Whether Sacrilege Is the Violation of a Sacred Thing?
Objection 1: It would seem that sacrilege is not the violation of a
sacred thing. It is stated (XVII, qu. iv [*Append. Gratian, on can.
Si quis suadente]): "They are guilty of sacrilege who disagree about
the sovereign's decision, and doubt whether the person chosen by the
sovereign be worthy of honor." Now this seems to have no connection
with anything sacred. Therefore sacrilege does not denote the
violation of something sacred.
Obj. 2: Further, it is stated further on [*Append. Gratian, on can.
Constituit.] that if any man shall allow the Jews to hold public
offices, "he must be excommunicated as being guilty of sacrilege."
Yet public offices have nothing to do with anything sacred. Therefore
it seems that sacrilege does not denote the violation of a sacred
thing.
Obj. 3: Further, God's power is greater than man's. Now sacred things
receive their sacred character from God. Therefore they cannot be
violated by man: and so a sacrilege would not seem to be the
violation of a sacred thing.
_On the contrary,_ Isidore says (Etym. x) that "a man is said to be
sacrilegious because he selects," i.e. steals, "sacred things."
_I answer that,_ As stated above (Q. 81, A. 5; I-II, Q. 101, A. 4), a
thing is called "sacred" through being deputed to the divine worship.
Now just as a thing acquires an aspect of good through being deputed
to a good end, so does a thing assume a divine character through
being deputed to the divine worship, and thus a certain reverence is
due to it, which reverence is referred to God. Therefore whatever
pertains to irreverence for sacred things is an injury to God, and
comes under the head of sacrilege.
Reply Obj. 1: According to the Philosopher (Ethic. i, 2) the common
good of the nation is a divine thing, wherefore in olden times the
rulers of a commonwealth were called divines, as being the ministers
of divine providence, according to Wis. 6:5, "Being ministers of His
kingdom, you have not judged rightly." Hence by an extension of the
term, whatever savors of irreverence for the sovereign, such as
disputing his judgment, and questioning whether one ought to follow
it, is called sacrilege by a kind of likeness.
Reply Obj. 2: Christians are sanctified by faith and the sacraments
of Christ, according to 1 Cor. 6:11, "But you are washed, but you are
sanctified." Wherefore it is written (1 Pet. 2:9): "You are a chosen
generation, a kingly priesthood, a holy nation, a purchased people."
Therefore any injury inflicted on the Christian people, for instance
that unbelievers should be put in authority over it, is an
irreverence for a sacred thing, and is reasonably called a sacrilege.
Reply Obj. 3: Violation here means any kind of irreverence or
dishonor. Now as "honor is in the person who honors and not in the
one who is honored" (Ethic. i, 5), so again irreverence is in the
person who behaves irreverently even though he do no harm to the
object of his irreverence. Hence, so far he is concerned, he violates
the sacred thing, though the latter be not violated in itself.
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