303. Instantaneous Justification and the Order of Nature

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Problem of Successive Change (Article 7) #

• The Difficulty: If justification requires time, there must be a transition from ignorance to knowledge, or from sin to justice. But this creates a logical problem: either there is a last instant of the prior state and a first instant of the following state (making two instants), or they are the same instant (making them continuous). If two instants, time must exist between them. If they are the same instant, one would be both ignorant and knowing simultaneously—a contradiction.
• Hegel’s Error: This contradiction is the basis of Hegel’s claim that “all becoming is a contradiction,” which Marx inherited. This leads to dialectical materialism and revolutionary philosophy based on accepting contradictions as fundamental to reality.
• Aristotle’s Solution: In things subject to time, there is no last instant in which the prior form exists in the subject, but there is a last time. There is a first instant in which the following form exists. Between these two instants, there is some time but no instant. This avoids the contradiction.

The Continuous and the Instant #

• Instants are related to time as points are to lines: just as two points cannot be adjacent (there is always a line between them), two instants cannot be adjacent (there is always some time between them).
• A point has no parts (Euclid’s definition), so two points can only coincide if they are identical—they cannot “touch” without being the same point.
• Similarly, two distinct nows cannot be together; there must always be some time between them.
• The now in the strict sense (καιρός/nunc) is indivisible and includes neither past nor future—it has no duration.

Application to Justification #

• In the transition from sin to justice (transmutatio), there is no last instant in which one is alive in sin, but there is a last time.
• The first instant of justice (the terminus of motion) belongs to the time in which one is just.
• All the preceding time—throughout which one moves toward justice—one is under the opposite form (the prior state).
• Crucial Point: Time itself is terminated at an instant. The whole preceding time is united with the last instant of that time, which is simultaneously the first instant of the new time.

Things Above Time (Article 7, continued) #

• For spiritual realities not measured by continuous time (such as the human mind’s intellectual operations, or angelic operations), discrete time applies.
• In such things, there can be both a last instant of the first state and a first instant of the following state, with no necessity of a middle time between them, because there is no continuity of time to require this.
• The human mind, inasmuch as it is spiritual, is above time. However, insofar as it is connected with the senses (since “we do not think without imagining”), it is subject to time and operates according to phantasms (images from sensation).

The Instantaneous Nature of Grace (Article 7, Body) #

• Key Claim: The infusion of grace comes about in an indivisible instant, without any succession.
• A form is impressed upon a subject not all at once (subito) only if the subject is not disposed. The agent requires time to dispose the subject, not to impress the form itself.
• Once matter is properly disposed through preceding alteration, the substantial form is received by the matter instantaneously.
• Examples:
  • Heating paper disposes it; once disposed, it ignites into flame at once.
  • Air is naturally disposed (διαφανές/diaphanous) to receive light; once properly positioned, it is illuminated instantaneously by the sun.
• Since God has infinite power, He can dispose any created matter suddenly for form. He can do in the case of the Incarnation what natural agents cannot do.
• The human will (free will) is capable of instantaneous motion by nature, so God can dispose it to receive grace all at once.

The Order of Nature in Justification (Article 8) #

• In Time: All four elements occur simultaneously (simul), since justification is not successive.
• In the Order of Nature (ordo naturae): One element is naturally prior to another, though they occur without temporal succession.
• The Four Elements in Natural Order:
  1. First: Infusion of grace (on the part of God, the agent)
  2. Second: Motion of free will toward God
  3. Third: Motion of free will against sin (arising from and dependent on motion toward God)
  4. Fourth: Remission of guilt (the terminus to which the whole motion is ordered)

Agent vs. Patient Perspective #

• On the Side of the Agent (God): The infusion of grace is primary; remission of guilt is secondary (the effect or consequence).
• On the Side of the Patient (Man): The liberation from guilt comes first in the order of nature, then the attaining of grace. The man must “make room” for the grace by being rid of impediments.
• Analogy of the Sun: The sun illuminates by its light; darkness is removed as a consequence. From the sun’s perspective, illumination is prior; darkness-removal follows. From the air’s perspective, the air is first purged of darkness, then receives light.
• Thomas emphasizes: “Both are single in time” (ambo sunt simul in tempore) but represent two different senses of “before” (duo diversi modi “prius”).

Disposition and Form #

• Disposition of the subject naturally precedes the reception of the form in the order of nature. However, disposition follows the act of the agent.
• The motion of free will (a disposition) naturally precedes attaining grace in the order of nature, but follows the infusion of grace (God’s act of disposing).
• Thomas distinguishes between “infusion of grace” (God pouring it in) and “attaining of grace” (the soul’s reception of it).

