236. The Eternal Law as Divine Wisdom and Governance

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Eternal Law and Divine Wisdom #

• The eternal law is defined as the reason of divine wisdom (ratio divinae sapientiae) insofar as it is directive of all acts and motions
• Distinguished from divine art: art concerns the making of things; the eternal law concerns the governance and direction of things already made toward their proper ends
• God functions both as maker (comparable to human art) and as mover/governor (comparable to human prudence or foresight)

God as Maker vs. Mover #

• As Maker: God’s wisdom is like human art (ars), establishing the exemplar or form according to which things are made
• As Mover: God’s wisdom is like prudence (prudentia), directing all creatures toward suitable ends and ultimately toward God Himself as the common good
• The eternal law pertains to God’s function as mover and governor, not merely as creator
• Analogy: Just as a legislator’s reason for ordering subjects obtains the definition of law, so God’s reason for directing all creation obtains the definition of eternal law

The Problem of Unity and Multiplicity #

• Objection: If Augustine says God has many divine ideas (one for each creature), how can the eternal law be one?
• Solution: The divine ideas regard the private natures of singular things and diverse ways creatures can imitate God. These constitute no real multiplicity in God’s simple intellect. The eternal law, however, concerns the ordering of all diverse things to one common good—hence it is one
• Creatures imitate God in different ways (tree, dog, man, angel each imitate differently), yet all are ordered to the same common good

Key Arguments #

First Objection: Multiple Divine Ideas vs. One Eternal Law #

• Premise 1: Augustine states God has many ideas (one for each creature and type of creature)
• Premise 2: The eternal law is singular, not multiple
• Conclusion: Therefore, the eternal law cannot be the reason of divine wisdom
• Thomas’s Resolution: The ideas concern private natures and diverse particularities; law concerns common ordering. Augustine’s “many reasons” refer to how God knows each creature should be made and how each can imitate Him. The eternal law, being directive of acts to the common good, is one despite this multiplicity

Second Objection: Word vs. Reason #

• Premise: Law is defined as reason (ratio), but the divine Word (Verbum) is a person in the Trinity
• Premise: Reason is said essentially; the Word is said personally (of the Son)
• Conclusion: The eternal law cannot be the Word
• Thomas’s Resolution: While the law is identified with divine reason, the Word expresses all things in God’s knowledge. The identification is more precise in terms of the formal object: the law is the reason of divine wisdom, while the Word is the personal expression of that wisdom

Important Definitions #

Lex Aeterna (Eternal Law) #

The reason of divine wisdom insofar as it directs all acts and motions toward their proper ends and toward the common good of the universe. It is unchangeable truth by which all things are ordered.

Ratio (Reason/Thought/Definition) #

In Latin philosophical usage, ratio can mean:

• The faculty of reasoning (as in Aristotle’s “look before and after”)
• The object of reason—a thought, definition, or principle
• In the context of eternal law, it means the divine thought or principle by which all things are governed

Ars (Art) vs. Prudentia (Prudence/Foresight) #

• Ars: Right reason about making (recta ratio factibilium)
• Prudentia: Right reason about doing (recta ratio agibilium)
• God as maker employs the ratio of art; God as mover employs the ratio of prudence
• Law pertains more to prudence/foresight than to art, as it concerns governance of actions

Exemplar (Form/Model) #

The form that exists outside a thing as the pattern after which the thing is fashioned. God’s reason for creation functions as the exemplar of all created things.

Idiae Divinae (Divine Ideas) #

The ways in which all possible creatures can imitate and participate in divine perfection, all understood in God’s one simple thought. Not multiple thoughts but multiple ways understood in a single understanding.

Examples & Illustrations #

The Artist and the Legislator #

Just as an artist pre-exists the reason of things to be made (the exemplar or form), so a legislator pre-exists the reason of the order of things to be done by subjects. God is both artist (making the universe according to divine wisdom) and legislator (governing all actions and motions). The eternal law is the divine legislator’s reason for ordering creation.

Diverse Creatures Imitating God #

A tree imitates God in one way, a dog in another, a man in yet another, an angel in yet another. Each has a corresponding divine idea showing its particular mode of imitating divine perfection. Yet all are ordered to one common good—the glory and honor of God. This illustrates how multiplicity in creation does not entail multiplicity in the eternal law.

Personal Anecdotes on Authority and Obedience #

Berquist recounts an incident from childhood in Watertown, Minnesota, where he was misbehaving in his aunt’s store. When the town’s single police officer appeared, the aunt pointed him out, and the officer (joking) suggested putting him in jail for a day. Though a joke, this illustration of authority and potential punishment sobered the young Berquist, showing how the fear of punishment moves one toward obedience—a practical illustration of how law’s coercive power operates.

Notable Quotes #

“The eternal law is nothing other than the reason of divine wisdom, according as it is directive of all acts and motions.”

“Just as the reason of things to be done by art is called art, or the exemplar of artificial things, so also the reason of the one governing the acts of those subject to him obtains the definition of law.”

“God, through his wisdom, is the creator of all things, to which he is compared as an artist to artifacts. But he is also the governor of all actions and motions which are found in individual creatures.”

“Augustine speaks there about the ideal reasons, which regard the private natures of singular things; and therefore in them there is found distinction and plurality… But law is said to be directive of acts in order to the common good.”

Questions Addressed #

Q1: What is the Eternal Law? #

Answer: The reason of divine wisdom insofar as it directs all acts and motions toward their proper ends and the common good of the universe. It is one, unchangeable truth by which all creation is ordered.

Q2: How Can the Eternal Law Be One If God Has Many Divine Ideas? #

Answer: The divine ideas concern the private natures of singular creatures and diverse ways they can imitate God. These represent no real multiplicity in God’s simple intellect. The eternal law, by contrast, concerns the ordering of all these diverse things to one common good, hence it is one.

Q3: Why Distinguish God as Maker from God as Mover? #

Answer: God as maker employs the ratio of art (reason about making); God as mover employs the ratio of prudence (reason about doing and directing). Since law concerns governance and direction rather than mere creation, the eternal law is more properly understood as the divine reason insofar as God is mover/governor rather than merely maker/creator.