Part II (Pars Prima Secundae) Part 124 (1/2)
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FIRST ARTICLE [I-II, Q. 78, Art. 1]
Whether Anyone Sins Through Certain Malice?
Objection 1: It would seem that no one sins purposely, or through certain malice. Because ignorance is opposed to purpose or certain malice. Now ”every evil man is ignorant,” according to the Philosopher (Ethic. iii, 1); and it is written (Prov. 14:22): ”They err that work evil.” Therefore no one sins through certain malice.
Obj. 2: Further, Dionysius says (Div. Nom. iv) that ”no one works intending evil.” Now to sin through malice seems to denote the intention of doing evil [*Alluding to the derivation of _malitia_ (malice) from _malum_ (evil)] in sinning, because an act is not denominated from that which is unintentional and accidental.
Therefore no one sins through malice.
Obj. 3: Further, malice itself is a sin. If therefore malice is a cause of sin, it follows that sin goes on causing sin indefinitely, which is absurd. Therefore no one sins through malice.
_On the contrary,_ It is written (Job 34:27): ”[Who] as it were on purpose have revolted from G.o.d [Vulg.: 'Him'], and would not understand all His ways.” Now to revolt from G.o.d is to sin. Therefore some sin purposely or through certain malice.
_I answer that,_ Man like any other being has naturally an appet.i.te for the good; and so if his appet.i.te incline away to evil, this is due to corruption or disorder in some one of the principles of man: for it is thus that sin occurs in the actions of natural things. Now the principles of human acts are the intellect, and the appet.i.te, both rational (i.e. the will) and sensitive. Therefore even as sin occurs in human acts, sometimes through a defect of the intellect, as when anyone sins through ignorance, and sometimes through a defect in the sensitive appet.i.te, as when anyone sins through pa.s.sion, so too does it occur through a defect consisting in a disorder of the will.
Now the will is out of order when it loves more the lesser good.
Again, the consequence of loving a thing less is that one chooses to suffer some hurt in its regard, in order to obtain a good that one loves more: as when a man, even knowingly, suffers the loss of a limb, that he may save his life which he loves more. Accordingly when an inordinate will loves some temporal good, e.g. riches or pleasure, more than the order of reason or Divine law, or Divine charity, or some such thing, it follows that it is willing to suffer the loss of some spiritual good, so that it may obtain possession of some temporal good. Now evil is merely the privation of some good; and so a man wishes knowingly a spiritual evil, which is evil simply, whereby he is deprived of a spiritual good, in order to possess a temporal good: wherefore he is said to sin through certain malice or on purpose, because he chooses evil knowingly.
Reply Obj. 1: Ignorance sometimes excludes the simple knowledge that a particular action is evil, and then man is said to sin through ignorance: sometimes it excludes the knowledge that a particular action is evil at this particular moment, as when he sins through pa.s.sion: and sometimes it excludes the knowledge that a particular evil is not to be suffered for the sake of possessing a particular good, but not the simple knowledge that it is an evil: it is thus that a man is ignorant, when he sins through certain malice.
Reply Obj. 2: Evil cannot be intended by anyone for its own sake; but it can be intended for the sake of avoiding another evil, or obtaining another good, as stated above: and in this case anyone would choose to obtain a good intended for its own sake, without suffering loss of the other good; even as a l.u.s.tful man would wish to enjoy a pleasure without offending G.o.d; but with the two set before him to choose from, he prefers sinning and thereby incurring G.o.d's anger, to being deprived of the pleasure.
Reply Obj. 3: The malice through which anyone sins, may be taken to denote habitual malice, in the sense in which the Philosopher (Ethic.
v, 1) calls an evil habit by the name of malice, just as a good habit is called virtue: and in this way anyone is said to sin through malice when he sins through the inclination of a habit. It may also denote actual malice, whether by malice we mean the choice itself of evil (and thus anyone is said to sin through malice, in so far as he sins through making a choice of evil), or whether by malice we mean some previous fault that gives rise to a subsequent fault, as when anyone impugns the grace of his brother through envy. Nor does this imply that a thing is its own cause: for the interior act is the cause of the exterior act, and one sin is the cause of another; not indefinitely, however, since we can trace it back to some previous sin, which is not caused by any previous sin, as was explained above (Q. 75, A. 4, ad 3).
