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Religious Orders differ from one another primarily according to the ends they have in view, but secondarily according to the works they practise. And since one thing cannot be said to be superior to another save by reason of the differences between them, it will follow that the superiority of one Religious Order to another must depend primarily upon their respective ends, secondarily upon the works they practise.
And these two grounds of comparison are not of equal value; for the comparison between them from the point of view of their respective ends is an absolute one, since an end is sought for its own sake; whereas the comparison arising from their respective works is a relative one, since works are[Pg 254] not done for their own sake but for the sake of the end to be gained.
Consequently one Religious Order is superior to another if its end is absolutely a superior one, either as being in itself a greater good, or as being of wider scope. On the supposition, however, that the ends of any two Orders are the same, then the superiority of one to the other can be gauged, not by the quantity of works they undertake, but by the proportion these bear to the end in view. Thus it is that we find introduced into the Conferences of the Fathers[492] the opinion of S. Antony, who preferred that discretion by which a man moderates all things to fasts and watchings and similar observances.
The works, then, of the active life are twofold. There is one which springs from the fulness of contemplation: teaching, for example, and preaching. Whence S. Gregory says[493]: "It is said of perfect men that on their return from contemplation: They shall pour forth the memory of Thy sweetness." And this is preferable to simple contemplation. For just as it is a greater thing to shed light than to be full of light, so is it a greater thing to spread abroad the fruits of our contemplation than merely to contemplate. And the second work of the active life is that which wholly consists in external occupation, such as giving alms, receiving guests, etc. And such works are inferior to the works of contemplation, except it be in some case of necessity.
Consequently, then, those Religious Orders are in the highest rank which are devoted to teaching and preaching. And these, too, approach most nearly to the perfection of the Episcopate; just as in other things, too, the ends of those in the first place are, as S. Denis says, close knit to the principles of those in the second place.[494] The second rank is occupied by those Orders which are devoted to contemplation. And the third with those devoted to external works.
And in each of these grades there is a certain superiority according as one Order aims at acts of a higher order than does another, though of the same class. Thus in the works of the active life it is a greater thing to redeem captives than to receive guests; in the contemplative life, too, it is a greater thing to pray than to study. There may also be a certain superiority in this that one is occupied with more of such works than another; or again, that the rules of one are better adapted to the attainment of their end than are those of another.
Some, however, maintain that the contemplative Orders are not superior to the active Orders, thus:
1. In the Canon Law[495] it is said: "Since the greater good is to be preferred to the less, so, too, the common gain is to be preferred to private gain; and in this sense teaching is rightly preferred to silence, anxious care for others to contemplation,[Pg 256] and toil to repose." But that Religious Order is the better which is directed to the attainment of the greater good. Hence it seems that Orders which are devoted to an active life are superior to those which aim solely at contemplation.
But this Decretal speaks of the active life as concerned with the salvation of souls.
2. All Religious Orders aim at the perfection of charity. But on those words in the Epistle to the Hebrews,[496] Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, the Gloss has: "There is no more perfect charity in this life than that to which the holy Martyrs attained, for they strove against sin even unto blood." But to strive unto blood belongs to the Military Religious Orders, and they lead an active life. It would seem, then, that these latter are the highest form of Religious Order.
But these Military Orders are more concerned with shedding the blood of their enemies than with shedding their own, which is the feature of the Martyrs. At the same time, there is nothing to preclude these Religious from at times winning the crown of martyrdom and thus attaining to a greater height than other Religious; just as in some cases active works are to be preferred to contemplation.
3. Lastly, the stricter an Order the more perfect it seems to be. But there is nothing to preclude active Orders from being stricter in their observance than some contemplative Orders.[Pg 257]
But strictness of observance is not that which is especially commendable in Religious life, as S. Antony has already told us, and as is also said in Isaias[497]: Is this such a fast as I have chosen, for a man to afflict his soul for a day? Strictness of observance is, however, made use of in Religious Orders for the subjection of the flesh; but if such strictness is carried out without discretion there is danger lest it should come to naught, as S. Antony says. Hence one Religious Order is not superior to another because its observances are stricter, but because its observances are directed to the end of that Order with greater discretion. Thus, for example, abstinence from food and drink, which means hunger and thirst, are more efficacious means for preserving chastity than wearing less clothing, which means cold and nakedness; more efficacious, too, than bodily labour.
