11. The Unity of the Last End and the Taste of Beatitude

Subscribe in Podcast App | Download Transcript

Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Unity of the Last End Across All Humanity #

• All men share a common understanding of what they seek (fulfillment of perfection), but differ in what they believe constitutes that perfection
• Critical distinction: between the notion of the last end (what it is in concept) and that in which the notion is found (what specific thing instantiates it)
• All men desire to fulfill their own perfection (Greek: adumbler—to fill up), which is the notion of the last end
• Those who sin are turned away from the unchangeable good but not from the intention of seeking a last end; they merely seek it falsely in other things

Objections to the Unity of the Last End #

• First objection: Some pursue wealth, others pleasure, others power, others bodily development—therefore not all men have one last end
• Second objection: The last end regulates all of life; if one last end existed for all men, all would live the same kind of life, which is clearly false
• Third objection: The end is the limit of action; actions belong to individuals; men differ in individual characteristics; therefore there cannot be one last end for all

Thomas’s Response: The Distinction Between Common and Private #

• What is common to all humans (reason, rationality) is superior to what is private or individual to each person
• Individual differences derive from matter; what is common derives from form
• Form is superior to matter; therefore, the end must be found in what is common to humanity, not in individual peculiarities
• Individual characteristics dispose a person either well or poorly toward the common human good
• Example: being irascible or alcoholic disposes one poorly toward living according to reason; a good memory disposes one well toward the life of the mind
• No single human possesses the complete perfection of human nature; in contrast, each angel possesses the complete perfection of its individual kind

The Taste Analogy: Judgment About the True Good #

• Just as different people find different tastes most pleasant (wine vs. honey), different people pursue different goods as ultimate
• However, the judgment about what is truly the highest good should come from those with the best-disposed faculties, not from the multitude
• Development of taste occurs through habituation and experience:
  • A child prefers soda pop to wine because the child’s palate is underdeveloped
  • As one matures and develops refined taste through repeated exposure, one recognizes wine as superior to soda pop
  • Similarly, those who have not tasted higher spiritual pleasures seek satisfaction in lower material goods
• The person with well-disposed faculties (sensory or intellectual) recognizes the true ultimate good
• No man who appreciates both beer and wine thinks beer is tastier than wine; those who think beer is superior lack taste in wine

The Metaphor of Sweetness in Scripture #

• Psalm 33: “Taste and see how sweet is the Lord” uses a metaphor based on similarity
• The sweetness metaphor works because:
  • The sweet is pleasant (ἡδύ—what is delightful)
  • The sweet is refreshing (what restores)
  • The sweet is restful (bringing peace and tranquility)
• These qualities apply especially to God
• Beautiful scenery is described as “restful” because beauty pleases when seen
• This illustrates how people seek lower pleasures (rest near scenery) without recognizing higher ones

The Intention and Its Renewal #

• One need not always explicitly think about one’s ultimate end while performing actions directed toward it
• Analogy of the traveler: A person traveling to church doesn’t constantly think about the destination while walking and admiring flowers or snowbanks; yet the intention to reach the destination remains implicitly present
• The intention must be renewed periodically, or it can weaken
• Many begin the day with an offering of all actions to God but lose this intention amid daily frustrations

The Response to Objections #

• To the first objection: The notion of the last end is universal; diverse pursuits of life occur in pursuing different things as the instantiation of that notion
• To the second objection: Although all actions are of individuals, the first beginning of acting in them is nature, which tends toward something one
• To the third objection: All actions are singular, but they originate from nature’s tendency toward one thing

Key Arguments #

The Argument from Nature’s Tendency #

• Premise: Nature tends toward something one (not multiple ends)
• Premise: All action originates from nature
• Conclusion: All acting, despite being singular and individual, originates from a universal principle tending toward one thing

The Argument from the Notion vs. the Instantiation #

• Premise: The notion of the last end (fulfillment of perfection) is universal and agreed upon by all
• Premise: That in which this notion is found differs among men
• Conclusion: All men pursue one last end in concept, but differ in what they believe constitutes it
• Implication: Sinners are not turned away from seeking a last end, but from seeking it in the right thing

