the sin of murder (ignorance of the
moral quality of an act).
26. With reference to the will of the person who is ignorant, three
kinds of ignorance may be distinguished.
(a) Ignorance is concomitant (simultaneous with the act of the will),
when it is not voluntary, and yet is not therefore the reason of the
act that follows it, since that act would have been done, even had
there been knowledge. This may be illustrated by the example of a
hunter who intended to kill an enemy, and killed him only accidentally
while shooting at an animal.
(b) Ignorance is consequent (after the act of the will), when it is
voluntary, which may happen in different ways: first, when ignorance is
affected, as when a person expressly desires to remain ignorant about
his duties, so that he may have an excuse for his sins, or that he may
not be disturbed in his evil life; secondly, when he neglects to
acquire the knowledge he ought to possess, as when a hunter kills a
man, thinking him an animal, because he took no pains to be sure before
firing.
(c) Ignorance is antecedent (before the act of the will), when it is
not voluntary, and is the cause of the act that follows since the act
would not have been done, if there had been knowledge. For example, a
hunter who has used reasonable diligence to avoid accidents, kills a
man whom he mistook for a deer.
27. With reference to the responsibility of the person who is ignorant,
there are two kinds of ignorance. (a) Ignorance is invincible when it
cannot be removed, even by the use of all the care that ordinarily
prudent and conscientious persons would use in the circumstances. Thus,
a person who has no suspicions of his ignorance, or who has tried in
vain to acquire instruction about his duties, is invincibly ignorant.
(b) Ignorance is vincible when it can be removed by the exercise of
ordinary care. There are various degrees of this species of ignorance:
first, it is merely vincible, when some diligence has been exercised,
but not enough; secondly, it is crass or supine, when hardly any
diligence has been used; thirdly, it is affected, when a person
deliberately aims to continue in ignorance.
28. Influence of the Various Kinds of Ignorance on the Voluntariness of
Acts.--(a) Ignorance of an act, whether as to its substance or quality,
makes an act involuntary, when the ignorance itself is involuntary, as
will be explained in paragraph 29. Hence, if we refer to ignorance that
is not blameworthy and to the guilt of violating the law of God, we may
say: “Ignorance excuses.”
(b) Ignorance does not make an act involuntary before human law, unless
the law itself presumes the ignorance or the ignorance is proved, as
will be explained in the Question on Law (see 489 sqq.). For, when law
is sufficiently promulgated or a fact pertains to one’s own self, the
presumption is that ignorance does not exist, or that it is culpable.
Hence, the general rule of law common to all forms of jurisprudence:
“Ignorance does not excuse” (cfr. Canon 16 of the Code of Canon Law).
29. Effects of Concomitant, Consequent, and Antecedent Ignorance.--(a)
Concomitant ignorance does not make an act involuntary, because it does
not cause anything that is contrary to the will; but it does make the
act that is performed non-voluntary, since what is unknown cannot be
actually desired.
(b) Consequent ignorance cannot make an act entirely involuntary, since
such ignorance is itself voluntary; but it does in a certain respect
make an act involuntary, i.e., inasmuch as the act would not have been
done save for the ignorance. (c) Antecedent ignorance makes an act
entirely involuntary.
30. Effects of Invincible and Vincible Ignorance.--(a) Invincible
ignorance, even of what pertains to the natural law, makes an act
involuntary, since nothing is willed except what is understood. Hence,
no matter how wrong an act is in itself, the agent is not guilty of
formal sin (see 249), if he is invincibly ignorant of the malice
involved.
(b) Vincible ignorance does not make an act involuntary, since the
ignorance itself is voluntary; hence, it does not excuse from sin. It
does not even make an act less voluntary and less sinful, if the
ignorance is affected in order that one may have an excuse; for such a
state of mind shows that the person would act the same way, even though
he had knowledge.
31. Vincible ignorance makes an act less voluntary and less sinful: (a)
when the ignorance is not affected, for the voluntariness is measured
by the knowledge, and knowledge here is lacking; (b) when the
ignorance, though affected, was fostered only through fear that
knowledge might compel a stricter way of life; for such a state of mind
seems to show that one would not act the same way if one had knowledge.
32. Like to ignorance are the following: (a) error, which is a judgment
not in agreement with the facts (e.g., Balbus, a young child, thinks
stealing is lawful, because older persons are represented as stealing
in the moving pictures); (b) forgetfulness, which is ignorance of what
was once known (e.g., Titus made a study of his duties as a Catholic
when he was young, but at present what he does not know about those
duties is not inconsiderable); (c) inadvertence, which is a lack of
attention to what is being done (e.g., Caius, who is absent-minded,
sometimes gets his hair cut and goes away without paying, or takes
money that does not belong to him).
33. The principles and conclusions given above with regard to ignorance
will apply also to error, forgetfulness and inadvertence; for in all
these cases the lack of actual knowledge at the moment an act is done,
is either willed or not willed, and accordingly the act itself is
either voluntary or not voluntary. In the examples mentioned above,
Balbus does not will the guilt of theft, since he does not know it; but
his elders do will that guilt, because they should know it. Titus is
responsible for neglecting his duties, if he has forgotten them through
his own neglect of them or other fault; otherwise, he is not
responsible. Caius’ inattention is involuntary, if due to mental
concentration or distraction, and if it is not desired by him; it is
voluntary, if he is aware of it and cultivates it, or if he does not
try to be more attentive to his duties.
34. Consent Requisite for a Human Act.--To be human, an act must
proceed not only from knowledge, but also from inclination; that is, it
must be voluntary. Three things are necessary in order that an act be
voluntary: (a) it must be agreeable to an internal principle, i.e., in
most moral matters to the will. Hence, an act that is done against
one’s will on account of external violence is not voluntary; (b) it
must be caused by the will. Hence, a shower of rain is said to be
agreeable to the gardener, but not voluntary since his will is not its
cause; (c) it must be performed with a conscious purpose. Hence,
natural acts (such as sleeping) and spontaneous acts (such as stroking
one’s beard absent-mindedly) are not voluntary acts.
35. Kinds of Voluntary Acts.-(a) A voluntary act is free or necessary,
according as one can or cannot abstain from it. The vision of God in
heaven is voluntary to the blessed, since they look at Him knowingly
and gladly; but it is not free, since they cannot avert their gaze from
that which makes them blessed. The love of God on earth is voluntary,
since chosen; but it is also free, since man is able to turn away from
God.
(b) An act is perfectly or imperfectly voluntary, according as the
deliberation and consent that precede it are full or only partial.
(c) An act is said to be simply--that is, absolutely--voluntary, when
it is wished under circumstances that exist here and now, although in
itself, apart from those circumstances, it is not wished. It is said to
be voluntary under a certain aspect, when it is desired for itself, but
not under existing conditions. Thus, if an arm needs to be amputated to
save life, the amputation is absolutely voluntary, while the
preservation of the arm is voluntary only in a certain respect. Hence,
an act is voluntary simply or absolutely when one chooses it, all
things considered; it remains involuntary under a certain respect,
inasmuch as the choice is made with reluctance.
(d) An act is voluntary in itself or directly, when it is desired in
itself for its own sake (i.e., as an end), or for the sake of something
else (i.e., as a means). It is voluntary in its cause or indirectly,
when it is not desired in itself, either as a means or an end, but is
foreseen as the result of something else that is intended. Examples:
Titus quarrels with his neighbors, at times because he likes to
quarrel, and at other times because he wishes to make them fear him;
hence, his quarrels are directly voluntary. Caius is a peaceful man who
dislikes quarreling; but he likes to drink too much occasionally,
although he knows that he always quarrels when he is under the
influence of liquor. Thus, his quarrels are indirectly voluntary.
36. An act is voluntary in its cause in two ways: (a) approvingly
(physically and morally voluntary in cause), when one is able and
obliged not to perform the act that is its cause (e.g., the quarrels of
Caius mentioned above are approved implicitly by him, since he could
and should prevent the intoxication which is their cause); (b)
permissively (physically voluntary in cause), when one is not able or
not obliged to omit the act that is its cause (see 94 sqq.). Examples:
Balbus, in order to make a living, has to associate with persons of
quarrelsome character, and as a result often hears shocking disputes.
Titus, a military commander, orders an enemy fortification to be
bombarded, although he knows that this will involve the destruction of
other property and the unavoidable killing of some non-combatants or
neutrals. Caius writes a book whose purpose and natural result is
edification, but he foresees that evil-minded persons will
misunderstand it and take scandal.
37. Omissions, as well as acts, may be voluntary. (a) Thus, they are
directly voluntary, when they are willed as an end or as a means to
an end. Example: Titus fails to reprove the disorders of those in
his charge because he likes disorder, or because it illustrates his
theory that everyone should go through an evolution from roughness to
refinement. (b) They are indirectly voluntary, when their cause is
willed with approval or permitted with disapproval. Example: Balbus
does not like to miss Mass, but he fails to rise from bed when he hears
the church bell ringing, and as a result does not get to church. If
his failure to get up was due to laziness, the omission of Mass was
approved by Balbus; if it was due to illness, the omission was only
permitted.
38. The effect that follows upon an omission may also be voluntary. (a)
Thus, it is directly voluntary, if the omission is chosen as a means to
the effect. Example: Caius hears Titus say that he is going to make a
certain business deal, and he knows that Titus will suffer a great loss
thereby; but he wishes Titus to lose his money, and therefore says
nothing about the danger. (b) It is indirectly voluntary, if one
foresees the effect, and approves or permits it. Examples: Balbus sees
Titus attacked by a hoodlum and realizes that, unless assisted, Titus
will be badly beaten up; but he is such an admirer of pugilism that, in
spite of his sorrow for Titus, he decides not to stop the fight. Caius
sees his friend Sempronius drowning, and fails to go to his assistance,
because to his regret he is not an expert swimmer.
39. The effect of an omission is indirectly voluntary and approved by
the will when one is able and bound to do what one omits. Example:
Balbus receives some confidential documents with the understanding that
he will guard them sacredly; but fearing to lose the good graces of
Titus, who is curious and loquacious, he omits to put the papers away
as promised, with the result that Titus finds them and reads them.
40. Obstacles to Consent.--The obstacles to consent are all those
factors that take away or lessen the voluntariness of an act. (a) Thus,
the actual obstacles that affect the intellect are reduced to
ignorance, spoken of above; those that affect the will are passion and
fear, and that which affects the external powers is coercion. (b) The
habitual obstacles are habits and abnormal mental states.
41. Fear is a disturbance of mind caused by the thought that a future
danger is impending. It is an obstacle to consent in various ways: (a)
it lessens or takes away freedom of judgment, inasmuch as it hinders or
suspends the reasoning processes; (b) it lessens the voluntariness of
choice, inasmuch as it makes one decide for what is not of itself
agreeable.
42. An act done under fear that impeded the use of judgment is: (a)
involuntary, if the fear was so great that one was temporarily out of
one’s mind. Example: Titus is so panic-stricken at the thought that a
wild animal is pursuing him that he fires a revolver in every
direction; (b) less voluntary, if the fear prevents one from thinking
with calmness and deliberation. Example: Caius is being questioned by a
stern examiner who demands an immediate reply. Fearing to hesitate,
Caius gives what he knows is a “bluffing” answer.