Key Arguments #

Objection 1: Deliberation Requires Succession #

• Objection: Learning the Pythagorean theorem requires deliberation over time; therefore, justification must be successive.
• Response: Consent of the will (assensus) is instantaneous. The preceding deliberation is not part of justification itself but prior to it. Once deliberation concludes, the act of consent occurs in an indivisible instant.

Objection 2: Acts of Grace Come Suddenly #

• Objection (from Scripture): Acts 2 states the Holy Spirit came “suddenly” (subito). Ambrose teaches that the grace of the Holy Spirit “does not do little things; it does all at once.”
• Response: This is correctly interpreted as instantaneous infusion, which Thomas affirms.

Objection 3: Receding from Evil Precedes Acceding to Good #

• Objection (from Psalm 36): “Decline from evil and do good” suggests removal of evil comes before acquisition of good; therefore, remission of guilt precedes infusion of grace.
• Response: This is true on the side of the patient (mobile subject) but reversed on the side of the agent. The agent (God) acts through the form pre-existing in it; thus the infusion of grace (the productive cause) is prior by nature to remission of guilt (the effect). The distinction between two senses of “before” resolves the apparent contradiction.

Objection 4: Disposition Precedes Form #

• Objection: Disposition naturally precedes the form for which it disposes. The motion of free will is a disposition for grace. Therefore, motion of free will precedes infusion of grace.
• Response: Disposition precedes reception of form in the order of nature, but follows the act of the agent. The infusion of grace is the act by which God disposes the will, so the infusion is prior by nature, even though the motion of the will is a prerequisite condition for receiving grace.

Objection 5: Impediments Must Be Removed First #

• Objection: In exterior motions, removal of impediments precedes achievement of the end. Sin impedes free motion toward God. Therefore, remission of guilt precedes motion toward God and infusion of grace.
• Response: In movements of the soul, the end is considered first (e.g., one reasons about the end before removing impediments). In exterior motions, impediment removal precedes. The motion of free will moves the soul toward God as an end, and from this motion (the primary movement of the soul) the aversion from sin follows. Thus, the natural order reflects the soul’s motion, not external physical motion.

Important Definitions #

Transmutatio (Changeover) #

• A change in the soul from one state to another (e.g., from sin to justice).
• Requires motion proper to the human soul according to its nature.
• The soul undergoes transformation, not merely receives a static form.

Simul (Together) #

• Two things understood or existing together without temporal succession.
• In justification, the infusion of grace and remission of guilt occur simul in time, though ordered by nature.

Ordo Naturae (Order of Nature) vs. Ordo Temporis (Order of Time) #

• Ordo Temporis: Sequential occurrence; one thing happens before another chronologically.
• Ordo Naturae: Causal or logical priority; one thing is naturally prior as cause, reason, or prerequisite, even though both may occur without time between them.
• The same two events can have a temporal order (no precedence in time) but still have a natural order (one is prior as cause or reason).

Prius (Prior) — Multiple Senses #

• Prior for matter (ex parte materiae): What comes first in the mobile subject; what must be removed before receiving new form.
• Prior by form (ex parte formae): What is prior in the agent or as a formal cause; what produces or makes the change.
• These two senses can be opposite: what is prior for matter is posterior by form, and vice versa.

Subito (All at Once / Instantaneously) #

• The infusion of grace occurs subito—in an indivisible instant without succession.
• Contrasts with paulatim (gradually/successively).

Dispositio (Disposition) #

• The preparation or conditioning of a subject to receive a form.
• In justification, the motion of free will is a disposition for receiving grace.
• Requires the prior act of the agent to effect the disposition.

Examples & Illustrations #

The Pythagorean Theorem #

• Before learning: one is ignorant.
• During learning: one thinks through the proof (deliberation).
• At a certain moment: one comes to know (consent of understanding is instantaneous).
• After: one possesses knowledge (no further motion needed).
• Point: There is no last instant in which one is ignorant; there is a last time of ignorance and a first instant of knowledge, with some time between them containing the deliberation.

Heating Paper and Ignition #

• Heating disposes the paper (successive process).
• Once properly disposed, combustion occurs instantaneously when flame touches it.
• The form (combustion/flame) is impressed suddenly upon the matter once disposition is complete.

Illumination by the Sun #

• The sun’s light illuminates the diaphanous medium instantaneously.
• From the sun’s perspective: illumination is the primary action; darkness-removal is its consequence.
• From the air’s perspective: the air is first purged of darkness, then receives light.
• Application: God infuses grace (primary action); guilt is remitted as the consequence. Man experiences guilt being removed, then grace received.