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SECOND ARTICLE [I-II, Q. 78, Art. 2]
Whether Everyone That Sins Through Habit, Sins Through Certain Malice?
Objection 1: It would seem that not every one who sins through habit, sins through certain malice. Because sin committed through certain malice, seems to be most grievous. Now it happens sometimes that a man commits a slight sin through habit, as when he utters an idle word. Therefore sin committed from habit is not always committed through certain malice.
Obj. 2: Further, ”Acts proceeding from habits are like the acts by which those habits were formed” (Ethic. ii, 1, 2). But the acts which precede a vicious habit are not committed through certain malice.
Therefore the sins that arise from habit are not committed through certain malice.
Obj. 3: Further, when a man commits a sin through certain malice, he is glad after having done it, according to Prov. 2:14: ”Who are glad when they have done evil, and rejoice in most wicked things”: and this, because it is pleasant to obtain what we desire, and to do those actions which are connatural to us by reason of habit. But those who sin through habit, are sorrowful after committing a sin: because ”bad men,” i.e. those who have a vicious habit, ”are full of remorse” (Ethic. ix, 4). Therefore sins that arise from habit are not committed through certain malice.
_On the contrary,_ A sin committed through certain malice is one that is done through choice of evil. Now we make choice of those things to which we are inclined by habit, as stated in _Ethic._ vi, 2 with regard to virtuous habits. Therefore a sin that arises from habit is committed through certain malice.
_I answer that,_ There is a difference between a sin committed by one who has the habit, and a sin committed by habit: for it is not necessary to use a habit, since it is subject to the will of the person who has that habit. Hence habit is defined as being ”something we use when we will,” as stated above (Q. 50, A. 1). And thus, even as it may happen that one who has a vicious habit may break forth into a virtuous act, because a bad habit does not corrupt reason altogether, something of which remains unimpaired, the result being that a sinner does some works which are generically good; so too it may happen sometimes that one who has a vicious habit, acts, not from that habit, but through the uprising of a pa.s.sion, or again through ignorance. But whenever he uses the vicious habit he must needs sin through certain malice: because to anyone that has a habit, whatever is befitting to him in respect of that habit, has the aspect of something lovable, since it thereby becomes, in a way, connatural to him, according as custom and habit are a second nature. Now the very thing which befits a man in respect of a vicious habit, is something that excludes a spiritual good: the result being that a man chooses a spiritual evil, that he may obtain possession of what befits him in respect of that habit: and this is to sin through certain malice.
Wherefore it is evident that whoever sins through habit, sins through certain malice.
Reply Obj. 1: Venial sin does not exclude spiritual good, consisting in the grace of G.o.d or charity. Wherefore it is an evil, not simply, but in a relative sense: and for that reason the habit thereof is not a simple but a relative evil.
Reply Obj. 2: Acts proceeding from habits are of like species as the acts from which those habits were formed: but they differ from them as perfect from imperfect. Such is the difference between sin committed through certain malice and sin committed through pa.s.sion.
Reply Obj. 3: He that sins through habit is always glad for what he does through habit, as long as he uses the habit. But since he is able not to use the habit, and to think of something else, by means of his reason, which is not altogether corrupted, it may happen that while not using the habit he is sorry for what he has done through the habit. And so it often happens that such a man is sorry for his sin not because sin in itself is displeasing to him, but on account of his reaping some disadvantage from the sin.
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THIRD ARTICLE [I-II, Q. 78, Art. 3]
Whether One Who Sins Through Certain Malice, Sins Through Habit?