43. The acts of one who is under fear are of various kinds.
(a) Acts are done with fear, when the fear is concomitant--i.e., when
it is not willed and does not cause the act, but is merely its occasion
or would rather prevent it. Examples: Julius is ordered under pain of
death to drink a glass of wine, a thing he was intending to do and
which he would have done even without any threats. Balbus walks along a
lonely road, because he must get home, but he trembles at the thought
of robbers. Caius, a highwayman, at the point of the revolver, forces
Balbus to hand over his purse, but he fears that the police may arrive
before he has secured the money. Titus, a business man, makes a trip by
air, because he must reach another city without delay, but he has some
apprehensions about his safety. All these men act, not because of, but
apart from or in spite of their fears.
(b) Acts are done through fear, when fear causes an act that would not
otherwise be performed. The fear may be antecedent (i.e., unwilled) or
consequent (i.e., willed). Examples: Balbus, in the case mentioned
above, surrendered his purse because of involuntary fear which was
caused by the revolver of the robber. Claudius makes an act of sorrow
for sin because of voluntary fear which he produces by thinking of the
punishment of hell.
44. The effects of fear, which do not take away the use of reason, on
the voluntariness of acts are as follows.
(a) Acts done with fear are not made really involuntary on account of
the fear that accompanies them, for they are done for their own sake,
not out of fear or as a consequence of fear. They may be called
relatively involuntary in the sense that, by reason of fear, they are
comparatively unpleasant, unless one enjoys the thrill of danger.
Examples: Balbus, Caius and Titus, in the cases mentioned above, acted
with perfect willingness. Whether they enjoyed their experiences or
not, depends on their attitudes towards adventure and excitement.
(b) Acts done through fear are voluntary simply and absolutely, for the
act done under the impulse of fear is what the agent considers here and
now as most desirable. Examples: Balbus’ surrender of his purse and
Claudius’ act of contrition are just what these two men wish to do as
best suited to the circumstances.
(c) Acts done through fear are involuntary in a certain respect, if the
agent can retain his inclination towards the opposite of the act and
still avoid what he fears; otherwise, they are in no way involuntary.
Examples: Balbus retains his liking for the money taken from him by
force, and hence the surrender of it to the highwayman, although
voluntary, if all things are considered, is not voluntary, if only the
money itself is considered. Claudius, on the contrary, retains no
liking for his sins, for he knows that, if he does, he will defeat the
purpose of his act of sorrow, which is to escape the pains of hell;
hence, his contrition, although the result of fear, is in no respect
involuntary.
45. Passion is a movement of the sensitive appetite towards its object
through love, desire, hope, or its repose therein through delight. It
tends towards good, as fear tends away from evil (see 117 sqq.).
Passion is an obstacle to consent in the following ways: (a) it takes
away voluntariness (i.e., the quality of proceeding from an internal
principle with knowledge of the end of the act), whenever it is so
intense as to prevent knowledge; (b) it diminishes liberty (i.e., the
quality of being perfectly voluntary, or indifferent as between many
acts), even when it does not prevent knowledge.
46. Spiritual appetites fortify the reason, but the opposite is true of
sensible appetites; for these latter draw all the attention to things
that are lower and away from those that are higher, and impede the
exercise of imagination and other senses that serve the reason. In
extreme and rare cases passion may be so intense as to distract from or
prevent altogether the exercise of reason, or to produce insanity.
Thus, we sometimes hear of persons losing their minds through affection
for money, or of performing irrational deeds under the excitement of
joy.
47. With reference to the will, passion is twofold. (a) It is
antecedent, when it precedes the act of the will and causes it. In this
case the passion arises not from the will, but from some other cause
(e.g., the bodily state, as when a sick man longs for food that is
forbidden). (b) Passion is consequent when it follows the act of the
will and results from it. This may happen either without the will
choosing the passion (as when the very vehemence with which the will
desires some object causes a corresponding sensitive emotion to
awaken), or because the will has deliberately aroused the emotion in
order to be able the better to act through its cooperation.
48. Antecedent passion makes an act more voluntary, since it makes the
will tend with greater inclination to its object; but it likewise makes
an act less free, since it impedes deliberation and disturbs the power
of choice. Example: A man who takes extreme delight in sports, plays
voluntarily, but is less free than if he were not so immoderately
inclined that way.
49. Consequent passion which results naturally from an intense act of
the will does not increase the voluntariness of the act, since it is
not its cause; but it does show that the act of the will is intense,
for it is only that which is willed vehemently that overflows from the
will and affects the emotions.
50. Consequent passion which results from the deliberate choice of the
will increases the voluntariness of the act that follows, since the act
is performed with greater intensity on account of the passion that has
been deliberately excited.
51. What has been said about the passions that tend to sensible good
can be applied also to the passions that are concerned with sensible
evils, such as hatred, sadness, aversion, boldness, anger. If they are
antecedent, they increase the voluntariness of an act, but diminish its
freedom; and, if they cause a passing frenzy or insanity, they take
away all responsibility. If they are consequent, they either increase
the willingness of the act, or indicate that it is willed with great
intensity.
52. Violence, or coercion, is the use of force by an external agent to
compel one to do what one does not want to do. Its effects on
voluntariness are: (a) it cannot affect the internal act of the will,
else we should have the contradiction that the act of the will was both
voluntary, as proceeding from the will, and involuntary, as proceeding
from external coercion; (b) it can affect external acts, such as
walking, and so make them involuntary. If a boy is driven to school,
the violence makes his going involuntary, but it does not make his will
not to go to school involuntary.
53. Habits.--Characteristic of habits is a constant inclination,
resulting from repeated acts, to perform similar acts (see 133 for
definition of habit). Its effect[s] on the voluntariness of acts are:
(a) if the habit is in a sense involuntary, i.e., caused by free acts
but retracted by a sincere act of contrition, it diminishes or even
takes away voluntariness. If the actual advertence to the act is
imperfect, the voluntariety is diminished; if advertence is totally
absent, all voluntariety is taken away. Thus a drunkard who retracts
his habit and makes an act of true contrition may again fall into sin
because of the acquired dispositions to drink. Then the sins are less
voluntary or at times, owing to total lack of advertence, may be
regarded solely as material sins.
(b) if the habit is voluntary, i.e., acquired by free acts and not
retracted, it increases the voluntariness in respect to the inclination
to act. Should all advertence and deliberation be taken away, a rare
occurrence, it diminishes the liberty of the act and consequently its
morality as good or bad. Voluntariety, however, is not taken away
entirely, since the habit itself was freely willed and hence acts
flowing from it are voluntary in cause (see 35.). If sufficient
advertence remains, the habit diminishes the freedom of the act owing
to the impeding of reason; but this diminution of liberty is in accord
with the will of the individual who freely contracted and conserves the
habit to have facility in acting. Accordingly, absolutely speaking, a
voluntary habit increases the voluntariety of acts caused by that habit
and consequently increases their goodness or evil. Thus St. Thomas
asserts that one who sins from habit sins from certain malice, i.e.,
not from ignorance or passion, but from the will’s own choice.
54. Natural propensities are inclinations that arise from bodily
constitution or physical condition (e.g., a strong native attraction to
temperance or to intemperance not acquired by frequent acts). Natural
propensities have the same kind of influence on the willingness of an
act as involuntary habits (see 53.).
55. Pathological states are diseases of the brain or nerves that react
upon the intellect and the will, such as various kinds of neuroses and
psychoses, hysteria and epilepsy. The influence of pathological states
on the voluntariness of acts seems similar in kind to that ascribed to
antecedent passion (see 48.). Caution must be observed in applying
these principles to particular kinds of mental diseases.[1]
[1] In doubt whether an act associated with a pathological state is
free or not, the rule of moralists is lenient. When the act is sinful,
it is not imputed as gravely sinful, for man is innocent until proven
guilty. If the act is good, it is presumed voluntary and free and,
consequently, meritorious. See Prummer, D.M., O.P., _Manuale Theologiae
Moralis_ (Barcelona: Herder, 1946), I. n.93.
56. Two Kinds of Voluntary Acts.--Having discussed human or voluntary
acts in general, we shall now indicate in particular the acts that are
of this kind. There are two classes of voluntary acts: (a) those
elicited by the will; (b) those commanded by the will.
57. Acts Elicited by the Will.--The first class of acts under the
control of the will are those that are performed by the will
itself--i.e., that are begun and completed in that power of the soul.
58. There are three acts of the will that are directed to the end the
will has in view, viz., wish, intention and fruition. Wish is the love
or inclination of the will towards the end without any reference to the
means by which it is to be obtained: this is the first act of the will.
Intention is the direction of the will to the gaining of the end
through certain means. Fruition is the enjoyment of the end after it
has been gained: this is the last act of the will.
59. There are three acts of the will that are directed to the means and
that follow after intention, viz., consent, election, and use. Consent
follows upon the counsel of the intellect, and is an act of the will
agreeing to several means as suitable for the intended end. Election
follows after a practical judgment of the intellect about the means
consented to, and is an act of the will which chooses one of the means
in preference to the others, as being most suitable for gaining the
intended end. Use is the act by which the will directs and moves the
other powers to employ the particular means that has been chosen.
60. Acts Commanded by the Will.--The second class of acts that are
under the control of the will are those that proceed, not from the will
itself, but from the other powers under the direction of the will.
61. Acts commanded by the will are of various kinds: (a) intellectual
acts, such as judgment, reasoning, etc., performed under the direction
of the will, (b) sensible acts such as sight, hearing, imagination, the
passions of love, hate, etc.; (c) external corporal acts, such as
walking, writing, etc. None of the foregoing acts need be commanded by
the will, as they may be indeliberate (see 23).
62. The following kinds of acts are not subject to the control of the
will: (a) intellectual acts, such as the assent of the reason to
self-evident truths, as regards the specification of the act; (b)
sensible acts, such as the passions considered as arising from bodily
dispositions before they are adverted to; (c) acts of the vegetative
life, such as digestion and growth; (d) bodily movements, such as the
circulation of the blood and the beating of the heart.
Art. 3: ACTS AS MORAL
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 18-20.)
63. In order that an act be a means by which man may tend to his Last
End, it is not sufficient that it be human (proceeding from knowledge
and will); it must also be morally good.
64. Definition.--Morality is the agreement or disagreement, of a human
act with the norms that regulate human conduct with reference to man’s
Last End. The act which is in agreement with those norms is morally
good; the act which is in disagreement with them is morally bad. An act
that neither agrees nor disagrees with the norms of morality, is called
morally indifferent.
65. The constitutive norm of morality is that which gives an act its
moral quality. (a) Proximately, this is the relation of agreement or
disagreement of the act to the rational nature of man considered in its
entirety and with reference to its true happiness; (b) remotely, this
norm is the relation of the act to God, the Last End of man.
