106. Divine Power: Absolute and Ordered Capacity

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Central Question: Can God Make Other Things Than He Has Made? #

• The question asks whether God could have made a different universe or order of things than He actually made
• This concerns both the power of God and the necessity (or freedom) of creation
• The resolution depends on distinguishing God’s absolute power from His ordered power

Two Errors to Avoid #

Error 1: Necessitarianism (Spinoza) #

• The View: God acts by necessity of nature, like a triangle necessarily having interior angles equal to two right angles
• The Error: If God acts necessarily, then only this world could flow from Him; no other order is possible
• The Truth: God acts by will, not necessity. His will is not naturally determined to these things. Therefore, other worlds are possible.

Error 2: Divine Wisdom Limitation #

• The View: God’s wisdom and justice determine Him to make only this world because it is the only wise and just order
• The Error: This confuses the order God has established with the limits of divine wisdom
• The Truth: While this order is wise and just, divine wisdom is not limited to it. The divine goodness has no determinate proportion to created things; infinite goodness can be served by multiple wise and just orders.

Absolute Power vs. Ordered Power (Potentia Absoluta vs. Potentia Ordinata) #

Absolute Power: God’s power considered in itself, capable of doing all things that do not involve contradiction, regardless of whether He has foreordained them.

Ordered Power: God’s power as it executes the command of His just will and the direction of His wisdom—what He actually does and has foreknown and foreordered.

Key Relationship:

• God is able to make other things than He has made (by absolute power)
• But God does not actually make what He has not foreknown and foreordered (by ordered power)
• His making is subject to His foreknowledge and will, not to His natural ability
• Thus: God can do X (absolute power) but does not will to do X (ordered power)

God’s Will and Foreknowledge #

• In humans, power and essence are distinct, as are will and understanding
• This allows something to be in human power but not in a just will or wise understanding
• In God, power, essence, will, understanding, wisdom, and justice are all identical
• Yet because the divine will is not determined by necessity to any particular thing (except per suppositionem—once willed, then necessarily that), something can be in God’s absolute power but not foreknown or willed
• God’s making is subject to His foreknowledge and foreordering, not vice versa

The Modes of Divine Power #

• Power as Carrying Out (exsecutio): What God actually does
• Will as Commanding (imperatio): The determination of the will
• Understanding as Directing (directio): The guidance of wisdom

What is attributed to power considered by itself = ability according to absolute power What is attributed to power as executing the will’s command = ability according to ordered power

Key Arguments #

Argument Against Necessitarianism #

1. God does not act by necessity of nature
2. God’s will is the cause of all things
3. God’s will is not naturally determined to these particular things
4. Therefore, this course of things does not necessarily flow from God; other things could come about

Argument Against Divine Wisdom Limitation #

1. The whole reason for an order placed by a wise maker comes from the end (purpose)
2. When the end is proportioned to things done for that end, the maker’s wisdom is limited to that order
3. But the divine goodness is an infinite end without proportion exceeding created things
4. Therefore, God is not limited to this one order of things
5. Thus, the divine wisdom is not determined to some certain order such that another course could not flow from Him

Argument from Scripture (Matt. 26:53) #

• Christ says: “Do you think I cannot ask my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?”
• This implies God can do things He does not foreknow and foreorder (in this case, sending more angels)
• Therefore, God can make what He has not made

Important Definitions #

Potentia Absoluta (Absolute Power) God’s power in itself, capable of doing all things that do not involve contradiction

Potentia Ordinata (Ordered Power) God’s power as it carries out the command of His just will and the direction of His wisdom; what God actually does and foreordains

Ratio of Being (Ratio Entis) The form or nature by which something has the notion of being makeable (i.e., what can be an object of creation)

Per Suppositionem A modal qualification: “granted that this is willed, then it must be so.” Once God wills something, it is determined and cannot be otherwise, but the willing itself is not necessary.

Examples & Illustrations #

The Problem with “Best Possible World” #

• Some argue God had to make the best possible world
• But “best” suggests a unique superlative
• The issue: Can there be a creature most like God? There’s always a possible creature more similar to God, since the distance between God and creatures is infinite (like asking “what number is closest to infinity?”)
• Similarly, can there be a best possible world? Not uniquely; many orders could be wise and just

The Angelic Hierarchy (Dionysian Order) #

• Angels are ordered like a chain of illumination
• The highest angel is directly illumined by God
• Each lower angel is illumined by the one directly above
• This is a fixed, necessary order (unlike human teachers, which is more fluid)
• This illustrates how orders can be determined and suitable, yet other orders might be possible

The Chord in Melody #

• If one chord were struck more than suitable in a melody, it would corrupt the melody
• Similarly, if one thing in the universe were made better in a way that disrupts the order, it would corrupt the ratio of the order
• Yet God could make other things or add other things to create a better universe with a different order

Questions Addressed #

Can God Make Other Things Than He Has Made? #

Answer: Yes, according to absolute power. God is able to make other things and other orders of things. But according to ordered power, God does not make what He has not foreknown and foreordered. His actual making is subject to His will and foreknowledge.

Does God Act by Necessity? #

Answer: No. God’s will is not naturally determined to these particular things. Though once God wills something, it is determined (per suppositionem), the willing itself is free. God could have willed a different universe.

Is God’s Wisdom Limited to One Order? #

Answer: No. While God’s wisdom has established this particular order of things as wise and just, divine wisdom is not limited to this order. Since divine goodness is infinite and disproportionate to any created order, multiple wise and just orders are possible to God.

Can There Be a Creature Most Like God? #

Answer: Among creatures actually made, some are more like God than others (e.g., the Blessed Virgin among creatures). But can there be a creature that is the most possible like God such that no creature could be made more like Him? This seems impossible: the infinite distance between God and any creature means there could always be a more similar creature. This would parallel asking which number is closest to infinity—there is no answer.

How Do God’s Knowledge and Will Relate to His Power? #

Answer: God’s making is subject to His foreknowledge and will, not vice versa. Power is understood as carrying out; will as commanding; understanding as directing. Something can be in God’s power (able to be made) without being in His foreknown will (actually to be made).