Pr. - I. Prologue

I. Prologue

Here begins the treatise on the commandments according to brother Thomas Aquinas.

And first concerning charity.

Three things (See Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on John, at 10:16, ch. 10, lect. 4, n. 1416.) are necessary for man to be saved: namely knowledge of what is to be believed, knowledge of what is to be desired, and knowledge of what is to be done.

The first is taught in the Creed, where knowledge of the articles of faith is given;

the second is in the Lord’s Prayer;

the third is in the law.

Here we are concerned with there being a fourfold law: (Aquinas, Commentary on Romans, at 8:2, ch. 8, lect. 1, n. 604.)

The first is the law of nature, and that is nothing other than the light of the intellect planted in us by God, by which we know what should be done and what should be avoided. God gave this light and this law in creation. (See also Thomas Aquinas, Summa theologiae I-II, q. 91, a. 2.) But many believe that they are excused by ignorance if they do not observe this law. Against them the prophet says: many say: who will show us good things? (Ps 4:6), as if they do not know what they should do. But he replies: the light of your face, Lord, is stamped on us (Ps 4:7); that is, the light of the intellect, through which we know what should be done. For no one is ignorant that what he would not like to be done to himself he should not do to others, and similar norms. (See Tobit 4:15, Matthew 7:12, Luke 6:31; see also ST I-II.99.1, ad 3.)

Yet, though God gave man this law of nature in creation, the devil has sown in man another law on top of it, (See Matthew 13:25.) that of concupiscence. For in the first man, to the extent that the soul was subject to God, keeping the divine precepts, his flesh was also subject in all things to the soul or reason. But after the devil by his suggestion drew man away from the observance of the divine commands, his flesh likewise became disobedient to reason. (Aquinas, Summa contra Gentiles IV, ch. 52; see also Commentary on the Sentences, bk. 2, d. 33, q. 1, a. 1.) The result is that, although man may wish good according to reason, nevertheless by concupiscence he tends to the contrary. That is what the Apostle says: but I see another law in my members, fighting the law of my mind (Rom 7:23)**. Thus frequently the law of concupiscence corrupts the law of nature and the order of reason. And, therefore, the Apostle in the same place adds: captivating me in the law of sin, which is in my members. (See ST I-II.91.6; 93.3, ad 1; Commentary on Romans, at 7:23, ch. 7, lect. 4, nn. 586–88.)

Because the law of nature was destroyed by the law of concupiscence, man needed to be brought back to the works of virtue and drawn away from vice, and for that the law of Scripture was necessary. But note that man is drawn from evil and led to the good by two motives. The first is fear, for the first and strongest motive for avoiding sin is the thought of the pains of hell and of the final judgment. Therefore, the prophet says: the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord (Sir 1:16), and: the fear of the Lord drives away sin (Prov 16:6)**. Although someone who avoids sin because of fear is not yet just, nevertheless his justification begins there. (See ST II-II.19.7; 45.6, ad 3.) In this way man is drawn away from evil and led to good through the law of Moses, while those who transgressed it were punished by death. Anyone who violates the law of Moses, at the testimony of two or three, should die without any mercy (Heb 10:28).

But because that method was insufficient, (See ST I-II.98.1.2, ad 1, 2.) and the law given by Moses, which drew people from evil by fear, was insufficient in that it restrained one from doing evil but did not restrain desire, (See Peter Lombard, Sentences* bk. 3, d. 40, ch. 1 (ed. Quaracchi, bk. 2, p. 734, n. 300; Patrologia Latina [PL], vol. 192, pp. 839–40); Aquinas, In III Sent. 40.1.2; see also ST I-II.91.5; 107.1, obj. 2.)* therefore there came another way of restraining from evil and inducing people to good; that is, the way of love. Thus, there was given the law of Christ, that is, of the Gospel, which is the law of love.

A double difference (See SCG III.128.) should be noted between the law of fear and the law of love: (Aquinas, In III Sent. 40.1.4, qa. 2: ex ipso modo legislationis apparet quod lex vetus est lex timoris, lex autem nova lex amoris, “from the very mode of their law-giving it is apparent that the Old Law is a law of fear, and the New Law a law of love”; see also SCG III.116; Augustine, Against Adimantus, ch. 17, para. 2: nam haec est brevissima et apertissima differentia duorum testamentorum timor et amor, “for this is the briefest and clearest difference between the two Testaments: fear and love” (PL 42:159; Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum [CSEL], vol. 25).) First, the law of fear makes slaves of its observers, whereas the law of love makes them free. For one who acts only out of fear acts as a slave, whereas one who acts out of love acts as a son. Thus the Apostle says: where there is the Spirit of the Lord, there is freedom (2 Cor 3:17), (See Aquinas, Commentary on 2 Corinthians, at 3:17, ch. 3, lect. 3, nn. 111–12.) because such people are acting out of love like sons. The second difference is that the observers of the law of fear did not observe the law voluntarily, but the law of love is observed voluntarily. Another difference is that the first law is heavy, the second is light: (See ST I-II.107.4; In III Sent. 40.1.4, qa. 3.) for my yoke is easy and my burden light (Matt 11:30); (See Aquinas, Commentary on Matthew, at 11:30, ch. 11, lect. 3, n. 973.) and the Apostle says: you did not receive the spirit of servitude again in fear, but you received the spirit of adoption of sons (Rom 8:15)**. (See ST I-II.91.5; 107.1; see also Aquinas, Commentary on Romans, at 8:15, ch. 8, lect. 3, n. 637.)