105. God's Omnipotence and the Nature of Possibility

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

Omnipotence and the Definition of Absolute Possibility #

• God is omnipotent, but this must be understood precisely: ability to do all things that are absolutely possible
• Absolute possibility is determined by the relation of subject and predicate—something is possible when the predicate is not repugnant to the subject
• Example: “Socrates can sit” is absolutely possible; “Man is an ass” is absolutely impossible
• Contradictory things (what implies both being and non-being) fall outside omnipotence not from defect of power but because they cannot have the notion of “makeable” or “possible”

Two Senses of “Possible” #

1. Possible according to some power: What is subject to a particular agent’s ability (e.g., human power, natural power)
2. Absolutely possible: What does not involve contradiction in its terms; independent of any particular agent’s capacity

• The common error (especially of worldly wisdom) is to judge what is possible to God by what is possible to nature or human power
• The Greeks dismissed resurrection as impossible because it contradicts natural law; but natural impossibility ≠ absolute impossibility

Active and Passive Power (Revisited) #

• Omnipotence refers only to active power, not passive power
• God cannot be moved, acted upon, or undergo change—but this does not diminish His omnipotence because omnipotence concerns what He can do, not what can be done to Him

Key Objections and Resolutions #

Objection 1: God cannot be moved or undergo change

• Resolution: Omnipotence concerns active power alone. Inability to suffer change is not a defect but a perfection.

Objection 2: God cannot sin

• Resolution: To sin is to fail in action. Inability to sin = inability to fail, which perfects rather than diminishes omnipotence. Similarly, God cannot be mistaken; this too is a perfection.
• Apparent Aristotelian Problem: Aristotle says God and the good man can do bad things (Nicomachean Ethics, Book IV)
• Solution: This is understood conditionally: “If God wanted to do bad things, He could” (a conditional with an impossible antecedent remains true). Or Aristotle speaks according to common opinion.

Objection 3: Contradiction with Past Events

• Objection claims: God was able to make Socrates not run before Socrates ran; therefore, after Socrates ran, God can still make it that Socrates did not run
• Resolution: Before Socrates ran, “Socrates not running” had the notion of something possible. After Socrates ran, “Socrates not having run” implies contradiction (both running and not running in the past). Once past, it falls from the notion of possible into the realm of the absolutely impossible.

Objection 4: Virginity Example

• Objection: God can restore lost charity; therefore, He can make it so that charity was never lost, or virginity was never lost
• Resolution: God can restore virginity or charity as though it had never been lost (in terms of grace), but He cannot make it that the loss never occurred. The past event remains in the past and cannot be undone without contradiction.

Metaphysical Foundation: Why Contradiction Is Outside Omnipotence #

• Every agent makes something like itself (principle from Aristotle)
• An agent acts insofar as it is in act and communicates actuality to its effect
• God is being itself (infinite being), unlimited by any genus of being
• God’s power extends to all things that have the notion of being
• Whatever implies opposition to being (i.e., contradiction) cannot be made because it has no notion of “makeable”
• This is not a defect in divine power but rather reflects the nature of what is and is not—contradiction is non-being

Divine Mercy and Power #

• The power of God is shown most of all in sparing and having mercy, not in punishing
• This shows God’s highest power: freely to dismiss sins and lead creatures to participation in infinite good
• God is not under a superior law; therefore, mercy manifests divine freedom and perfection
• The effect of divine mercy is the foundation of all divine works

Key Arguments #

The Structure of the Third Article #

Thomas’s Central Argument:

1. Omnipotence means ability to do all things that are possible
2. But what does “possible” mean?
3. If “possible” means “subject to human or natural power,” this cannot be the meaning (God’s power exceeds created power)
4. If “possible” means “subject to divine power,” this is circular (God can do what He can do)
5. Therefore, “possible” must mean absolutely possible: things whose predicate is not repugnant to their subject
6. What is absolutely impossible is what implies contradiction (being and non-being together)
7. God’s omnipotence extends to all absolutely possible things; contradictions fall outside it

Against the Objection of “God’s Unchangeability” #

• Passive power and active power are distinct
• To say God is unchangeable and immobile is not to deny omnipotence but to perfect it
• Omnipotence concerns what can be done, not what can happen to the agent

Against the Objection of “God’s Inability to Sin” #

• Inability to fail in action is the perfection of power, not its limitation
• This can be proven inductively: we call something “powerful” when it cannot fail in its proper operation
• A being that could fail would be less powerful, not more

Against the Objection of “Making the Past Not to Have Been” #

• This involves contradiction: “Socrates sat and did not sit”
• For the past thing to not have been contradicts its having been in the past
• More impossible than raising the dead (which does not involve contradiction)
• Authority: Augustine (contra Faustum) and the philosopher (Aristotle) agree on this

Important Definitions #

Omnipotence (ὀμνιποτεντία) #

• Ability to do all things that are absolutely possible (non-contradictory)
• Grounded in infinite being, not in defective limitation
• Distinguished from ability to do contradictory things, which is not power but nothingness

Absolute Possibility (possibile absolutum) #

• What is determined by the relation of subject and predicate alone
• Something is absolutely possible when the predicate is not repugnant to the subject
• Independent of whether any particular agent (human, natural, or divine) can actually produce it
• Examples: man being white (possible); man being an ass (impossible)

Contradiction (contradictio) #

• The simultaneous affirmation and negation of the same thing
• Example: “Socrates sitting and not sitting”; “square circle”
• That which implies both being and non-being
• Falls entirely outside the scope of omnipotence