[491] S. Luke x. 42.
[492] Conf., ii. 2.
[493] Hom. V., On Ezechiel.
[494] Of the Divine Names, vii.
[495] Extrav. Of Regulars and of those who pass to the Religious Orders, cap. Licet.
[496] xii. 4.
[497] lviii. 5.
Abiding in Christ, 32
Abraham in Limbo, 155
Accidents of the Holy Eucharist, 9
Active Life, the: its meaning, 170, 174, 176, 221, 229;
typified in Jacob's Vision, 231;
typified by Lia, 174, 222, 225, 234, 242, 246;
two features of the Active Life, 221, 241, 247;
in what sense it is distinct from the Contemplative Life, 220;
how less meritorious than the Contemplative Life, 240-244;
not preferable to the Contemplative Life, 233-240;
it involves less sacrifice than the Contemplative Life, 244;
in what sense it precedes the Contemplative Life, 223, 237, 245,
249-252;
how far it is necessary, 186, 221, 239, 245, 250;
contrasted with the Contemplative Life, 172, 173;
how far it is more stable than the Contemplative Life, 232;
its dangers, 136, 147, 186;
it is a burden super-imposed upon the Contemplative Life, 238;
all are not meant for it, 186, 251, 252;
it will not persist after this life, 229-232;
the Active Life of the Angels, 231;
how far the Active Life is inferior to the Contemplative, 233-240;
occasions when it must be embraced, 186, 235, 239;
the part which the Moral Virtues play in it, 191, 220-223;
it is a preparation for the Contemplative Life, 176, 177, 220, 237, 245;
prudence is requisite for it, 186, 223-226;
how far the teaching life pertains to the Active Life, 226-229, 230;
it will pass away, 177, 191, 229-232;
it is the Purgative way, 220;
Prelates and the Active Life, 236
Active Religious Orders, they are inferior to the Contemplative, 253-257
Adjure God, in what sense we are said to do so in our prayers, 148
Adoration of the Cross, 37
Adoro Te Devote, the rhythm of St. Thomas in honour of the Holy Eucharist, 112
Albert of Brescia, O.P., 18
Albert the Great, Blessed, 6
Alypius, St. Augustine's friend, 123
Ambrose, St.: on God as the cause of devotion, 57;
that the beauty of the soul depends on the Moral Virtues, 184
Andronicus on the meaning of sanctity, 49
Angels, the: how they are differentiated from men, 113, 114, 187, 206;
the knowledge of the Angels, 157, 187, 205, 208, 230;
the Beatific Vision of the Angels, 231;
the intelligence of the Angels, 187, 230;
the intercession of the Angels, 165;
their conformity to the will of God, 165, 167;
the Angelic Hierarchies, 201, 230;
the teaching of the Angels 230, 231;
the Active Life of the Angels, 231;[Pg 259]
we shall be like to the Angels, how, 230, 231;
Angels gird St. Thomas, 6
Anselm of Laudun, 25
Antony, St.: a patron against Hell-fire, 160;
on discretion, 154, 157
Areopagite. Cf. s.v. Denis the Areopagite
Aristotle: on the aptitude for virtue, 35;
on honour, 39;
that the perfection of the moral virtues lies in their mean, 43;
on Justice, 55, 221;
that "reason asks for the best things," 69;
on the need of temporal things, 89;
that "each man's life is that which he would wish to share with his friend," 170;
that "to live is to be," 170;
on action and contemplation as distinctions in the intellectual life, 171;
that life is primarily in the vegetative soul, 171;
on three kinds of lives, 175;
that knowledge has little to do with the moral virtues, 182, 221;
that every act of the intellect may be termed "consideration," 188;
that the ultimate happiness of man consists in the contemplation of the highest truth, 193;
of man's dependence on the imagination, 201;
that motion is the act of a perfect thing, 203;
on local motion as the chief of bodily motions, 204;
that delight follows upon a perfect work, 213;
on the nobility of science, 214;
that there is no pleasure contrary to that derived from thought, 217;
on application to the Contemplative Life, 217;
that the Contemplative Life is "beyond man," 218;
that prudence pertains to active happiness, 223;
that he who commits adultery to steal is more a thief than an adulterer, 223;
that prudence is the right mode of procedure in our actions, 224;
that the ends of the moral virtues are the principles of prudence, 224;