66. Hence, that which makes an act morally good is its agreement with
the nature of man as a rational being destined for heaven, and its
promotion of the glory of God, which is the purpose of all creation.
67. The manifestative norm of morality is that through which the moral
quality of acts is known. (a) Proximately, this is right reason, which
is the superior faculty and guide of the will; (b) remotely, it is the
divine intellect, from which reason receives its light.
68. The preceptive norm of morality is that which points out duty with
respect to good and evil. (a) Proximately, it is conscience; (b)
remotely, it is the law of God.
69. The species of morality are three: (a) an act is morally good when
it is in harmony with the norms of morality mentioned above (e.g.,
prayer, works of charity); (b) an act is morally bad when it is out of
harmony with those norms (e.g., blasphemy, injustice); (c) an act is
morally indifferent when, if considered in the abstract, it neither
agrees nor disagrees with moral norms (e.g., walking, riding, etc.).
70. The Sources of Morality.--The sources from which the morality of an
act is derived are its own tendencies and modes, in so far as they have
a relation of agreement or disagreement to the standards of morals.
These sources are: (a) the object of the act, from which it derives its
essence (e.g., God is the object of charity); (b) the circumstances of
the act, by which it is modified accidentally (e.g., fervor is a
circumstance of the act of charity); (c) the purpose or end of the
agent, which is the chief circumstance (e.g., to please God, as the
purpose of a work of charity).
71. The object of an action is that to which it primarily and naturally
tends as to its term and end, and from which it is named. Thus, an alms
is directed immediately and of its own nature to the relief of the poor
(end of the act); it is only secondarily and from the direction given
it by the agent that it tends to generosity and edification, since the
agent may give stingily, or from a bad motive (end of the agent).
72. The circumstances are all those conditions, different from the
object, that affect the morality of the act. The chief moral
circumstances are: (a) the time (i.e., the duration, the character of
the day, as a holyday, fast-day, etc.); (b) the place (i.e., in public
or in private, in church or elsewhere, etc.); (c) the manner (i.e., the
advertence or inadvertence, the cruelty, etc.); (d) the quantity or
quality of the thing done (e.g., that an alms is large or small, that
the person who is helped is more or less deserving, etc.); (e) the
purpose of the agent (e.g., that an alms is given to honor God); (f)
the quality or condition of the agent (e.g., that the giver of an alms
is poor himself); (g) the means used (e.g., that a benefactor’s own
money is used against himself).
73. With reference to their influence on the moral character of acts,
circumstances are divided as follows: (a) circumstances that change the
kind of morality, by making what was good to be bad, what was
indifferent to be good or bad, what was venial to be mortal, what
belonged to one class of mortal sins to take on another character,
etc.; (b) circumstances that change the degree of morality, by making a
good act more or less good, or by making a bad act more or less bad.
74. The purpose or end of an action is the reason which induces the
agent to act. It is the chief circumstance of an act, and hence is
treated as a separate source of morality.
75. The end or purpose is twofold. (a) It is the total end when it
alone is intended, so that the action is done with no other aim in
mind. Thus, if one helps the poor only to practise charity, the total
motive is charity. (b) The end is partial when it is intended along
with another motive of equal or unequal force. Thus, if a person helps
the poor in order to relieve them and also to benefit temporarily by
his charity, the assistance of others is only a partial motive of his
act; and if he would not give alms except in view of the personal
advantage he expects, charity becomes the secondary motive.
76. Good Acts.-An act is said to be entirely good when all its
elements--its object, circumstances and purpose--are in conformity with
the standards of morality. Thus, an alms given to one in need, in a
considerate manner, and purely out of love for God, is good in every
respect. Furthermore, the fact that the circumstances and purpose of
the act are good increases the goodness derived from the object of the
act.
77. An act is likewise entirely good when at least one of its elements
is good, the others being indifferent, and none evil; for it is the
good alone that is intended (see 85), and this gives the moral color to
the whole act. This happens as follows: (a) when the object is
indifferent and the purpose good, as when one takes a walk for the
purpose of performing a work of mercy; (b) when the object is
indifferent and a circumstance good, as when one eats a meal with
intentional moderation; (c) when the object is good and a circumstance
indifferent, as when one prays with unintentional stammering.
78. An act is partly good when, while its object is good, there is some
evil in the circumstances that does not neutralize or transform the
object. This happens in the following cases: (a) when the object is
good and some minor circumstance, not intended as affecting the
substance of the act, is evil, as when a person prays with
distractions; (b) when the object is good and a partial, but not
predominant motive is slightly evil, as when a person prays in public
in order to give edification and also incidentally to help his
reputation. In both these cases the good--i.e., the worship of God--is
desired for itself as good, and the evil that is simultaneously desired
does not change this good object.
79. Bad Acts.-An act is called entirely evil when all its elements--its
object, circumstances and purpose-are contrary to the moral norms.
Thus, to steal, on a large scale, in order to drive the victim to
desperation is an act that is entirely wrong. The wickedness of the
circumstance and of the motive increases the wickedness of the object
of the act.
80. An act is likewise called entirely bad, when one or more of its
elements are of themselves good or indifferent, but when there is an
element which is evil and which neutralizes or transforms the good.
This happens in various ways:
(a) when the object is evil, and the purpose is good, as when one
steals in order to pay one’s debts. The good end is wished only as
obtainable through a wicked means, and thus ceases to be good;
(b) when the object is good or indifferent, and the total purpose is
evil, as when one talks or prays with no other motive than to annoy
another person. The good is willed, not as good, but only as a means to
evil;
(c) when the object is good or indifferent, and a partial but ulterior
purpose is evil. For example, if a person extinguishes a fire in order
to save a neighbor’s house and thus be enabled to rob him; if a person
takes physical exercises to develop his strength so as to be enabled to
bully a neighbor. The good act and the immediate end in these cases are
intended not for the sake of their goodness, but as instruments to the
accomplishment of the evil ulterior end;
(d) when the object is good or indifferent, and an evil circumstance is
intended, not as a circumstance, but as forming a unit with the object
and as affecting the substance of the act--for example, when a person
intends prayer precisely as distracted, thus converting prayer into a
sin. The good object is willed in such cases, not as good, but as
vitiated by an evil circumstance.
81. Although an act is totally evil when the good in it is absorbed by
the evil, the presence of what is good in itself can diminish, though
it cannot take away, the evil. Thus, to lie in order to help a neighbor
is totally evil; yet, it is not as great an evil as to lie to hurt that
neighbor.
82. Indifferent Acts.--An act is entirely indifferent if all the
elements in it--its object, circumstances and purpose--are neither
harmonious nor discordant with the standards of morality. Such an act
would be walking home rapidly in order to eat a meal, if besides these
factors, which bear no relation to good morals, there was nothing else
in the act that did bear such a relation.
83. As to the actual existence of a human or voluntary act that is
morally indifferent, we conclude: (a) Considered in the abstract and
universally, some human acts are morally indifferent; for if acts be
considered with reference to their objects alone and apart from the
circumstances that accompany them, and as they are classified in the
mind, it is clear that many of them have no determinate relations to
moral norms--e.g., reading, writing, walking, etc. (one can read either
good or bad literature); (b) considered in the concrete, and as they
happen in individual cases, no human acts are morally indifferent,
since the purpose of the agent is either according to right reason or
against it, so that, in spite of the indifferent object, the act
becomes either good or bad by reason of the presence or absence of the
good purpose.
84. Considered even in the concrete and in individual cases, all acts
that are not human, but indeliberate or involuntary (see 23 sqq.), are
morally indifferent--or, more correctly, unmoral, as being outside the
genus of moral acts on account of the absence in them of will, which is
the prerequisite of morality. Thus, absent-minded acts are neither good
nor bad morally.
85. As to the kind of intention required to make an indifferent act
morally good, or which should be had when the act is objectively good,
we conclude: (a) The good intended must not be solely a sensible good
(i.e., the pleasure that the act gives), but also and chiefly a
rational good (i.e., its conformity to moral standards), since man,
unlike the animals, was made, not for sensible, but for rational good.
Hence, to eat deliberately with no other end than that of gratifying
the palate, is to eat without a moral purpose worthy of a human being,
and is a bad act.
(b) The moral good of virtue which is intended in acts must not be
regarded as the supreme good, but should be referred to God, since He
alone is the Last End (see 20). Hence, to eat and drink with moderation
solely because that is reasonable and suitable to human nature, if one
excludes the Last End, is to slight the necessary purpose and is
morally bad. (c) The intention of moral good or virtue in human acts
need not be actual or reflex. Thus, a person who has a previously
formed intention of living reasonably, or who at the time of eating
intends to eat moderately for the sake of health, sufficiently intends
a moral end. Likewise, it is not necessary that the reference of an act
to the Last End be made actually or explicitly. Hence, every person in
the friendship of God, in all his deliberate acts that are not evil,
has a sufficient reference of them to God contained in the fact that he
has chosen God for his Last End, or in that here and now he intends
some motive that becomes a rational being.
86. An actual and explicit intention of the moral goodness of an act,
and an actual and explicit reference of the act to the Last End, though
not necessary, increase the moral value of what is done.
87. Axiom of Pseudo-Dionysius: “That act is good whose causes are
complete; that act is evil in which a single cause is lacking.”
(a) This axiom can be understood as referring to perfect good, and the
meaning then is that an act is not perfectly good in the moral sense
unless all its elements--its object, purpose and circumstances--are
good; just as an oration is not called perfect, unless all its
elements--the speaker, the matter, the style and the delivery--are what
they should be. Hence, a single defect is enough to make an act fall
short of perfection.
(b) The axiom can be understood of essential goodness, and the meaning
then is that an act is not essentially good unless all the causes that
contribute to essential goodness--the object of the act and any
circumstances that may through the intention of the agent take on the
character of object--are good; just as a man is not said to be healthy,
unless his heart, lungs, and all the other chief parts of the body are
sound. Hence, an act is substantially bad, if either its own end (the
object of the act) or the special purpose had in mind by the agent (the
end of the agent) is bad, as explained above in 79-81.
88. The axiom of Dionysius does not mean: (a) that an act cannot be
essentially or substantially good and at the same time accidentally bad
(see 78), for, if even one circumstance not properly attended to could
change an act from good into bad, how few good acts would be done even
by the most saintly persons! Example: Caius who sacrifices himself for
the service of God and his neighbor, now and then feels some slight
vanity over his work. His acts remain substantially good. (b) The axiom
does not mean that an act cannot be substantially bad and yet have good
circumstances that diminish its badness (see 81).
89. Morality of the External Act.--Having considered the morality of
the internal act, we shall now turn to the external act (such as giving
an alms, stealing, and the like), and inquire whether it has a morality
of its own distinct from that of the internal act (see 56 Sqq.).
90. If the external act be considered precisely as it is the object, or
effect, of the internal act of the will, it does not add any essential
morality to the internal act, since, having no freedom of its own, it
is moral only in so far as it proceeds from the will. In this sense,
then, he who gives an alms to the poor, and he who would give it if he
could, are equal in goodness of will; and he who wishes to defraud, and
he who actually defrauds, are equal in malice of will.