Active Power (potentia activa) #

• The ability to act upon another; to move, transform, or cause effect
• God possesses only active power
• Grounded in actuality (act)

Passive Power (potentia passiva) #

• The ability to be acted upon; to undergo change or suffering
• God does not possess passive power (He is immobile, unchangeable)
• Not a defect in omnipotence

Examples & Illustrations #

The Stone Problem #

• Question: “Can God make a stone so big He cannot lift it?”
• Analysis: This involves contradiction—the stone would have to be both liftable and not liftable by omnipotent power
• Parallel: “Can God draw a square circle?”
• Resolution: No understanding can conceive a square circle; words can be joined (“square” + “circle”) but no real concept results
• This is not a limitation of power but a reflection of what is and what is not

Socrates Running #

• If Socrates ran yesterday, his running is now past
• Before he ran: “Socrates not running” was possible
• After he ran: “Socrates not having run” now implies contradiction (he both ran and did not run in the past)
• Therefore, God cannot make the past not to have been

Virginity and Charity (Restoration vs. Undoing) #

• God can restore lost virginity or charity as though it had never been lost (through grace)
• God cannot make it that the virginity or charity was never lost in the first place
• The loss is part of the past and cannot be undone without contradiction
• A woman who lost virginity: God can grant her virginity again, but cannot erase that she lost it
• A sinner who lost charity: God can restore it, but cannot make it that he never sinned

Worldly Wisdom and Resurrection #

• The Greeks judged resurrection impossible because natural law forbids bodies rising from the dead
• They confused “impossible according to nature” with “impossible absolutely”
• Resurrection does not involve contradiction; therefore, it is subject to divine power
• This illustrates how worldly wisdom errs: judging divine possibilities by natural law

The Choir Analogy (Brief Reference) #

• If one chord in a musical composition were struck more than suitable, it would corrupt the melody
• Similarly, if God made one element of creation better, it might corrupt the order of the whole universe
• But this does not limit omnipotence; God could add other things to creation

Notable Quotes #

“By active power, God is said to be omnipotent, not by passive power.” —Berquist, summarizing Thomas

“To sin is to fall away from the perfect action. Whence to be able to sin is to be able to fail in acting, which is repugnant to omnipotence.” —Thomas Aquinas (cited by Berquist)

“Whatever things do not imply a contradiction are contained under those things that are possible, with respect to which God is said to be omnipotent.” —Thomas Aquinas (cited by Berquist)

“There will not be impossible before God every word.” —Luke 1:37 (cited by Thomas and discussed by Berquist)

“The power of God is shown most of all in sparing and having mercy.” —Thomas Aquinas (cited by Berquist)

“Nothing is opposed to the notion of being except nothing.” —Thomas Aquinas (cited by Berquist), explaining why contradictions are outside omnipotence

Questions Addressed #

Article 3: Whether God Is Omnipotent #

Main Question: What does it mean to say God is omnipotent? Does God have limitations?

Objections:

• God cannot be moved or undergo change (contradicting omnipotence)
• God cannot sin (contradicting omnipotence)
• God manifests mercy, not absolute power (contradicting omnipotence)
• If God is omnipotent, all things are possible, so nothing is necessary (contradicting necessity in the world)

Resolution:

• Omnipotence means ability to do all absolutely possible things (non-contradictory things)
• Active power alone constitutes omnipotence; inability to undergo change is a perfection
• Inability to sin is a perfection, not a limitation
• God’s power is perfected in mercy, which freely grants goods
• Divine omnipotence does not eliminate contingency and necessity in creatures; rather, it grounds them

Article 4: Whether God Can Make the Past Not to Have Been #

Main Question: Is it within God’s omnipotence to undo the past?

Objections:

• What is impossible per se is harder than what is merely impossible for us
• God can make impossible things possible (e.g., raise the dead)
• Therefore, God should be able to make the past not to have been
• God was able to prevent Socrates from running before Socrates ran
• Therefore, God should be able to make it so Socrates did not run after he ran

Resolution:

• For the past not to have been implies contradiction (Socrates both sat and did not sit)
• Before an event occurs, its non-occurrence is possible
• After an event occurs, its non-occurrence in the past becomes absolutely impossible (contradictory)
• Contradictions are outside omnipotence not from defect but from their nature
• This is more impossible than raising the dead, which does not involve contradiction

Theological Context #

• These articles address the affirmation in the Nicene Creed: “I believe in God the Father Almighty”
• The discussion of omnipotence grounds understanding of God’s causal action in creation, providence, and redemption
• References to Incarnation (human nature united to divine nature) and Resurrection illustrate omnipotence in action
• Divine mercy shown in sparing and forgiveness relates omnipotence to divine will and freedom

Linguistic and Pedagogical Notes #

• Berquist emphasizes the problem of translating Latin potentia and Greek δύναμις (dunamis) into English
• The English word “power” is “stuck” in the active sense; “ability” better captures both active and passive meanings
• Understanding original language meanings is crucial for reading translated philosophical and theological texts
• Berquist uses contemporary examples (boxers, pianists) to clarify ancient distinctions for students

Connections to Aristotelian Philosophy #

• The principle “every agent makes something like itself” is drawn from Aristotle
• Distinction between act and potency (ἐνέργεια and δυνάμις) is foundational
• Aristotle’s discussion of possibility in Metaphysics Book V informs Thomas’s analysis
• Berquist notes Aristotle’s own statement (in Ethics Book IV or VI) that God is deprived of the ability to make the past not to have been