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"They Will See God" : A Thomistic Exposition of Happiness and Desire

del Guidice, Fred

Abstract Details

2022, Master of Arts in Catholic Studies, Athenaeum of Ohio, School of Theology.
The goal of the paper is to explore St. Thomas Aquinas’ theology of happiness and its relationship to the natural desire to see God. More specifically, it seeks to address whether this natural desire to see God is innate or elicited. There are two different schools of thought on this matter. Some scholars, such as Bl. John Duns Scotus and Henri Cardinal de Lubac maintain that the natural desire to see God is an innate and unconscious desire that is separate from knowledge. On the other hand, many Thomists such as Cajetan, Suarez, John of St. Thomas, Garrigou-Lagrange, and Jacques Maritain contend that the natural desire to see God is a naturally elicited movement of the will that stems from knowledge. Both of these positions have different implications regarding the human ability to love God and to attain complete happiness. Dr. Lawrence Feingold, a Thomistic theologian and prolific author, has written extensively about this in one of his books: The Natural Desire to See God According to St. Thomas Aquinas and His Interpreters. Utilizing his book, this paper will provide a summary of St. Thomas’ theology of happiness, examine these two different interpretations of Aquinas’ texts, and then suggest some conclusions from this research.
Bradford Manderfield, Ph.D. (Advisor)
32 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • del Guidice, F. (2022). "They Will See God" : A Thomistic Exposition of Happiness and Desire [Master's thesis, Athenaeum of Ohio]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=athe1661607934422528

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • del Guidice, Fred. "They Will See God" : A Thomistic Exposition of Happiness and Desire. 2022. Athenaeum of Ohio, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=athe1661607934422528.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • del Guidice, Fred. ""They Will See God" : A Thomistic Exposition of Happiness and Desire." Master's thesis, Athenaeum of Ohio, 2022. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=athe1661607934422528

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)