Page:Jewish Encyclopedia Volume 2.pdf/75

39 wisdom and can not

contradiction to the divine

God" ("Contra

ceed from

Gentiles,"

i.

pro-

Guttmann,

"

Das Verhaltniss des Thomas von Aquino

zum Judenthum und

zur Jtldischen Literatur," pp. Geyraud, "L'Antisemitisme et St. Thomas d'Aquin," pp. 40 et seq.), he did not disdain to draw upon Jewish philosophical sources. His main work, " Summa Theologian, " beti'ays a profound knowledge not only of the writings of Avicebron (Ibn Gabirol), whose name he mentions, but of all Jewish philosophical works then existing. His theodicy is modeled after that of the Jewish philosophers, and his arguments can easily be referred to Jewish sources, Thus he gives five proofs of the existence of God, three of which are directly taken from Jewish phiet seq.



losophers.

The

first

"It

runs as follows:

that there are in this world things

Now, every object which movement from another.

is

which

moved

If the

are

is

clear

moved.

receives that

motor

is

itself

moved, there must be another motor moving it, and after that yet another, Proofs and so on. But it is impossible to go of God's Existence, on indefinitely, for then there would be no first motor at all, and consequently This no movement" ("Contra Gentiles," ii. 83). proof is evidently taken from Maimonides, whose seventeenth proposition reads " All that which is moved has necessarily a motor " ("Moreh," ii. 16). Second proof: "We discern in all sensible things

a certain chain of efficient causes. We find, however, nothing which is its own efficient cause, for On the that cause would then be anterior to itself. other side, it is impossible to ascend from cause to cause indefinitely in the series of efficient causes.

There must therefore exist one self-sufficient, and that is God" ("Contra Gent." i. To this proof two Jewish sources seem to have 22). contributed: Bahya's "Duties of the Heart" (chapter on "Unity," 5) and Maimonides' "Moreh" (6th proposition, "Moreh," ii. 16)..

.

.

efficient cause,

The

third proof runs:

"We

find in nature things

which may be and may not be, since there are some who are bom and others who die they consequently can exist or not exist. But it isimpossible that such things should live forever, for there is nothing which may be as well as not be at one time. Thus if all beings need not have existed, there must have been a time in which nothing existed. But, in that case, nothing would exist now for that which does not exist can not receive life but from one who exists; there must therefore be in nature a necessarily existent being." This proof is based on Avicenna's doctrine of a necessary and possible being, and is expounded by Maimonides, from whom it is probably taken (see "Moreh," ii. 19). In order to demonstrate God's creative power,



.

.

.

Thomas

says



" If

a being participates, to a certain

an 'accident,' this accidental property must have been communicated to it by a cause which Thus iron becomes incanpossesses it essentially. Now, God is His own descent by the action of fire. power which subsists by itself. The being which subsists by itself is necessarily one" ("Summa Theol." i. 44, art. 1). The idea is expounded more degree, in

Aquinas

by Bahya in his "Duties of the Heart." " It is evident that all which exists in a says thing as an accident must be received by the thing which has the accidental property only from one which already possesses it essentially, just as we see that the heat of the boiling water is communicated to it by the fire, of which this heat is an essential. And in the same way we may prove the unity of God. Since the unity which occurs in every creature is accidental (not essential), as we have demonstrated, it must be derived from the essence of the efficient cause of all creatures " ("Duties of the Heart," on "Unity," 9). Thomas pronounces himself energetically against But as the hypothesis of the eternity of the world. this theory is attributed to Aristotle, he seeks to demonstrate that the latter did not express himself

clearly

He

7).

Although, as a Dominican friar, Aquinas was not animated by kindly feelings toward the Jews (see

3

Aquilino

THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

39

.

.



.

"The argument," categorically on this subject. said he, "which Aristotle presents to support this thesis is not properly called a demonstration, but is only a reply to the theories of those ancients who supposed that this world had a beginning and who gave only impossible proofs. There are three reasons for believing that Aristotle himself attached ."("Sumonly a relative value to this reasoning. ma Theologian," i. 45, art. 1). In this Thomas copies word for word Maimonides' "Moreh," where those .

.

reasons are given (i. 2, 15). Thomas, as a Christian, thinks it necessary to admit certain attributes which Maimonides and other Jewish peripatetics reject; but in all his reasoning on this subject the potent influence of Jewish theoHis theories on logical philosophy predominates. Providence, God's omniscience, and the angels can

be referred to Maimonides, and even his so-called original principle of individuation can easily be found in Jewish theological philosophy. Aquinas' doctrines, because of their close relationship with those of Jewish philosophy, found great favor among Jews. Judah Komano (born 1286) translated Aquinas' ideas from Latin into Hebrew under the title "Ma'amar ha-Mamschalim," together with other small treatises extracted from the " Contra Gentiles" ("Neged ha-Umot"). Eli Hobillo (1470) translated, without Hebrew title, the "Qusestiones Disputatse," "Quoestio de Anirna," his "De Animse Facultatibus," under the title "Ma'amar be-Kohot ha-Nefesh, " (edited by Jellinek) his " De Universalibus" as "Be-Inyan ha-Kolel"; "Shaalot Ma'amar

beNimza we-biMelmt."

Abraham Nehemiah

b.

Joseph (1490) translated Thomas' " Commentarii in Metaphysicam." According to Moses Almosnino, Isaac Abravanel desired to translate the "Qusestio Abravanel indeed de Spiritualibus Creaturis." seems to have been well acquainted with the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, whom he mentions in his

work "Mif'alot Elohim"

(vi.

3).

The physician

Jacob Zahalen (d. 1693) translated some extracts from the " Summa Theologise Contra Gentiles." Bibliography Guttmann, Das Verhaltniss fles Thermos v. Aquino zum Juilenthum mid zur .TUdisehen Literatur, Jellinek, Thomas mi! Aquino mder JliGBttingen, 1891 disehen Diteraiur, Leipsift.1853; Jourdain, Lf/Mgsophie Steinsclmeider, de Saint Thomas d'Aquin, Paris, 1858; Das Leben Hebr Uebers., pp. 483-485', Berlin, 1893; Werner,Jahrb. der des Heiligen Thomas; Michelin, Philnsoph.



Gflrres oLllsehaft, 1891, pp. 387-404; 1892, pp

12-25; Siegin Hilgen-

desA.T.,

v. Aquino als Ausleger fried, introduction to nis feld's Zeitschrift, 1894; Merx, in the

Thomas

Die