91. If the external act be considered precisely as it is the term
towards which the internal act tends, it completes the essential
morality of the internal act by extending and communicating it without.
For, though this external act cannot add a distinct morality of its
own, it does carry the internal morality to its natural conclusion and
diffuses its good or evil. In this sense, he who actually gives an alms
is more deserving than he who really desires to give but is unable; and
he who really defrauds is more reprehensible than he who wishes to
defraud but cannot.
92. If the external act be considered precisely as something added to
the internal act, it can increase the accidental morality of the
internal act by the reaction of the external circumstances on the will.
This can happen in such ways as the following: (a) the performance of
the external act, being pleasurable or difficult, increases or
decreases the intensity of the will to act; (b) the performance of the
external act, since it requires more time than the internal act,
prolongs the latter; (c) the external act by reason of repetition may
also increase the strength of the internal act.
93. Furthermore, it is through the external act that edification or
scandal is given, that penalties or rewards for overt action are
deserved, etc. Examples: Titus bears murderous hatred towards Balbus,
but keeps it concealed. Caius also hates Balbus, and first calumniates
him, thus giving scandal, and then kills him, thus making himself
liable before the law.
94. The Morality of the Act That Is Indirectly Willed.--An act is said
to be willed indirectly, or in its cause, when it is foreseen as the
result of another act which alone is directly intended (see 35 sqq.).
According to the different moral character of the acts, there are four
cases in which the act is willed indirectly:
(a) when both the act directly willed and the resultant act are bad.
Examples: Titus is heartily opposed to quarreling and blasphemy; but he
makes himself drunk to forget his troubles, foreseeing that he will
quarrel and blaspheme while in that state. Balbus has a real dislike
for uncharitable thoughts; but he chooses the company of a notorious
scandalmonger in order to be amused, knowing that thoughts against
charity will be caused by listening to him;
(b) when the act directly willed is bad and the resultant act is good.
Example: Caius is very miserly when sober, but liberal when
intoxicated; to vary the monotony of his life, he decides to become
intoxicated, but grieves at the thought of the money he may give away
to some deserving charity before he returns to his senses. Sempronius
decides on an act of injustice with sorrow over the unbidden thoughts
of remorse or repentance that will follow his act;
(c) when both acts are good. Example: Out of charity Titus makes up his
mind to visit a pious relative who is ill; and he foresees that
thoughts of improving his own conduct--a thing not pleasing to
him--will be occasioned by this visit;
(d) when the act directly willed is good and the resultant act is bad.
Examples: Balbus takes a drug prescribed for his health, although he
foresees it will make him unable to go to church. Caius gives alms to
the poor, intending only an act of charity, but he knows that thoughts
of vainglory will arise.
95. The act indirectly willed sometimes gives, sometimes does not give,
a new morality. (a) Thus, if it is good, it adds no internal goodness,
since the will only permits, without intending the good act. Example:
Caius, who does not intend, but regretfully permits his act of charity
which he foresees, does not desire the act of charity. (b) If it is
bad, the act indirectly willed adds a bad act of the will, if the will
desires evil by permitting what it has no right to permit. Example:
Titus who does not prevent, when he should, what will lead to blasphemy
on his part, implicitly desires the act of blasphemy.
96. The Morality of the Consequences of an Act.--Man’s life receives
its moral character, not only from his internal and external acts which
are done in the present and from those which he knows will result from
them in the future, but also from the influence his acts exercise now
and afterwards upon his fellowman. It is this influence upon others
that we now speak of as the consequences of an act. According to the
case, the consequences sometimes add, sometimes do not add, to the
morality of an act. The good men do lives after them, and also the
evil. There are various kinds of consequences:
(a) foreseen consequences, which, if intended, add to the morality of
an act, since it is clear that one who wishes the many good or evil
results of his act is better or worse in intention than another who has
no such wish. Thus, one who knows that many will be edified or
scandalized by his conduct, and wills the result, is better or worse
than if he had no such will about those consequences;
(b) unforeseen consequences, which, if they follow naturally and
usually from an act, make the act in itself better or Worse according
to their character. Thus, the teaching of Christian doctrine is good as
conveying a knowledge of truth, but it is made better on account of the
spiritual benefit of others that naturally results from it. Similarly,
the teaching of evil is made worse on account of the evil consequences
it usually produces;
(c) unforeseen consequences, which, if they follow only accidentally
and rarely from an act, do not affect its morality, since an act must
be judged by what belongs to its nature, not by what is merely
occasioned by it. Thus, the fact that an alms is used by the recipient
as a means to intemperance does not detract from the goodness of the
almsgiving done for the sake of charity. Likewise, the fact that an
injury is used by the sufferer as an occasion for spiritual profit does
not lessen the wickedness of the injurious act.
97. Imputability.--Just as an act may be an act done by man (i.e.,
higher than the operations of brutes) and yet not be human (i.e., not
performed in the manner that is proper to man as man; e.g., an act of
reasoning or of decision during a dream, see 23 sqq.), so an act may be
moral (i.e., in conformity or disagreement with the standards of right)
and yet not imputable as good or bad to the agent (e.g., a prayer or
imprecation said by an infant, or the drunkenness of one who did not
realize the power of a liquor).
98. Imputability is that property of an act by which it belongs to its
agent, not only in its physical nature as something of himself or as an
effect produced by him or in its human quality of subjection to his
will, but in its moral character of goodness or badness. From contact
with the moral object, the agent takes as his own something of the
brightness or defilement of that object, and so becomes chargeable
himself with goodness or badness.
99. The conditions for the imputability of an act are:
(a) the act must be human--i.e., it must be performed knowingly and
willingly (see 23 sqq.). One is not chargeable with the quality of the
act, if not responsible for its very substance. Example: Titus suffers
such intense pain that he does not know what he is saying, and he
blasphemes. The morality of blasphemy is not unknown to him, but his
present act is not voluntary, and hence is not imputable;
(b) the morality of the act must be known, or be something that should
be known, at least in a general way, to the agent; for no one is
responsible for what he is wholly ignorant of through no fault of his
own. Example: Titus, Caius, Balbus and Sempronius rob the orchard of
their neighbor. Titus in good faith thinks he is doing an act of
virtue, because the owner owes money to his companions. Caius thinks
that some kind of sin is being committed, but he does not know whether
it is theft, or gluttony, or what. Balbus thinks that only a venial sin
of stealing is being perpetrated. Sempronius, the youngest of the
crowd, looks on the whole affair as a part of the day’s sport. All
committed theft, and the act is wrong; but Titus and Sempronius were
not guilty of sin, since they were in good faith. Caius and Balbus
committed sin, the species and degree depending on the knowledge they
had or should have had (see 588 sqq.);
(c) the morality of the act must be willed. If the act is good, the
goodness must be intended, since a person should not get credit for
what he does not wish. Example: Titus does not believe in virtue, and
Caius is opposed to helping the poor; but both give an alms to a
beggar, the former in order to get rid of the beggar, the latter in
order to get rid of some old clothes. Hence, neither wishes or receives
credit for the charity done. If the act is bad, the badness is
sufficiently intended by the performance of what one knows is forbidden
and wrong. The will chooses contact with the evil object, and thus
implicitly with the evil of the object. Example: Balbus protests that
he does not wish to harm anyone, and then proceeds to calumniate his
neighbors. His disavowal of sinful intent does not make him any the
less responsible for his calumny.
100. Imputability may be conceived as making one responsible for the
moral quality of an act in three ways: (a) generically, if one should
get the credit or diseredit of goodness or badness only; (b)
specifically as to kind, if one gets the credit or discredit of a
particular category of goodness or badness; (c) specifically as to
degree, if one gets the credit or discredit of higher or lower grades
of the same virtue or vice, or if one is made guilty of mortal or
venial sin. These points will be discussed in the articles on the
virtues and vices (see 186 sqq.).
101. Goodness is imputable as follows:
(a) As regards internal acts, a person is credited with all the
goodness of the object, end, and circumstances, in so far as it is
known and willed by him. Example: Titus purposes to pray in a
penitential posture, in order to obtain the virtue of humility. Hence,
he has the credit of worship, mortification and humility through his
holy desire. If he thought of the penitential posture, not as a moral
circumstance, or if he regretted it, he would have the act, but not the
credit of mortification;
(b) As regards external acts, a person is credited with the greater
readiness or intensity or duration which, through it, his will gives to
what is good. Example: If Titus prays in the manner above described,
his good will is intensified, and he has the credit of this increase in
the accidental goodness of his act;
(c) As regards acts indirectly willed, one is not credited with their
goodness, if this is merely permitted. Example: Sempronius, who is
sorry that thoughts of a better life will go through his mind as a
consequence of going to church, has not the credit of those good
thoughts;
(d) As regards consequences that were foreseen, or that naturally
result from an act, one is not credited with their goodness, unless it
was wished. Example: Balbus teaches religion to children because he is
paid to do so; Caius does so because it is a good act. The consequence
that these children afterwards live virtuously is not morally
creditable to Balbus, since he thought nothing about it; but it is a
circumstance that increases the goodness of Caius’ act, since he
intended his teaching precisely as it is a good work;
(e) As regards consequences that are not natural results of an act, if
they were not foreseen or intended, they are not credited to the agent.
Example: Titus speaks a simple and ordinary word of good advice to
Sempronius, but the impression is so great that Sempronius undertakes
and accomplishes extraordinary things, which Titus would not have
deemed possible or advisable.
102. Evil is imputable as follows:
(a) As regards the internal act, a person is guilty of all the evil of
the object, end and circumstances, as far as it is known and willed by
him. Example: Balbus wishes he could steal all the possessions of
Caius, and thereby drive the latter to suicide. Balbus has committed
theft and murder in his heart;
(b) As regards the external act, one is guilty of all the circumstances
of greater willingness, etc., which it adds to the internal act.
Example: If Balbus actually steals from Caius and causes his death, his
malice is shown to be very strong and to extend to the evil
consequences of his external acts;
(c) As regards acts indirectly willed, one is guilty of the evil they
entail, if one could and should have prevented it. Example: Balbus is
guilty of the blasphemies he foresees will take place when he has taken
too much drink, for he could and should have kept sober.
(d) As regards the evil consequences of acts, foreseen or natural, one
is responsible for the evil, if one could and should have prevented it.
Examples: Titus knows that a beggar will use profane language if denied
an alms, but Titus cannot spare the money and is not responsible for
what happens. Sempronius blasphemes in the company of many, and is
therefore guilty of the sin of scandal, since he has no right to
blaspheme;
(e) As regards the evil consequences of acts that could not have been
foreseen, they are not imputable. Example: Balbus steals fifty cents
from Caius, and the latter is so heartbroken that he commits suicide.
Balbus is not responsible for the suicide, since such a thing was far
from his thoughts when he stole.
103. It was just said (102, d) that when two results, one good and one
evil, follow an act, the evil is imputable if it could and should have
been prevented. It is not always easy, however, to determine at once
when the evil result should be prevented, and, as cases of double
effect are many, it will be useful to give rules that are more
particularized, and that enable one to decide when it is lawful to do
that from which will follow an act indirectly willed, or a consequence
that is evil.