that the proof of the possession of wisdom is the power to teach, 228;
eight proofs that the Contemplative Life is superior to the Active, 234, 235;
on the better lot, 236;
that habits produce perfect acts, 251
Arius, his error regarding the Person of Christ, 161
Athanasius, St., on the chanting of the Psalms, 123
Attention: mental, 225;
in prayer, 125-133;
three kinds of, 128, 129, 133
Attitudes in prayer, 150, 151
Augustine, St.: St. Thomas's kinship with him in doctrine, 17-19;
they are seen in a vision together, 18;
the Breviary Hymn to, 26;
definition of religion, 28, 29, 30;
on Latvia, 30;
on Eusebeia, 31;
on abiding in Christ, 32;
on the desire of God, 32;
on prayer for wealth, 33;
on sacrifice, 32, 46;
of true worship, 40;
of idolatry, 46;
on the value of external acts in prayer, 46;
of virginity, 50;
on "God alone," 54, 92, 108, 142, 197, 189, 203, 219;
on the will and the understanding, 57;
on true grief, 65;
prayer defined, 69;
why we should pray, 75;
on the prayers of the Church, 76;
when we pray we are God's beggars, 79, 110;
of those who say "He knows already; why then pray?" 80;
of the knowledge the dead have of our affairs, 82;
on shrinking from death, 83;
on avoidance of Hell, 86;
of the Beatific Vision, 87, 229;
a prayer for continence, 87;
and for the knowledge of Holy Scripture, 88;
it is lawful to pray for what it is lawful to desire, 89;
on prayer for "sufficiency of life," 89;[Pg 260]
on "seeking first the Kingdom of God," 90;
on prayer "without ceasing," 91;
of the prayer of desire, 92, 134;
his prayer for deliverance from toothache, 92;
why temporal favours are sometimes not granted, 94, 95;
on prayer for others, 96;
that we cannot here distinguish between the predestinate and the reprobate, 97;
on the imprecations in Holy Scripture, 100, 101;
on prayer for the wicked, 101;
on the Lord's Prayer, that it is the most perfect form of prayer, 102;
on "our Daily Bread," 103, 109;
"hallowed be Thy Name," 104;
"Thy kingdom come," 105;
"Thy will be done," 105;
"forgive us our trespasses," 110, 111;
of the Lord's Prayer and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, 106;
of the two versions of the Lord's Prayer in St. Matthew and St. Luke, 107;
on true righteousness, 111;
on exterior religion, 119;
on the chanting of the Psalter, 123;
on the prayer of the heart, 124;
on distractions, 129-131;
on prayer at definite times, 134;
on the brief prayers of the hermits of old, 134;
on "much speaking" in prayer, 135;
that God urges us to pray, 138, 139;
that prayer is a gift of God, 139;
on unheard prayers, 140, 142;
on prayers heard in anger, 142, 143;
in what sense the prayers of sinners are heard, 143, 144;
on the attitudes to be adopted in and of the time and place for prayer, 127, 150, 151;
of the knowledge of the Saints in Limbo, 154-156;
why the prayers of the Saints are heard, 167;
the Contemplative contrasted with the Active Life, 172-174, 186;
the three "lives," 175, 185;
the "mixed" life, 226;
of the final possession and vision of God, 176, 177, 191, 203;
on the use of leisure, 186;
the claims of the two lives, the Active and the Contemplative, 186, 248;
of the Active Life, 236;
of the Active Life as opposed to the Contemplative, 238;
that every operation of the intellect may be termed "thought," 188;
of the derivation of the term "speculation," 189;
of our present perfection, 190, 191;
on the pleasures of sense, 185;
that the contemplation of God is the goal of all our acts, 193;
that we must use created things as stepping-stones to the things that abide for ever, 193;
on Mary's "better part," 196, 197;
on Martha and Mary, 234, 235, 248;
that in contemplation we do not see God Himself, 199;
the greater the danger in the battle, the greater the joy in the triumph, 212;
on the transitory nature of our present contemplation, 218;
on the beauty of the teaching life, 227;
how the moral virtues remain after death, 230;
of the repose of Contemplation, 230, 241;
of his desire for solitude, yet he feels that he must work for others, 239;
he dare hope for the Contemplative Life, 240;
of the higher reason, 249
