261. The Nature and Figurative Character of Ceremonial Precepts

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Definition and Nature of Ceremonial Precepts #

• Ceremonial precepts are those that pertain to the worship of God (cultus Dei)
• They are distinct from:
  • Moral precepts (derived from natural reason)
  • Judicial precepts (pertaining to judgment among men)
• Ceremonial precepts “determine the moral precepts in order to God” just as judicial precepts determine moral precepts in relation to one’s neighbor
• The term ceremonia derives from Cereris (god of fruits, whose fruits were offered to God) or signifies divine worship in Latin

Interior and Exterior Worship #

• Man, composed of soul and body, must apply both to worship of God:
  • Interior worship: soul joined to God through understanding and affection (faith, hope, charity)
  • Exterior worship: bodily acts ordered to and expressing interior worship
• “Just as the body is ordered to God through the soul, so the outward worship is ordered to the interior worship”
• Even the imagination must be subject to God through metaphorical and figurative representations
• The exterior cult is means to end, not end in itself

Are Ceremonial Precepts Figurative (Figuralia)? #

• Yes, ceremonial precepts are figurative in the Old Law
• Two ways they function figuratively:
  1. Figurative of future truth to be revealed in the fatherland (beatific vision)
  2. Figurative of Christ as the via (way) leading to that truth
• In the New Law: precepts are not prefigurative but commemorative (“Do this in memory of me”)
• Figures are necessary because human reason cannot grasp divine truth in itself but requires sensible representations

Why Sensible Figures Are Necessary #

• Divine truth must be revealed “according to the capacity” of human understanding
• Otherwise, men would “condemn or have contempt” for what they cannot grasp
• Scriptural figures represent things above reason (unlike poetic metaphors, which represent things below reason)
• The divine mysteries must be “veiled in figures” for the “rude people” (multitude) to understand them implicitly

Key Arguments #

Against the Figurative Nature of Ceremonial Precepts #

Objection 1: A good teacher should make things easily understood; if ceremonial precepts are figures, why didn’t Moses explain them?

• Response: Divine things must be revealed according to capacity; explicit explanation would give people matter for contempt

Objection 2: Worship of God should have transparency (anastasis), not theatrical representation

• Response: Figures are not theatrical but pedagogical; they bring divine mysteries within reach of understanding

Objection 3: Augustine says God is most worshipped by faith, hope, and charity, not figures

• Response: Augustine speaks of interior worship; exterior worship is properly ordered to interior worship

Objection 4: John 4:24 states God must be worshipped “in spirit and in truth,” not in figures

• Response: Through Christ, men are more fully introduced to spiritual worship; figures in Old Law prepared for this

Important Definitions #

Ceremonia #

• Pertaining to worship of God, either derived from Cereris (offerings of fruits) or signifying divine cult in Latin
• Encompasses all precepts in Old Law ordered to worship of God

Figuralia #

• Sensible representations of divine truth or of Christ through signs
• Necessary pedagogical tool for communicating truth that exceeds human reason
• Distinguished from poetic metaphor by direction: scripture uses figures for things above reason; poetry for things below reason

Interior vs. Exterior Worship #

• Interior: soul joined to God through understanding and affection
• Exterior: bodily acts ordered to express and support interior disposition
• Exterior worship serves interior worship as means to end

Examples & Illustrations #

Figurative Interpretation #

• The Burning Bush: Fire represents divinity, bush represents humanity; their union without one being consumed figures the Incarnation
• Fire as metaphor for God:
  • Simplicity of fire = simplicity of divine substance
  • Light of fire = divine understanding
  • Warmth of fire = divine love
  • Fire, light, and heat together = Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit)

Preparation for Worship #

• Fasting before Mass: Similar to doctor preparing before surgery; suitable disposition required before participation in worship
• Food and clothing restrictions in Old Law: Pertain to suitable preparation of those worshipping God, like special observances in service to a king

The Distinction of “Before” (Dante, Scripture, Shakespeare) #

• Berquist contrasts how Dante uses metaphor (bringing things above reason down to mind) with how Homer/Shakespeare use metaphor (representing things below reason)
• Scripture and Dante aim at intelligibility of the divine; Homer/Shakespeare aim at emotional representation
• The imagination itself is drawn up to participate in divine truth through figures

Notable Quotes #

“Since man is put together from soul and body, both ought to be applied to the worship of God; that the soul worship him by an inward worship and the body by an outward one.”

“The divine thing should not be revealed to men except according to their capacity; otherwise it would be given to them the matter for falling down, when they condemn or have contempt for those things which they are not able to grasp.”

“Just as the body is ordered to God through the soul, so the outward worship is ordered to the interior worship.”

“In the state of future beatitude the human understanding will see the divine truth in itself, and therefore the outward cult does not consist in some figure but only in the praise of God.”

Questions Addressed #

Question 101, Article 1: What is the reason for ceremonial precepts? #

• Answer: They pertain to the worship of God, ordering the moral precepts in relation to God
• Objections citing food and clothing restrictions are resolved by noting these pertain to suitable preparation of those worshipping God, not directly to worship itself

Question 101, Article 2: Are ceremonial precepts figurative (figuralia)? #

• Answer: Yes, they are figurative in the Old Law in two ways: figurative of future beatific vision and figurative of Christ as the way to that vision
• This is necessary because human reason cannot grasp divine truth directly
• Figures are not theological defects but pedagogical necessities
• The distinction between figure and truth is not absolute opposition but relative (figura vs. veritas)

Key Distinctions Made #

Scriptural vs. Poetic Metaphor #

• Scripture: Uses metaphor/figure for things above human reason (drawing imagination up to divine truth)
• Poetry: Uses metaphor for things below human reason (giving emotional meaning to natural things)
• Both serve understanding but in opposite directions

Old Law vs. New Law Ceremonials #

• Old Law: Ceremonials are prefigurative (pointing to future truth and Christ)
• New Law: Ceremonials are commemorative (remembering Christ present and past); sacraments contain what Old Law figures pointed to

States of Knowledge #

• Future beatitude: Human understanding sees divine truth in itself; no need for figures
• Present life: Human understanding requires sensible figures to understand divine truth
• Progression: From figure (Old Law) → to commemoration (New Law) → to vision (beatitude)