104. It is lawful to perform an action from which an evil effect is
foreseen when the following conditions are present:
(a) the action willed itself must be good or at least indifferent; for
clearly, if the action is bad, it is also unlawful;
(b) a good effect must also follow from the act, and it must not be
caused by the evil effect; for the end does not justify the means.
Thus, it is not lawful to take what belongs to others in order to give
alms, for the evil effect (stealing) results from the act (taking)
immediately; whereas the good effect (almsgiving) results only
mediately through the theft;
(c) the agent must intend only the good effect, since it is unlawful to
wish evil. Thus, if one foresees that one’s virtuous life will cause
the sin of envy in a neighbor, this evil result of one’s virtue must
not be entertained by one as something pleasing;
(d) the agent must have a reason sufficiently weighty for permitting
the evil result that follows his act. Evil should not even be
permitted, unless there is adequate compensation in the good that is
intended.
105. To judge whether a reason for permitting an evil effect is
proportionately grave, the following rules should be kept in mind:
(a) the greater the evil that results, the greater must be the good
that is intended. Thus, it is not lawful to kill a robber in order to
save a small amount of money: but it is lawful to kill an aggressor, if
this is necessary in order to save one’s life;
(b) the greater the dependence of the evil effect on one’s act, the
greater must be the reason for performing the act. Example: Titus gives
permission to his class to play a game against another class,
foreseeing quarrels and disputes between the teams. Less reason is
required for granting the permission, if Titus knows that higher
authority will grant it, should he refuse it;
(c) the more nearly the evil effect follows upon the act, the greater
must be the reason for the act, Thus, less reason is required to direct
a person who looks like a heavy drinker to the city than to direct him
to a bottle of strong drink;
(d) the more certain it is that the evil effect will follow, the
greater is the reason required for placing its cause. For example, one
who speeds in an automobile on an unfrequented road, does not require
the same excusing cause as one who speeds on a thoroughfare where many
other cars are passing;
(e) the more obligation one has to prevent the evil effect, the graver
is the reason required for placing its cause. Thus, since
parish-priests, lawgivers, superiors and policemen are bound by their
office to prevent moral disorders, a far greater cause is required in
them, than in persons who have no such charge, for doing what will have
an evil consequence.
Art. 4: ACTS AS MERITORIOUS
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, q. 21.)
106. When the morality of an act is attributable to one as one’s own,
one becomes worthy of praise and reward, if the act is good, but
deserving of censure and punishment, if the act is evil.
107. Definitions.--Merit is the right to a reward arising from works
done for God. Demerit is the debt of punishment incurred on account of
works done against God.
108. Divisions.--According to the difference of the person who confers
the reward, there are two kinds of merit: (a) human merit, or the claim
which a person has to a reward from his neighbor, or from society, for
the benefits he has conferred upon his neighbor or society; (b) divine
merit, or the right a person has to receive a reward from God for the
fidelity wherewith he has exercised stewardship over his acts, of which
God is the Last End, or wherewith he has served society, of which God
is the Supreme Ruler. Only divine merit is here considered.
109. According to the difference of the object of the reward, there are
two kinds of merit: (a) natural merit, which makes one worthy of a
reward that does not exceed the native powers or exigencies of a
created being, such as success, prosperity, or other goods that do not
constitute the Last End of man (see 20). Thus, we read in scripture of
pagans or sinners who were blest with temporal happiness on account of
their natural virtues; (b) supernatural merit, which makes one worthy
of the beatitude surpassing mere created power that God has prepared
for those who serve Him (see 20). It is only this kind of merit that is
being considered here; for, since the Last End of man is a supernatural
reward (viz, the Beatific Vision of God), it follows that the acts by
which he tends to that End must be not only human and moral, but
supernaturally meritorious.
110. There are four kinds of supernatural merit: (a) condign merit in
the stricter sense, that is merit which arises from justice, and which
presupposes no favor on the part of the rewarder. In this sense Christ
merited, since even the grace which made His merits supernatural was
due to Him as the God-Man; (b) condign merit in the less strict sense,
that is merit which arises indeed from justice, but presupposes a favor
on the part of the rewarder. In this way the righteous merit before
God, since their works confer a right to their own reward, while the
grace which enables them to perform their works is a divine favor; (c)
congruous merit in the stricter sense, that is merit which arises not
from justice (since there is no equality between the work and the
reward), but from the fitness of things, because the person who merits
is a friend of God. In this way all who are in the state of grace can
merit spiritual goods for others; (d) congruous merit in the wide
sense, that is merit which arises from the liberality of God, who
answers a good work as if it were a prayer. In this way the good works
done by sinners can be said to merit conversion for them.
111. The second kind of merit mentioned above--i.e., condign merit in
the less strict sense--is that with which we are chiefly concerned
here, since it is the kind of merit that must be found in human acts in
order that they may lead man to a supernatural reward. A fuller
treatment of merit is found in Dogmatic Theology in the Question on
Grace.
112. The conditions requisite for the kind of merit now in question
are: (a) that the work done be human, that is, free, morally good, and
supernatural (i.e., proceeding from sanctifying grace and divine
charity); (b) that the one who merits be in the wayfaring state (i.e.,
that he have not already passed to final reward or punishment), and
that he be in the state of grace; (c) that God has promised a reward
for the work done. From the statements made above, it follows that all
the human and morally good works of those who are in the state of grace
possess condign merit.
113. The objects of condign merit--i.e., the rewards promised by God
for the good works done for Him in this life--are: (a) an increase of
sanctifying grace; (b) the right to eternal life; (c) the attainment of
eternal life, if the one who merits dies in grace; (d) an increase of
glory.
114. The conditions for the merit of strict congruity are the same as
those given above (112), except the promise made by God, which is not
required. Examples of this kind of merit are the sanctity of the
Blessed Virgin, which made her deserve more than others to be the
Mother of God, and the conversion of St. Paul through the merits of St.
Stephen.
115. For the merit of wide congruity it is necessary that the work done
be morally good. Examples of this kind of merit are the sighs of the
ancient Patriarchs, as obtaining the coming of the Messiah. The just
man can merit with the merit of wide congruity the following: (a) his
own conversion after a future fall; (b) his final perseverance; (c)
temporal goods.
Art. 5: THE PASSIONS
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 22-48.)
116. Having discussed the acts proper to man, we shall now speak of the
passions, which are common to both man and beast.
117. Definition.--The passions--also called the emotions, affections,
or sentiments--are acts of desire; but, unlike the acts of the will,
they are directed, not to good apprehended by the higher knowing power
of the intellect, but to good apprehended by the lower knowing power of
sense and imagination. They are defined as: acts or movements of the
sensitive appetite which arise from the representation of some good in
the sense faculties, and which produce some transformation in the body,
such as palpitation of the heart, increased circulation of the blood,
paleness, blushing, etc.
118. Division.--There are two classes of passions; (a) the
concupiscible, which have as their object sensible good considered as
delightful, or sensible evil considered as unpleasant, and which are
love and hatred, desire and flight, delight and sadness; (b) the
irascible, which have as their object sensible good or sensible evil
considered as difficult to attain or to avoid, and which are hope and
despair, boldness and fear, anger.
119. The concupiscible passions are defined as follows: (a) love, the
first of the passions and the cause of all the others, tends to
sensible good considered as desirable, abstracting from its presence or
absence; while hatred is the aversion from sensible evil considered
precisely as unsuitable and abstracting from its presence or absence;
(b) desire tends to sensible good that is absent, and flight turns away
from sensible evil apprehended as future; (c) delight is the affection
produced in the sensitive appetite by the presence and possession of
the object desired; (d) sadness is the passion which dejects the soul
on account of the presence of an evil.
120. The irascible passions are explained as follows: (a) hope reaches
out towards a future good whose attainment is difficult, but not
impossible; despair turns away from a good that seems impossible of
attainment; (b) bravery goes out to attack an evil that seems difficult
and imminent, but not unconquerable; fear falls back before a future
difficulty that seems irresistible; (e) anger is the desire of
vengeance for an injury received.
121. Moral Value of the Passions.--The Stoics held that all the
passions are diseases of the soul, and that one is perfect when one
arrives at the condition of being passionless or apathetic. Lucretius,
on the contrary, taught that all the impulses of passion are good. The
truth is that the passions are good or evil according to the way they
are considered. (a) Physically, the passions are good, since they are
the acts of natural powers, or the perfection and complement of
something good in itself. (b) Morally, they are indifferent, if they
are viewed in themselves, as the product of the sensitive appetite. For
this appetite is an irrational power of the soul, similar to that of
the beasts, and acts are not moral unless rational--i.e., an act is
good or evil only from its relation to reason. (c) Morally, the
passions are good or bad, if commanded by reason and will, for thus
they partake of the good or evil that is in the acts from which they
proceed, just as the acts of the external members of the body are moral
in so far as they execute the commands of the will. The passions are
voluntary if commanded by the will, or not forbidden by it. Examples:
Our Lord looked about Him with anger, being grieved at the blindness of
His enemies who watched Him in the synagogue (Mark, iii. 5); He wept
over the destruction of Jerusalem (Luke, xix. 41); He was sad at the
approach of His passion (Mark, xiv. 34).
122. The passions are morally good: (a) if they are directed by the
will to a morally good object; for example, shame is a praiseworthy
passion, because it is fear of what is dishonorable, and pity is also
good, because it is according to right reason, being sorrow for the
misfortune of another; (b) if they are chosen by the reason for a good
purpose; for example, it is good to excite the emotion of joy that one
may pray with greater fervor, or to arouse the feelings of pity, fear,
or hope, in order that one may be more earnestly moved to acts of
mercy, repentance, courage; (c) if the circumstances are moderated
according to right reason; for example, to grieve over the death of a
friend excessively, so that one is unfitted for duty and suffers in
health, is unreasonable; but to grieve even unto tears, as Christ did
at the tomb of Lazarus, is an act of piety. Similarly, the slight anger
of Heli was blamable and the great anger of Moses was laudable, because
the evils in both instances called for severity (I Kings, ii, iii;
Exod., iii).
123. The passions can either diminish or increase the goodness of an
act. (a) They diminish its goodness, if they are antecedent--i.e.,
prior to the judgment of the reason--for they thus obscure the mind and
make the act that follows less voluntary. For example, there is less
goodness in an alms given under an impulse of sentimentality than in
one given after serious consideration of the matter and from a motive
of charity. (b) They increase its goodness if they are
consequent--i.e., subsequent to the judgment and the result of the
vehemence of the will, or of deliberate encouragement by the will (see
47 sqq.)--for, just as the external act increases the goodness of the
internal act, so is it better that man should tend towards good, not
only with the will, but also with the emotions. Examples: The spiritual
gladness of the Psalmist is seen to have been more than ordinarily
great from the fact that it acted upon his feelings, and both heart and
flesh rejoiced (Ps, lxxxii. 3); to sing a hymn in order to encourage
oneself to greater fervor or devotion adds to the goodness of what is
done, through the greater promptness or ease it causes in the act that
follows.
