FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   499   500   501   502   503   504   505   506   507   508   509   510   511   512   513   514   515   516   517   518   519   520   521   522   523  
524   525   526   527   528   529   530   531   532   533   534   535   536   537   538   539   540   541   542   543   544   545   546   547   548   >>   >|  
of all the virtues. Therefore every virtue is a moral virtue. Obj. 2: Further, the Philosopher says (Ethic. ii, 6) that moral virtue is "a habit of choosing the rational mean." But every virtue is a habit of choosing: since the acts of any virtue can be done from choice. And, moreover, every virtue consists in following the rational mean in some way, as we shall explain further on (Q. 64, AA. 1, 2, 3). Therefore every virtue is a moral virtue. Obj. 3: Further, Cicero says (De Invent. Rhet. ii) that "virtue is a habit like a second nature, in accord with reason." But since every human virtue is directed to man's good, it must be in accord with reason: since man's good "consists in that which agrees with his reason," as Dionysius states (Div. Nom. iv). Therefore every virtue is a moral virtue. _On the contrary,_ The Philosopher [says] (Ethic. i, 13): "When we speak of a man's morals, we do not say that he is wise or intelligent, but that he is gentle or sober." Accordingly, then, wisdom and understanding are not moral virtues: and yet they are virtues, as stated above (Q. 57, A. 2). Therefore not every virtue is a moral virtue. _I answer that,_ In order to answer this question clearly, we must consider the meaning of the Latin word _mos;_ for thus we shall be able to discover what a _moral_ virtue is. Now _mos_ has a twofold meaning. For sometimes it means custom, in which sense we read (Acts 15:1): "Except you be circumcised after the manner (_morem_) of Moses, you cannot be saved." Sometimes it means a natural or quasi-natural inclination to do some particular action, in which sense the word is applied to dumb animals. Thus we read (2 Macc. 1:2) that "rushing violently upon the enemy, like lions [*Leonum more, i.e. as lions are in the habit of doing], they slew them": and the word is used in the same sense in Ps. 67:7, where we read: "Who maketh men of one manner (_moris_) to dwell in a house." For both these significations there is but one word in Latin; but in the Greek there is a distinct word for each, for the word _ethos_is written sometimes with a long, and sometimes a short _e._ Now _moral_ virtue is so called from _mos_ in the sense of a natural or quasi-natural inclination to do some particular action. And the other meaning of _mos,_ i.e. _custom,_ is akin to this: because custom becomes a second nature, and produces an inclination similar to a natural one. But it is evident that inclination to an a
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   499   500   501   502   503   504   505   506   507   508   509   510   511   512   513   514   515   516   517   518   519   520   521   522   523  
524   525   526   527   528   529   530   531   532   533   534   535   536   537   538   539   540   541   542   543   544   545   546   547   548   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

virtue

 

natural

 
inclination
 

Therefore

 
virtues
 

reason

 

meaning

 
custom
 
manner
 

action


answer
 

consists

 

choosing

 
rational
 

Philosopher

 

nature

 

accord

 

Further

 

applied

 

called


animals

 

similar

 

evident

 

circumcised

 

produces

 
Sometimes
 

maketh

 
significations
 

rushing

 
violently

Leonum

 

distinct

 

written

 

understanding

 

directed

 

agrees

 
Invent
 
Dionysius
 
states
 

contrary


Cicero

 
choice
 

explain

 

question

 
twofold
 

discover

 

intelligent

 

gentle

 

morals

 
Accordingly