« Chapter VII. The Divine Nature | Main | Ch.VII. Q.40. Divine Inscrutability »
August 01, 2005
Ch.VII. Q.39. The Infinite
OUR primary notion of God is of the Infinite Being—i.e., not limited in essence except by what is internal to Himself. God is what He is, not by virtue of, nor in relation to, anything else; but simply by virtue of Himself and in relation to Himself. The idea of God is not abstract but the most perfect concrete, the most completely real.1
2. The term infinite is negative. It signifies the non-finite, or what does not depend on external relations and limitations to be what it is. It escapes positive definition, but is not indefinite. The word stands for a positive idea. There is nothing absurd in this. We have a positive idea of perfection, but we cannot define it because it is unique. There is no basis of comparison. The infinite is also unique, but there is also another reason for our inability to define it. It trancends all things and exceeds our powers of mental comprehension.2
3. The infinity of God is not extensive, as if it were a matter of size or quantity. Size is not a Divine attribute. It is intensive and relates to the character and quality of His essence. Hence there is no inconsistency in saying that other beings exist which are not included in His substance. They do not limit His substance for it is spiritual, nor His perfection for it is not dependent. The Infinite is not the all.
4. The Infinite is neither the undetermined nor the unconditioned, but the self-determined and the self-conditioned. External conditions are unnecessary to Him but not impossible. It is an element in His greatness that He can submit without loss to finite conditions of His own making, if He wills. He has done this by creating and sustaining the world, and by entering into economic and incarnate relations with His creatures.3
1 Strong, Syst. Theol., pp. 122-123; St. Thos., Summa, I., vii.; Suarez, Summa, Tr. I., lib. ii. c. 1; Perrone, Praelec., Vol. II., Pars. II., c. iii.; Fisher, Grounds of Belief, pp. 24-26; Pearson, De Deo, vi. 60-64. Cf. Job xi. 7-9.
2 Mansel, Bamp. Lecs., reduces the Infinite to vacancy of thought, and Spencer, First Prins., deduces his Agnosticism therefrom. Calderwood, Philos. of Infin., esp. pp. 76-94, replies to Mansel, and his forerunner Hamilton, and shows that they treat the notion as purely abstract—not taking note that God, the highest reality, is its subject.
3 Strong, pp. 123-124.
Posted by Debra Bullock at August 1, 2005 09:05 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://disseminary.org/mt/mt-tb.cgi/496