124. The passions are morally evil: (a) when they are commanded by the
will and directed to an object, a purpose, or circumstances that are
evil, Thus, envy is an ignoble passion, since it is unreasonable, being
sorrow at another’s success. Examples; Titus drinks to excess for the
delight of intoxication (bad object); Balbus purposely excites his
imagination, that he may hate more bitterly and act more cruelly (bad
end); Sempronius loves his children so immoderately that he grows
morose and jealous (bad circumstance). (b) The passions are also
morally evil when they should be forbidden and are not forbidden by the
will. Example; Caius is surprised by a sudden burst of anger, which,
though he judges to be unreasonable, he does nothing to check.
125. The passions can remove, diminish or increase the evil of an act.
(a) Thus, antecedent passions take away all evil, if (a thing that is
rare) they prevent entirely the use of reason; they diminish malice if
they obscure the judgment. Examples: Balbus, fearing that he is about
to drown, becomes panic-stricken, seizes Titus and almost drowns him.
Caius, threatened with a black eye if he refuses, calumniates: his
calumny would be worse if he acted coldbloodedly. (b) Consequent
passions increase the evil, for then they manifest a strong intention,
or are the result of direct purpose. Examples: Sempronius attacks the
conduct of an opponent, not with dispassionate argument and from a love
of truth, but with bitter personal feeling and from a desire of
revenge. Titia works herself into a rage that she may be the more ready
for an encounter with a person of whom she is unjustly jealous.
126. Though the passions are physically good and in their nature
morally indifferent, they may have physical reactions or moral
consequences that are harmful or evil. These dangers may be physical,
mental or moral.
(a) Physical Dangers of the Passions.--It is a well-known fact that
there is a close connection between the passions and the nerves, heart,
and bodily organism in general, and that strong or persistent emotion
can work great detriment to the health, producing disease,
unconsciousness, or even death.
(b) Mental Dangers of the Passions.--It is admitted by all that the
passions disturb the judgment, and can even take away the use of
reason. For they act upon the body or the senses, and these in turn
affect the mind in a way similar to what happens in sleep or
intoxication. Thus, love makes one blind to the defects of the object
of one’s love; fear makes one magnify the evil of what is dreaded;
melancholy unbalances the mind, etc.
(c) Moral Dangers of the Passions.--It is likewise a matter of common
experience that the passions are a source of many temptations and sins.
Often they are antecedent (i.e., not premeditated or willed), as when
they arise from bodily states over which one has no control or from
imaginations strongly fixed in the mind, and at the same time tend to
that which is not according to right reason, rebelling against the law
of the mind. Thus, a person whose health is bad is easily dispirited,
and this feeling occasions temptations to despair; one whose memory is
haunted with the image of a lost parent becomes a prey to sadness,
which makes it difficult to perform duties with zest and diligence.
127. A passion may become morally bad on account of the physical or
mental evils connected with it. (a) Thus, a person has duties to his
own well-being, and he indirectly wills (see 35 sqq., 94 sqq.) to
neglect these duties, if he indulges harmful passions. Example:
Sempronia grieves immoderately over the death of her mother, with the
result that her health and mental vigor are impaired. (b) A person also
has duties with respect to the life, health, and happiness of his
neighbor, and he chooses to neglect these duties if he unjustly
provokes emotions in others, foreseeing injurious consequences (see 96
sqq.). Examples: Titus so vexes Balbus by petty annoyances that the
latter loses appetite and sleep, and becomes an invalid. Sempronia so
exasperates her father by long-continued unfilial conduct that the
latter becomes insane. Caius appeals to prejudices in order to have
injustice done to a rival.
128. As to passions that incite to evil or deter from good, we must
observe the following: (a) if the passion is consequent, one is placing
oneself or others in danger of sin, and one’s conduct must be judged
according to the principles given in 258 sqq. (Examples: Titus likes to
brood over his troubles, although this causes temptations to neglect
duty; Sempronia makes remarks to a hot-headed acquaintance which are a
provocation to great uncharitableness); (b) if the passion is
antecedent, it constitutes a temptation which one is bound to resist
(see 252 sqq.). Example: Balbus has a natural dislike for Caius, and
often feels impelled to judge him rashly or treat him unjustly.
129. Antecedent or involuntary passions, as well as other involuntary
acts of imagination, thought and will, tending to evil, are sometimes
called “first motions of the soul,” as distinguished from consequent or
voluntary passions and acts, which are known as “second motions of the
soul.” The first motions are of two kinds: (a) those that precede all
deliberation and consent, actual or virtual (_motus primo-primi_), and
these are free from all sin; (b) those that precede full deliberation
and consent, but follow on partial deliberation (_motus
secundo-primi_). These latter are venial sins.
Most theologians since the Council of Trent maintain that the
inordinate movements of passion which precede the advertence of reason,
such as lust, envy, sloth, etc., are not sins. The Council of Trent
defined that the _fomes peccati_ has never been understood by the
Church to be truly a sin in the baptized, but has been called sin by
St. Paul in the sense that it is from sin and inclines to sin (Council
of Trent, fifth session). On the basis of this text some authors argue
that it is of faith that the inordinate motions called _primo-primi_
are not sins for the baptized. The condemnation of both the fiftieth
proposition of Baius: _The evil desires to which reason does not
consent, and which man endures unwillingly (_invitus_), are prohibited
by precept_; and his fifty-first: _Lust, or the law of the members, and
evil desires of it, which men suffer unwillingly, are true disobedience
of the law_; is interpreted as establishing as certain the
non-sinfulness of such movements in infidels. (See Merklebach, O.P.,
_Summa Theol_. Mor., Vol. I, n. 448).
St. Thomas taught otherwise that such inordinate movements of passion
are venial sins (_Summa. Theol_. I-II, q. 74, a. 3, ad 2um; _de Malo_
q. 7, a. 6. ad 4m; _de Veritate_, q. 25, a. 5). Although they precede
the deliberation of reason, they attain to the order of moral acts,
however imperfectly, insofar as sensuality in man by its nature is made
to be subject to reason. Reason can and ought to control these motions,
but fails to do so owing to the great number of them possible to occur.
Hence they are not involuntary, but indirectly voluntary as sins of
omission (_II Dist_. 24, q. 3, a. 2; _de Veritate_, q. 25, a. 5;
_Quodlib_. IV, q. 11, a. 1). Since these movements are indirectly
voluntary, St. Thomas’ teaching does not conflict with the Council of
Trent which speaks of the _fomes_ as habitual dispositions and not of
its acts which St. Thomas considers. Clearly, too, his teaching does
not fall under the condemnation of the propositions of Baius; with
Baius the motions are involuntary, but for St. Thomas indirectly
voluntary.
St. Thomas distinguishes the motions of sensuality differently from
modern manualists. For him the motions-_primo-primi_ arise from
corporal dispositions which are not under the control of reason and
hence can not be sins. Motions-_secundo-primi_ arise from some
apprehension of the internal senses proper to the passions and can, at
least if taken singly, and ought to be ruled by reason. Thus, they are
moral acts (_de Malo_, q. VII, a. 6, ad 8um; _II Dist_. 24, q. 3, a. 2).
130. Bodily suffering or sickness is sometimes called a passion of the
body, but, unlike the passions of the soul, it is a physical evil.
Morally considered, it is indifferent in itself, but it has contacts
with morality in various ways. (a) Thus, it may receive morality from
the will. Examples: Sufferings endured with resignation are acts of
virtue; sickness or pain inflicted upon others is imputable to the
unjust cause. (b) It may affect the morality of the act of the will.
Examples: Severe toothache or other exquisite pain is an extenuating
circumstance in sins of grumbling, for the suffering draws so much
attention to itself that deliberation on other things is much
diminished; weakness of stomach may be a moral advantage in freeing one
from temptations to over-eating.
131. Though the passions are good in themselves, they are often morally
dangerous. The regulation of the passions through the virtues of
fortitude and temperance will be treated later on, but we shall
indicate here some natural means by which, God helping, their first
motions may be controlled. (a) Thus, if a passion is not strong, it may
be repressed directly by command of the will. Example: The impulse to
anger may sometimes be checked by the command of silence. (b) If a
passion is strong, it may be combated through other activities which
are its opposites or which, through the amount of energy they call for,
will diminish proportionately the force of the passion. Examples: In
time of fear one can fall back on thoughts of confidence; in time of
mourning one can seek joy or alleviation in the society of friends or
in the repose of sleep. Study or other strenuous occupation is an
excellent means to overcome impetuous passion.
(c) If a passion is persistent, it may be diverted to some lawful
object vividly represented and held in the imagination and thoughts.
Examples. Those who are inclined to love immoderately the world or the
things that are in the world should direct their love to divine
goodness. Those who are inclined to be too fearful of men should think
how much more God is to be feared.
Question II
GOOD AND BAD HABITS
132. Having considered human acts and the passions, we now pass to a
consideration of the principles from which acts proceed proximately.
These principles are, first, the faculties, powers or forces of the
soul (such as the intellect, will, sense, appetite, and vegetative
powers); and, secondly, the habits which permanently modify the
faculties. For some faculties may be turned in various directions,
either favorably or unfavorably, as regards their ends, and it is the
stable bent given to a faculty that is called a habit. Thus, the
intellect may be directed towards its end, which is truth, by the habit
of knowledge; or away from that end by the habit of ignorance.
Likewise, the will may be directed towards or away from its end, which
is good, by virtue or vice. The faculties are treated in Psychology,
but the habits, since they turn the faculties towards good or evil,
must be considered in Moral Theology, as well as in philosophy.
Art. 1: HABITS IN GENERAL
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 49-54.)
133. Definition.--A habit is a perfect and stable quality by which a
being is well- or ill-affected in itself, or with regard to its
motions. It differs from mere disposition or tendency, which is an
imperfect and transitory quality. Thus, a sallow complexion is a habit;
a blush, a disposition.
134. Division.--Habits are variously divided, as follows:
(a) From the viewpoint of their subject, they are either entitative or
operative, according as they affect directly the nature or the powers
of a being. Thus, in the soul there are the entitative habit of
sanctifying grace and operative habits like science and virtue; while
in the body are entitative habits of health, beauty, etc.
(b) From the viewpoint of their object, habits are good (i.e., virtues)
or evil (i.e., vices);
(c) From the viewpoint of their cause, habits are infused or acquired,
according as they are supernaturally produced by God, or are naturally
obtained by man through repeated acts, or result from nature without
repeated acts. Faith in a baptized infant is an infused habit;
knowledge obtained through study is an acquired habit; the perception
that the first principles of truth are to be granted is natural.
135. Operative acquired habits are defined as qualities not easily
changed, by which a faculty that is able to act in various ways is
disposed to act in one way with ease, readiness and pleasure. Thus, by
training a man acquires a correct carriage, and is able to walk
straight without difficulty.
136. Operative infused habits are enduring qualities that give to a
faculty the power to perform acts that are supernatural. Thus, the
infused virtues of faith, hope and charity give to the intellect and
the will the ability to elicit acts with reference to supernatural
truth and good. Facility and promptitude with respect to these acts
come through the use of the infused power.