Death and Life #

• There is no last instant in which one is alive in the biological sense.
• There is a first instant in which one is dead (the end of life belongs to the subsequent time of death).
• The whole preceding time (all of life) is united with the last instant of that living time.
• This avoids the absurd claim that “there is no last instant in which I’m alive, so I never die.”

The Eucharistic Transubstantiation #

• Bread exists up to a certain time (but not a last instant).
• At the last instant of bread’s time, the body of Christ is there (at the first instant of that new time).
• There is no time in between in which the substance is neither bread nor body.
• Without this distinction, one would need a time of transition that is neither one nor the other—a logical impossibility.

The Fertilized Egg and Human Being #

• A fertilized egg appears to be a seed of a human body rather than a fully human body.
• The soul is the form of an actual body with distinct organs (tools/ὄργανα).
• The fertilized egg lacks sufficient distinction of organs to be the proper subject of a rational soul.
• It is the seed of a human being, not yet a human being.
• Caveat: Determining exactly when organs are sufficiently distinguished is difficult; by the time arms and legs are visible, the soul is certainly present.
• Doctrinal Note: When God became human, the body was assumed as human instantaneously (appropriate to God), but in human generation, successive disposition of organs is required.

The Sinful Woman (Luke 7) #

• An implicit example of justification: the woman is restored from sin to justice through the infusion of grace.

Notable Quotes #

“The grace of the Holy Spirit does not do little things; it does all at once.” (Ambrose, quoted in the Gloss)

“If you could both be and not be, it wouldn’t be a question, ’to be or not to be.’” (Berquist on Shakespeare’s Hamlet)

“To be or not to be, that is a question.” vs. “To be and not to be—that’s the solution.” (Berquist contrasting Shakespeare and Hegel)

“Hegel would have said, ’to be and not to be.’ That’s the answer.” (Berquist on how Hegel denies the fundamental principle of non-contradiction)

“They’re really denying the basic thing: something cannot both be and not be at the same time in the same way. They’re denying the fundamental thought of the human mind, really.” (Berquist on dialectical philosophy)

Questions Addressed #

Is justification instantaneous or successive? #

• Answer: Instantaneous in time (simul), though composed of four elements in the order of nature. The infusion of grace occurs in an indivisible instant without succession.

How can there be a change without contradiction between opposites? #

• Answer: In things subject to time, there is no last instant of the prior state but a last time. There is a first instant of the following state. Between the last time and first instant, there is some time but no instant. This avoids requiring that one be both ignorant and knowing simultaneously.

What is the relationship between the order of time and the order of nature? #

• Answer: Two different senses of “before.” In time, all four elements occur simultaneously. In the order of nature (causally/logically), one element is naturally prior to another. This is illustrated by the sun and light: illumination and darkness-removal are simultaneous in time but ordered by nature (illumination is prior as cause from the sun’s perspective; darkness-removal is prior from the air’s perspective).

Can one consistently deny the principle of non-contradiction? #

• Answer: No. The principle “something cannot both be and not be at the same time in the same way” is fundamental to all human thought. Even a child intuitively grasps it (the toy dispute). Hegel’s dialectical claim that “all becoming is a contradiction” denies this fundamental principle and leads to incoherent philosophies based on accepting contradictions.

When does a rational soul enter the body? #

• Answer: When the body has sufficient distinction of organs to be the proper subject of a rational soul. A fertilized egg appears to be a seed rather than a human body, lacking sufficient organic development. Determining the exact moment is difficult, but by the presence of developed limbs and organs, the soul is certainly present. God may act instantaneously (as in the Incarnation), but in human generation, the body requires gradual disposition.

Philosophical Principles Emphasized #

The Principle of Non-Contradiction #

• Fundamental to all rational thought: something cannot both be and not be at the same time in the same respect.
• Denied by Hegel’s dialectic; Thomas and Aristotle affirm it as foundational.

Two Senses of “Before” (Prius) #

• From the perspective of the agent/cause: one thing is prior.
• From the perspective of the patient/subject: the reverse may be true.
• Both are valid but describe different causal or logical relationships.

Instant vs. Time #

• An instant is indivisible; time is continuous.
• Two instants cannot be adjacent (there is always some time between them).
• A change can transition from one instant to another without requiring a time in which neither state exists.

Matter and Form #

• Matter must be disposed before it can receive a form.
• Once disposed, the form is impressed instantaneously.
• Disposition is a successive process; reception of form is not.