The Argument from Form vs. Matter #

• Premise: Form is superior to matter
• Premise: What is common to all humans comes from form (rational nature)
• Premise: What is private/individual comes from matter
• Conclusion: The true last end of man must be found in what is common (reason), not in what is individual

The Argument from Developed Judgment #

• Premise: The judgment of what is truly the highest good belongs to those with the best-disposed faculties
• Premise: In matters of taste, those who appreciate both lesser and greater goods judge the greater to be superior
• Conclusion: When ordinary people fail to recognize the true ultimate good, it is because their faculties are underdeveloped, not because the ultimate good is truly inferior

Important Definitions #

Last End (Finis Ultimus) #

• In one sense: the notion—the concept of what fulfillment of perfection is
• In another sense: that in which the notion is found—the actual thing in which beatitude consists
• All men pursue the same notion; they differ in what they believe is that in which the notion is found

Perfection (Perfectio) #

• The fulfillment or completion of a being’s nature
• Related to the Latin adumblere (to fill up)
• All men naturally desire to fulfill their own perfection

Intention (Intentio) #

• A movement or tendency of the will toward an end
• Can remain implicit even when not explicitly thought about
• Can weaken if not renewed periodically

Well-Disposed Faculties (Bene Dispositus) #

• Faculties that have been properly developed and habituated
• The basis for reliable judgment about what is truly good
• The measure against which others’ judgments should be evaluated

Form and Matter #

• Form: What is common, universal, essential; the principle of being
• Matter: What is individual, particular, dependent; the principle of individuation
• Form is ontologically superior to matter

Examples & Illustrations #

The Traveler on the Road #

• A person intending to go to church walks along a path
• While admiring flowers and snowbanks, the traveler doesn’t constantly think about the destination
• Yet the intention remains implicitly present throughout the journey
• Even if one gets frustrated on the journey, the original intention persists, though it may need renewal

Diverse Paths of Life #

• Some say “music is my life” (the musician’s ultimate end is music)
• Others say “baseball is my life” (the athlete’s ultimate end is sport)
• Others say “dinner is my life” (the person’s ultimate end is eating)
• Berquist’s personal example: He theorems every day to feel right; his sister-in-law observed there’s always something wrong with him—it’s his way of life

Individual Differences as Dispositions #

• An irascible person is poorly disposed toward living reasonably
• An alcoholic is inclined toward something that disposes poorly toward reasonable behavior
• A person with a poor memory is poorly disposed toward the life of the mind
• These individual characteristics dispose one well or poorly toward the common human end (reason)

The Development of Taste in Music #

• A child enjoys marches (obvious, simple pleasure) from radio
• Initially hearing Mozart’s Magic Flute, the listener doesn’t really hear anything significant
• With repeated listening and habituation, the listener comes to appreciate Mozart as superior to marches
• The mature listener gets more pleasure from Mozart symphonies and arias than from marches
• This illustrates how the sense of hearing develops through exposure and habituation

The Development of Taste in Wine and Beverages #

• A child prefers soda pop to wine (undeveloped palate)
• Wine mixtures with soda pop are offered as intermediate steps
• One cannot taste wine properly if it is drunk like soda pop (quickly, at room temperature)
• When Coke reaches room temperature, there isn’t much to taste
• Those with developed taste in wine know that wine is superior to beer
• Those who think beer is better than wine lack developed taste in wine

The Example of Mozart, Shakespeare, and Babe Ruth #

• Should Mozart have been a logician rather than a musician?
• Should Shakespeare have written metaphysics rather than plays?
• Should Babe Ruth have been a philosopher rather than a home run hitter?
• These questions reveal that individual gifts and talents are properly ordered toward the common good of reason, not elevated above it

The Angels’ Perfection #

• Each angel is of a different kind (no two angels are the same kind)
• Each angel possesses the complete perfection of its individual kind
• This is part of why angels are more perfect than humans
• Humans, in contrast, do not possess the complete perfection of human nature
• If one human had all the perfections of Mozart, Shakespeare, Euclid, Aristotle, Thomas, and Augustine, that person would be extraordinary—but even then would not have all perfections of humanity

