Whether Temporal Goods Should Be Foregone on Account of Scandal?
Objection 1: It would seem that temporal goods should be foregone on
account of scandal. For we ought to love our neighbor's spiritual
welfare which is hindered by scandal, more than any temporal goods
whatever. But we forego what we love less for the sake of what we
love more. Therefore we should forego temporal goods in order to
avoid scandalizing our neighbor.
Obj. 2: Further, according to Jerome's rule [*Cf. A. 7, Obj. 4],
whatever can be foregone without prejudice to the threefold truth,
should be omitted in order to avoid scandal. Now temporal goods can
be foregone without prejudice to the threefold truth. Therefore they
should be foregone in order to avoid scandal.
Obj. 3: Further, no temporal good is more necessary than food. But we
ought to forego taking food on account of scandal, according to Rom.
14:15: "Destroy not him with thy meat for whom Christ died." Much
more therefore should all other temporal goods be foregone on account
of scandal.
Obj. 4: Further, the most fitting way of safeguarding and recovering
temporal goods is the court of justice. But it is unlawful to have
recourse to justice, especially if scandal ensues: for it is written
(Matt. 5:40): "If a man will contend with thee in judgment, and take
away thy coat, let go thy cloak also unto him"; and (1 Cor. 6:7):
"Already indeed there is plainly a fault among you, that you have
lawsuits one with another. Why do you not rather take wrong? why do
you not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded?" Therefore it seems
that we ought to forego temporal goods on account of scandal.
Obj. 5: Further, we ought, seemingly, to forego least of all those
temporal goods which are connected with spiritual goods: and yet we
ought to forego them on account of scandal. For the Apostle while
sowing spiritual things did not accept a temporal stipend lest he
"should give any hindrance to the Gospel of Christ" as we read 1 Cor.
9:12. For a like reason the Church does not demand tithes in certain
countries, in order to avoid scandal. Much more, therefore, ought we
to forego other temporal goods in order to avoid scandal.
_On the contrary,_ Blessed Thomas of Canterbury demanded the
restitution of Church property, notwithstanding that the king took
scandal from his doing so.
_I answer that,_ A distinction must be made in temporal goods: for
either they are ours, or they are consigned to us to take care of
them for someone else; thus the goods of the Church are consigned to
prelates, and the goods of the community are entrusted to all such
persons as have authority over the common weal. In this latter case
the care of such things (as of things held in deposit) devolves of
necessity on those persons to whom they are entrusted, wherefore,
even as other things that are necessary for salvation, they are not
to be foregone on account of scandal. On the other hand, as regards
those temporalities of which we have the dominion, sometimes, on
account of scandal, we are bound to forego them, and sometimes we are
not so bound, whether we forego them by giving them up, if we have
them in our possession, or by omitting to claim them, if they are in
the possession of others. For if the scandal arise therefrom through
the ignorance or weakness of others (in which case, as stated above,
A. 7, it is scandal of the little ones) we must either forego such
temporalities altogether, or the scandal must be abated by some other
means, namely, by some kind of admonition. Hence Augustine says (De
Serm. Dom. in Monte i, 20): "Thou shouldst give so as to injure
neither thyself nor another, as much as thou canst lend, and if thou
refusest what is asked, thou must yet be just to him, indeed thou
wilt give him something better than he asks, if thou reprove him that
asks unjustly." Sometimes, however, scandal arises from malice. This
is scandal of the Pharisees: and we ought not to forego temporal
goods for the sake of those who stir up scandals of this kind, for
this would both be harmful to the common good, since it would give
wicked men an opportunity of plunder, and would be injurious to the
plunderers themselves, who would remain in sin as long as they were
in possession of another's property. Hence Gregory says (Moral. xxxi,
13): "Sometimes we ought to suffer those who rob us of our
temporalities, while sometimes we should resist them, as far as
equity allows, in the hope not only that we may safeguard our
property, but also lest those who take what is not theirs may lose
themselves."
This suffices for the Reply to the First Objection.
Reply Obj. 2: If it were permissible for wicked men to rob other
people of their property, this would tend to the detriment of the
truth of life and justice. Therefore we are not always bound to
forego our temporal goods in order to avoid scandal.
Reply Obj. 3: The Apostle had no intention of counselling total
abstinence from food on account of scandal, because our welfare
requires that we should take food: but he intended to counsel
abstinence from a particular kind of food, in order to avoid scandal,
according to 1 Cor. 8:13: "I will never eat flesh, lest I should
scandalize my brother."
Reply Obj. 4: According to Augustine (De Serm. Dom. in Monte i, 19)
this precept of Our Lord is to be understood of the preparedness of
the mind, namely, that man should be prepared, if it be expedient, to
suffer being harmed or defrauded, rather than go to law. But
sometimes it is not expedient, as stated above (ad 2). The same
applies to the saying of the Apostle.
Reply Obj. 5: The scandal which the Apostle avoided, arose from an
error of the gentiles who were not used to this payment. Hence it
behooved him to forego it for the time being, so that they might be
taught first of all that such a payment was a duty. For a like reason
the Church refrains from demanding tithes in those countries where it
is not customary to pay them.
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