137. Strengthening and Weakening of Habits.--Habits are increased: (a)
extensively when they are applied to more objects--thus the habit of
science grows as it is applied to more truths; (b) intensively, when
they are rooted more firmly in their subject and become easier to
exercise. This last comes about when intense acts of a habit are
frequently repeated. Thus, a habit of virtue or vice becomes a second
nature, and it is exercised with ever greater delight and resisted with
ever-increasing difficulty.
138. The infused habits cannot be diminished, but they can be destroyed
(see 745). As to the acquired habits, they are weakened and destroyed
chiefly in two ways: (a) by acts opposed to them, especially if these
acts are earnest and frequent--thus, evil custom is overcome by good
custom, and vice-versa; (b) by long discontinuance or disuse. Thus, a
person who has learned a foreign language will forget it, if he fails
to speak, read or hear it. The knowledge of first principles,
speculative or moral, is not lost, however, through forgetfulness, as
experience shows.
139. Accidentally, a habit may be corrupted through injury of an organ
that is necessary for the exercise of the habit. Thus, right moral
judgment may be lost if certain areas of the brain are affected.
140. Habits and Morality.--The importance of habits in man’s moral life
is very great. (a) Habits are an index to a man’s past career, for the
ease and facility he now possesses through them is the result of many
struggles and efforts and difficulties overcome, or of defeats and
surrenders and neglected opportunities. (b) Habits constitute a man’s
moral character. Morally, a person is the sum of his moral habits and
dispositions grouped around the central interest or idea of his life.
He who would know himself, therefore, cannot do better than to examine
what are his habits, and which is the predominant one among them. (e)
Habits are a prophecy of the future. Habits are not irresistible and do
not destroy freedom, but they produce such ease and readiness for
acting in one particular way that the probabilities are, when habits
are strong, that a person will continue to follow them in the future as
he has done in the past, thus progressing or deteriorating, as the case
may be.
141. Duties as regards Habits.--(a) Bad habits should be avoided and
those that have been formed should be destroyed (see 138). The means to
accomplish these victories are divine help obtained through prayer and
the other instrumentalities of grace, watchfulness through
self-examination, and the cultivation of a spirit of self-denial, as
well as attack made on the habit that is forming or already formed (see
255 sqq.)
(b) Good habits should be acquired, and those already possessed should
be exercised and put to the best advantage. The means to this end, in
addition to those that are supernatural, are especially a realization
of the importance of good habits, a great desire to have them, and
constant and regular effort to practise them (see 137).
Art. 2: GOOD HABITS OR VIRTUES
(_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 55-70.)
142. Definition.--A virtue is a good habit of the free powers of the
soul, that is a principle of good conduct, and never of conduct that is
evil. Hence, the following are not virtues: (a) an occasional
inclination to good, for this is not a fixed habit; (b) good habits of
the body or of the vegetative powers, etc. (such as beauty and health),
for these are not free; (c) knowledge of the right or affection for it
without any reference to practice, for virtue is a principle of right
living; (d) habits that can be applied indifferently to good or bad
conduct, such as human opinion.
143. Division.--The virtues are divided: (a) according to their
different causes, into infused and acquired virtues (cfr. 134 sqq.);(b)
according to their different objects, into intellectual, moral and
theological virtues.
144. The intellectual virtues are those habits that perfect the
intellect with reference to its good--i.e., truth, speculative or
practical.
145. The speculative virtues are three: understanding, knowledge and
wisdom.
(a) Understanding or intelligence is the habit of perceiving truths
that are not in need of proof, as being self-evident. Axiomatic truths
or first principles are the object of this virtue.
(b) Knowledge or science is the habit of perceiving truths that are
learned from other truths by argumentation, and that are ultimate in
some category of being. The object of this virtue embraces the various
sciences (like astronomy) which are conclusions from principles.
(c) Wisdom is the habit of learning through reasoning the truth that is
absolutely ultimate; it is the knowledge of things in their supreme
cause, God. Examples are theology and philosophy in their highest sense.
146. The practical intellectual virtues are two: prudence and art.
(a) Prudence is an intellectual virtue which indicates in individual
cases what is to be done or what is to be omitted, in order that one
may act according to the requirements of good morals.
(b) Art is an intellectual virtue which indicates in individual cases
how one must act in order to produce things that are useful or
beautiful (e.g., music, painting, building, etc.).
147. The intellectual virtues, except prudence, are not perfect
virtues, since, While they make an act good, they do not necessarily
make the agent good. A man may have great knowledge about morality, or
be able to produce excellent works of art, and at the same time be not
virtuous, or have no love for his work.
148. Prudence is an intellectual virtue, since it resides in the
intellect; but it is also classed among the moral virtues, since its
object is the direction of human acts to their right end.
149. The moral virtues are those habits that perfect the will and the
sensitive appetite with reference to their immediate and respective
objects; that is, they are habits concerned with acts as means to the
Last End. They make the act good, and make good also him who performs
it; and they are thus superior as virtues to the intellectual habits.
150. There are four principal moral virtues: (a) in the intellect there
is prudence, which guides all the actions and passions by directing the
other moral virtues to what is good according to reason; (b) in the
will there is justice, which inclines a person to make his actions
accord with what he owes to others; (c) in the irascible appetite is
fortitude, which subjects to reason the passions that might withdraw
from good, such as fear of dangers and labors; (d) in the concupiscible
appetite is temperance, which represses the motions of passions that
would impel one to some sensible good opposed to reason.
These four virtues are also called cardinal virtues, because all the
other moral virtues hinge on them.
151. The theological virtues are those that perfect the intellect and
the will with reference to God, their ultimate, supernatural object.
They are three: (a) faith, which is a virtue infused into the
intellect, giving man supernatural truths that are perceived by a
divine light; (b) hope, which is a virtue infused into the will,
enabling man to tend towards the supernatural destiny disclosed by
faith as towards an end possible of attainment; (c) charity, which is a
virtue infused into the will, uniting man’s affections to the object of
his hope and transforming him into its likeness.
152. Causes of Virtues.--The causes of virtue are three: (a) nature,
which is the cause of the inchoative intellectual and moral virtues,
that is, of the theoretical and practical principles that are naturally
known, and of the inclinations to virtue that arise from an
individual’s bodily constitution; (b) practice, which is the cause of
perfected intellectual and moral virtues, that is, of the good habits
that are formed by repeated acts (e.g., knowledge obtained through
study, temperance fixed in the character through continued effort); (c)
infusion from on high, which is the cause of the virtues that surpass
nature (i.e., of the theological virtues and of the moral virtues that
are concerned with our acts as ordered to the supernatural).
153. Properties of the Virtues.--From the definition of virtue given
above certain properties result.
(a) Since a virtue makes conduct agree with a certain fixed standard,
it does not allow of excess or defect. Hence, virtue follows the golden
mean.
(b) Since the other moral virtues would go to extremes without the
guidance of prudence, and since prudence would not judge aright without
the right dispositions of the other virtues, it follows that the four
moral virtues, at least in their perfect state, must always be
together. And because charity is the fulfillment of the whole law, he
who has charity has also all the other infused virtues.
(c) Since the virtues are directed towards objects of varying degrees
of excellence, and since they are habits, and are capable of increase
and decrease (137 sqq.), it follows that both virtues of different
species, and those of the same species, are or may be unequal.
(d) Since some of the virtues imply conditions that will not exist in
the life to come, it follows that these virtues will be somewhat
changed in the blessed. Thus, temperance, which subdues the rebellion
of the passions, will not be exercised in heaven, where the passions do
not rebel.
154. The golden mean is found differently in different virtues.
(a) In the case of justice, the mean is determined by an external
object that is invariable, since justice gives what is due to others,
neither more nor less; in the case of fortitude and temperance the mean
is determined by prudent judgment and is not invariable, since these
two virtues are concerned with the regulation of the internal passions
according to conditions of individuals and circumstances. Thus, a debt
of ten dollars remains the same whether the debtor is rich or poor,
whether the creditor needs it or not. But a glass of liquor, which
would be just enough for one who was well, might be far too much for
him when he was sick; and a danger which a man might be expected to
encounter, might be too much for a woman or a boy.
(b) The mean of the intellectual and speculative virtues is the
agreement with objective truth, as lying between the extremes of false
affirmation and false negation. The mean of the practical virtue of
prudence, as regulating the moral virtues, is right reason, considered
as directive of the desires and conduct so as to avoid excess and
defect.
(c) The theological virtues have no mean, as far as their object is
concerned, since God, being infinite in truth, power and goodness,
cannot be believed in, hoped in, or loved too much. By reason of their
subject, however, these virtues have a mean, since it is possible for
one to exceed, for example, in hope by presumptuously expecting what
is not due to one’s condition.
155. Without charity one may possess certain other virtues. (a) Thus,
one may have the natural or acquired moral virtues, as is the case with
many pagans, but such virtues are imperfect, since they do not direct
their subject to the Supernatural End of man; (b) one may have the
supernatural or infused virtues of faith and hope, as is the case with
Christians who are not in the state of grace. Even such faith and hope
are imperfect virtues, and are not meritorious.
156. Considered precisely as virtues (cfr. Article on Hope), the three
groups rank as follows: (a) the theological virtues are the most
excellent, since they deal directly with man’s supernatural end; (b) By
reason of their object, universal truth, the intellectual virtues are
superior to the moral virtues, which are concerned with particular
goods; (c) the moral virtues, nevertheless, are more perfect as
virtues, for, so considered in the order of action, in perfecting the
appetites, they are more properly principles of action.
157. The highest of the virtues within each group are the following:
(a) Charity is greater than faith and hope, since it implies union with
its objects, while the other two imply a certain distance from their
object;
(b) Justice is superior to fortitude and temperance, since it deals
with actions by which man is rightly ordered, both as to himself and as
to others, while the others deal with the passions and the right
disposition of man as to himself. The order of the moral virtues is:
prudence, which is the guide of the others; justice, which deals with
man’s actions and orders him rightly, both as to himself and as to
others; fortitude, which governs the passions, even when life and death
are the issues; temperance, which governs the passions in affairs of
less importance;
(c) The chief of the intellectual virtues is wisdom, which considers
the supreme cause of things, and therefore judges the other virtues of
the intellect.
158. In the blessed the virtues will remain, but changed in some
respects. (a) Thus, the rectitude of soul contained in the moral
virtues will endure, but there will be no rebellious passions to
overcome, no dangers to oppose, no debts of justice to be discharged,
as in this life; (b) the intellectual virtues acquired in this life
will remain, but the soul separated from the body will not employ sense
images as in its earthly existence; (c) faith and hope will give place
to vision and realization, but charity will never fall away.