The Bishop and Blessings #

• Berquist once asked a priest giving a blessing: “Was his blessing any better than yours?”
• This anecdote illustrates that honor (being blessed by a bishop) is extrinsic and does not constitute true beatitude
• The external sign of excellence (blessing from a bishop) is not the thing itself

Practical Observations About Pleasure #

• Heat in July is uncomfortable, but one could say “this is for your sins, that the Lord has sent you this”
• Now churches are air-conditioned, and people don’t reflect on heat as penance
• A corn-and-clothes boxer develops his body as his ultimate end
• These examples show how people mistakenly locate their ultimate good in lower things

The Renewal of Intention in Religious Practice #

• Many people start the day by offering up all their actions, joys, and sufferings to God
• But during frustrations throughout the day, one doesn’t always think about why one is undergoing these things
• The intention remains, but if not renewed, it can weaken

Notable Quotes #

“The intention there kind of remains…But one still has that intention, right, huh? But it has to be renewed eventually or you could weaken.”

“All men come together in one thing in common, you know, want to be happy. Different two things, the road to take the happiness, the other road.”

“What is private to us comes from matter, right, huh? And what is common more to the form, and form is better than matter, right? So the end must be found in something that’s common to us, rather than something that is private.”

“The judgment about what he’s really most delightful, right? What he’s really the end, huh? [comes from those with the best taste]”

“Taste and see how sweet is the Lord…Thomas kind of unfolds the likeness there between the sweet and what it’s, what, you’re trying to get at, huh? Because the sweet is pleasant, right, huh? And that’s what it was emphasized here. But the sweet is also, what, refreshing, right, huh? Okay. And the sweet is also, what, what? Restful.”

“I only had the perfection of Mozart and Shakespeare and Euclid and Aristotle and Thomas and Augustine and all these things wrapped up in me and I’d be one hell of a guy. But I don’t have the whole perfection of my kind, right?”

“The end is better than what is for the sake of the end, which is better, right, huh? My common nature or my private nature, you want to speak that way, huh?”

Questions Addressed #

Can All Men Have the Same Last End If They Pursue Different Goods? #

• Question: How can Thomas argue for one last end when empirically people pursue wealth, honor, pleasure, and power differently?
• Resolution: All men share the same notion of what they seek (fulfillment of perfection), but differ in that in which the notion is found. The notion is universal; its instantiation is particular.

Must One Always Explicitly Think About One’s Ultimate End? #

• Question: If I don’t constantly think about my final destination while walking, how can it truly be my end?
• Resolution: The intention toward the end remains implicitly present even when not explicitly thought about. The traveler doesn’t consciously think about church while admiring flowers, yet the intention persists. It must be renewed periodically to prevent weakening.

Is an Individual’s Private Good Superior to What Is Common to All Humans? #

• Question: Shouldn’t the development of my individual gifts (what makes me unique) be my ultimate end?
• Resolution: No. What is common (reason) is superior to what is private (bodily or individual characteristics). Individual traits merely dispose one well or poorly toward the common human good. Form (the common) is superior to matter (the individual).

How Can We Judge Which Good Is Truly the Ultimate One? #

• Question: If people disagree about what is truly the highest good, whose judgment should we trust?
• Resolution: Trust the judgment of those with well-disposed and developed faculties. Just as wine is judged sweetest by those with refined taste (who appreciate both wine and beer), the true ultimate good is recognized by those whose intellect and will are well-disposed toward it.

Why Does Thomas Use the Taste Analogy? #

• Question: What does tasting sweetness have to do with ultimate goods?
• Resolution: The taste analogy illustrates how people with underdeveloped faculties misjudge the true good. A child with underdeveloped palate prefers soda pop; a mature person with developed taste recognizes wine as superior. Similarly, those without spiritual development cannot appreciate the true ultimate good and seek it in lower things.