R o u t le d g (cid:90)(cid:90)(cid:90)(cid:17)(cid:85)(cid:82)(cid:88)(cid:87)(cid:79)(cid:72)(cid:71)(cid:74)(cid:72)(cid:17)(cid:70)(cid:82)(cid:80) e DUNS SCOTUS ON DIVINE LOVE The medieval philosopher and theologian John Duns Scotus (1266- 1308) was one of the great thinkers of Western intellectual culture, exerting a considerable influence over many centuries. He had a genius for original and subtle philosophical analysis, with the motive behind his philosophical method being his faith. His texts are famous not only for their complexity, but also for their brilliance, their systematic precision, and the profound faith revealed. The texts presented in this new commentary show that Scotus' thought is not moved by a love for the abstract or technical, but that a high level of abstraction and technicality was needed for his precise conceptual analysis of Christian faith. Presenting a selection of nine fundamental theological texts of Duns Scotus, some translated into English for the first time, this book provides detailed commentary on each text to reveal Scotus' conception of divine goodness and the nature of the human response to that goodness. Following an introduction which includes an overview of Scotus' life and works, the editors highlight Scotus' theological insights, many of which are explored here for the first time, and shed new light on topics which were, and still are, hotly discussed. Scotus is seen to be the first theologian in the history of Christian thought who succeeds in developing a consistent conceptual framework for the conviction that both God and human beings are essentially free. Offering unique insights into Scotus' theological writings and faith, and a particular contribution to contemporary debate on Scotus' ethics, this book contributes to a clearer understanding of the whole of Scotus' thought. Duns Scotus on Divine Love Texts and Commentary on Goodness and Freedom, God and Humans Edited by A. VOS H. VELDHUIS E. DEKKER N.W. DEN BOK A.J. BECK Utrecht University First published 2003 by Ashgate Publishing Published 2017 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, 0X14 4RN 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, USA Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business Copyright © A. Vos, H. Veldhuis, E. Dekker, N.W. den Bok, A.J. Beck, 2003 The editors have asserted their moral right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the editors of this work. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Duns Scotus, John, ca. 1266-1308 Duns Scotus on divine love : texts and commentary on goodness and freedom, God and humans l.Duns Scotus, John, ca. 1266-1308-Criticism and interpretation 2.God - Love I.Title II.Vos,Antonie 231.6 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Duns Scotus, John ca. 1266-1308. [Selections. English & Latin. 2003] Duns Scotus on divine love : texts and commentary on goodness and freedom, God and humans / edited by A. Vos ... [et al.], p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-7546-3590-2 (alk. paper) 1. Theology, Doctrinal. 2. Love-Religious aspects-Christianity. 3. Free will and Determinism-Religious aspects-Christianity. I. Vos, A. (Antonie) II. Title. BT78.D8613 2003 230\2-dc21 2002038379 ISBN 13: 978-0-7546-3590-1 (hbk) Contents Preface ix Acknowledgements X Introduction 1 1 Necessity and contingency in scientific theology 13 Text (A): Lectura, Prologus, Pars 3 §§ 107-121 - Is theology a science? 14 Text (B): Lectura, Prologus, Pars 4 § 172 - The object of theology 22 Commentary: Theology as a science 24 Introduction: science and its criteria 24 Theology as a practical science 25 Aristotle's criteria and Duns' distinction between three kinds of theology 27 True science? Act and object of knowledge 29 The subject of theology 32 Implicative necessity as a source of science 35 Subordinating or subordinate? 37 2 Necessity and contingency in theological ethics 41 Text (A): Ordinatio III 28 - Love of God and neighbor 42 Commentary: Love of God and neighbor 54 Introduction: love 54 1 The ethics of Scotus 54 2 Are Duns Scotus' ethics voluntaristic? The example of Williams 58 3 Loving God and loving our neighbor 64 4 A clarification 70 5 Who is my neighbor? 74 V Text (B): Ordinatio III 29 - Love of God and self 78 Commentary: Love of God and self 82 Introduction: self-love 82 Self-love as a reflective act 82 Self-love as a kind of neighbor-love 83 Proper self-love 84 Nature and grace: loving me and my neighbor in God 85 3 The act of love and eternal life 89 Text: Lectura I 17, §§ 69-103 - On the disposition of love 90 Commentary: The act of love and eternal life 108 Introduction: merit 108 1 The context of discussion 109 2 The analysis of the meritorious act 112 3 Voluntarism and the necessity of love 119 4 Scotian sense and some modern sensibilities 125 4 Divine election and merit 131 Text (A): Lectura I 40 - Can an elect be condemned? 132 Commentary: Can an elect be condemned? 138 Introduction: human fixation or divine failure? 138 Freedom on two sides 139 The logic of the divided and composite sense 140 Is the past necessary? 142 Is God's will infallible? 144 Text (B): Lectura I 41 - Are election or reprobation deserved? 146 Commentary: Are election or reprobation deserved? 156 Introduction: merit and election 156 Four positions discussed 157 Scotus' personal position 160 Election, acceptance and free will 162 vi 5 The goodness of God's will vindicated 165 Text (A): Ordinatio I 46 - Is God's will always fulfilled? 166 Commentary: Is God's will always fulfilled? 170 Introduction: God's will and human reality 170 The fulfilment of God's will 170 Election between intention and execution 172 Text (B): Ordinatio I 47 - Is divine permission an act of will? 178 Commentary: God's permission 184 Introduction: permission 184 Two kinds of positive acts of will 184 Negation of an act of will, reflective act 187 Defining permission 188 Permission and reprobation: the example of Judas 189 6 An infinite act of love 193 Text: Lectura I 10 - Is the Holy Spirit produced by an act of will? 194 Commentary: An infinite act of love 208 Introduction: Love of God 208 1 One God, two processions, three 'personae' 208 2 Contingency, necessity and infinity 211 3 Infinite love 216 4 Scotus' argument and modern issues 218 Epilogue 223 Bibliography 226 Index 232 vii Preface The Research Group John Duns Scotus first published its work for an English speaking audience in Contingency and Freedom in 1994. This study contains a translation of and commentary on Scotus' Lectura I 39, a central text on contingency and necessity. The present volume aims to unfold Scotus' application of the insights formulated in Lectura I 39 in various important areas. Here, we again use the formula of providing the Latin original alongside an English translation, accompanied by a detailed commentary. This book has benefited from the various comments and suggestions of Dr. Richard Cross, who read the manuscript on behalf of Ashgate Publishing, and from the philological improvements of Todd Buras, graduate student at Yale Divinity School, and Christopher Zito, graduate student at the Evangelical Theological Faculty, Leuven. Of course, we are responsible for any remaining inaccuracies in our language. Research Group John Duns Scotus, A. Vos H. Veldhuis E. Dekker N.W. den Bok A.J. Beck ix