159. The Complements of the Virtues.--The virtues are habits that
supply the soul with an internal guide (prudence), and with
inclinations to follow its direction (moral virtues). But there is also
a higher Guide who speaks to the soul, and it is necessary that the
inclinations of virtue be carried out in a suprahuman mode. Hence, the
virtues are completed by certain adjuncts. These are: (a) the Gifts of
the Holy Ghost, which are habits infused into the soul, making it
sensitive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and docile under His
direction; (b) the Fruits of the Holy Ghost, which are acts that grow
out of the virtues and have a special spiritual sweetness attached to
them; (c) the Beatitudes, which are activities of special excellence
having a corresponding special reward attached to them, The acts are
produced by the infused virtues and the Gifts, especially by the Gifts.
160. There are seven Gifts of the Holy Ghost, which are divided as
follows:
(a) There are the Intellectual Gifts, which make the soul more
responsive to the light which the Holy Spirit sheds upon truths held by
faith. These Gifts assist the intellect, first, in its apprehension of
the mysteries of faith, that it may be made to grasp more clearly what
it believes (Gift of Understanding); secondly, in its judgments, that
it may be illuminated so as to adhere to the principles of faith and
depart from their opposites, whether there be question of judgments
about divine things (Gift of Wisdom), or created things (Gift of
Knowledge), or human actions (Gift of Counsel);
(b) There are the Appetitive Gifts, which make the soul more ready to
follow divine motions and inspirations. These Gifts aid the irascible
affections by giving them a confidence of victory over every peril and
by assuring safe arrival at the term of life (Gift of Fortitude); they
aid the will in its social relations by leading to a filial love and
devotion toward God (Gift of Piety); they assist the concupiscible
affections by filling them with a reverence of God’s majesty and a
horror of offending Him (Gift of Fear of the Lord).
161. The Gifts of the Holy Ghost are superior to the moral and
intellectual virtues, for these virtues perfect the powers of the soul
that they may be always ready to follow the guidance of reason, while
the Gifts make the powers of the soul docile to the guidance of the
Holy Ghost.
162. The Gifts of the Holy Ghost are inferior to the theological
virtues, for these virtues unite the soul to the Holy Ghost, while the
Gifts only make the soul ready to receive His illuminations and
inspirations.
163. There are twelve Fruits of the Holy Ghost enumerated by St. Paul
(Gal. v, 22-23). (a) Some of these acts grow out of the indwelling
Spirit, and are delightful to the spiritual taste because they perfect
the agent in himself. Charity, joy, and peace indicate that the soul is
rightly disposed as to what is good; patience and longsuffering, that
it is not disturbed by evils. (b) Others of these Fruits give spiritual
delight because they perfect the agent in his relations to his fellows.
Good will and kindness show that one is well-disposed towards others;
meekness and fidelity, that injury does not overcome him, or make him
deceitful. (c) Still other Fruits are delightful because they order a
man’s life rightly as to external actions or internal passions, such as
modesty, continency, chastity.
164. There are eight Beatitudes enumerated by our Lord. (a) Some of
these are acts that surpass the virtues as regards the use of external
goods and the government of the passions. Thus, it is lawful to have
possessions, but the poor in spirit despise them; it is lawful to
exercise the irascible passions according to reason, but the meek under
divine guidance keep themselves in tranquillity; it is lawful to
rejoice according to moderation, but the mourners, when this is better,
refrain from all rejoicing. (b) Other Beatitudes are acts that surpass
the virtues of justice or liberality to one’s neighbor. Thus, those who
hunger and thirst after justice not only discharge their obligations,
but they do so with the greatest willingness; the merciful bestow their
bounty, not only on their friends and relatives, but on those who are
most in need. (c) Still other Beatitudes are concerned with the acts
that most fit one for the contemplation of divine things, namely, that
in oneself one be pure or heart or free from the defilements of
passion, and that one be peaceful with reference to others. (d) The
final Beatitude is the crown of the others; for one is perfectly
attached to poverty of spirit, meekness, etc., when he is prepared for
their sake to suffer persecution.
165. The rewards promised to the Beatitudes are conferred, not only in
the life to come, but also in the present life. But they are not
necessarily temporal or corporal rewards (such as riches, pleasure,
ete.), but spiritual beatitude, which is a foretaste and figure of the
eternal joy to come.
166. All the Beatitudes may be called Fruits of the Holy Ghost, since
they are the outgrowth of the indwelling Spirit and are filled with
spiritual sweetness. But the Beatitudes are really more excellent than
the Fruits, since they are works of more than ordinary excellence;
whereas every work of virtue that gives delight may be called a Fruit
of the Holy Spirit.
Art. 3: BAD HABITS OR VICES (_Summa Theologica_, I-II, qq. 71-89.)
167. Definition.--A vice is a habit inclining to moral evil. A sin is
an act resulting from a vice, or tending to the formation of a vice; or
it is any thought, word, deed or omission against the law of God.
168. Divisions.--There are various divisions of sins. Thus:
(a) according to the kind of delight that is taken in evil, sins are
either spiritual (e.g., vainglory) or carnal (e.g., intemperance);
(b) according to the person who is more directly offended by evil, sins
are either against God (e.g., heresy, despair, blasphemy), or against
one’s neighbor (e.g., theft, calumny), or against oneself (e.g.,
intemperance, suicide);
(c) according to the greater or less gravity of the evil, sins are
either mortal (e.g., blasphemy) or venial (e.g., idle thoughts);
(d) according as the evil is done by acting or not acting, sins are
either of commission (e.g., theft) or of omission (e.g., failure to pay
debts);
(e) according to the progress of a sin, there are three stages: first,
it is a sin of the heart when it exists only in the mind, as when one
entertains a wish for revenge; secondly, it is a sin of the mouth, when
it is manifested in words, as when one uses contumelious language;
thirdly, it is a sin of work when it is carried out in act, as when one
strikes another in the face;
(f) according to the manner in which they deviate from the golden mean,
sins are either of excess (e.g., extravagance) or of defect (e.g.,
miserliness);
(g) according to the manner in which its guilt is contracted, sin is
either original (i.e., the loss of grace inherited from Adam) or actual
(i.e., the stain derived from one’s own wrongdoing; sec 272 sqq.).
169. Mortal Sin.--A sin is mortal or deadly, when by it a person turns
away from God, his Last End, and prefers to Him some created good,
thereby incurring the debt of eternal punishment.
170. The first condition necessary in order that a sin may be judged
mortal is that the matter of the sin be grave, either in itself or in
the opinion of him who commits it; it must include turning away from
God and the substitution of some created good as the Last End.
171. The matter of a sin is known to be grave: (a) when the law of God
or of the Church declares that it is seriously displeasing to God, or
that it will separate one from His favor or rewards; (b) when right
reason shows that it does great injury to the rights of God, of
society, of one’s neighbor, or of oneself.
172. The matter of a sin is grave in two ways. (a) It is grave from the
character of the act and without exception, when the good which is
injured is infinite, or is a finite good of greatest importance and
indivisible, Thus, heresy, despair, and simony against divine law are
always serious, because they offend against an infinite good; while
murder, though it injures only a finite good, is nevertheless always
grave matter because earthly life is of highest importance among finite
goods, and if taken away is taken entirely. (b) The matter of a sin is
grave from the character of the act but with exceptions, when the good
that is injured is of grave importance, but finite and divisible. Thus,
the worship we give to God is finite and admits of more and less; and
hence a sin against worship, though serious from the nature of the
offence, may be slight on account of the smallness of the irreverence.
Similarly, though theft injures a grave right, it is not grave matter
when the amount stolen is small.
173. The second condition required that a sin be mortal is that there
be full advertence to the grave malice of the act, for one cannot be
said to separate oneself from God unless one has made the same amount
of deliberation that is required for any temporal affair of great
moment.
174. Advertence is the act by which the mind gives attention to
something. It is of two kinds: (a) full advertence, when there is
nothing to impede perfect attention, as when a person is wide awake, in
full possession of his faculties, and not distracted; (b) partial
advertence, when there is something that, prevents entire attention, as
when a person is only partly awake; or not entirely conscious, or
distracted with many things.
175. Hence in the following cases, even though there be serious matter,
a sin is not mortal, on account of lack of full advertence. (a) When
without one’s will there is no full advertence to the act itself, as
happens with those who are half-asleep, or who are under the influence
of drugs, or who are mentally confined by anxiety or physical pain,
etc. (see on Human Acts, 24 sqq.). (b) A sin is not mortal when there
is no full advertence to the sinfulness or to the gravity of the act.
Those who through no fault of their own are unaware that an act is
sinful, or that it is a mortal sin (e.g., children, the half-witted, or
the uninstructed), have no full advertence to the malice of the act;
likewise, those who, without being responsible for their inadvertence,
do not think at the moment of the sinfulness or seriousness of what
they do (e.g., those who think out plans for revenge before they have
taken second thought on its immorality).
176. Signs that indicate that there was no full advertence are: (a) if
afterwards one can scarcely recall what happened; (b) if shortly
afterwards one cannot be sure what was one’s state of mind at the time.
177. Though full advertence is required for a mortal sin, it is not
required that this advertence be the most perfect. (a) It is not
necessary that the advertence be preceded by long deliberation, for
advertence can be full even when the consideration is only momentary,
(b) It is not necessary that advertence be continued during the
commission of a sin, for what follows is foreseen if adverted to at the
beginning. (c) It is not necessary that advertence to the malice of the
sin be clear or exact. One who perceives that there is some special
malice in robbing a church, even though he does not understand just
what the malice is, has sufficient advertence to become guilty of
sacrilege. Likewise, one who has doubts as to whether a certain sin is
mortal, or who suspects that it is mortal, has sufficient advertence
for grave guilt if he commits that sin. (d) It is not necessary that
advertence to the malice of the sin be reflex (i.e., that one advert to
the fact that one is conscious of the gravity of the sin); for to will
the malice, it suffices that one be conscious of the malice. (e) It is
not necessary that advertence to the malice of the sin be explicit
(i.e., that one have in mind the precise nature of sin as an offense
against God, which produces a stain on the soul and incurs the debt of
punishment); for to will evil and its gravity, it suffices that one
perceive the evil and its gravity, even though one does not analyze the
meaning or seek out the ultimate reasons.
178. The third condition required that a sin be mortal is that full
consent of the will be given it, for no one separates him self from God
except through his own free choice. (a) Consent is not full, when there
has not been full advertence, or when an act has been done under
violent compulsion; (b) consent is full when there has been full
advertence and no forceful compulsion (see above on Violence, 52).
179. Indications that consent was not full are: (a) if before the sin
the person was of tender conscience and had habitually a horror of
grave sin; (b) if at the time of the sin the person recoiled from the
sinful suggestion--e.g., if he had a hatred for it as soon as it was
fully perceived, or if he was saddened at the temptation, or if he kept
from an external act that could have been easily performed; (c) if
after the sin the person was conscientious, and yet had doubts as to
whether consent was given.
180. Venial Sin.--A sin is venial, or more easily pardonable, when by
it one turns inordinately towards some created good, not so, however,
as to forsake God as one’s Last End or to prefer self-will to the
divine friendship.
181. The first condition required that a sin be called venial is that
its matter be light, either in reality, or in the invincible belief of
him who commits it. The criteria by which we may know what matter is
light are authority and right reason (see above, 171).