The Natural Desire to See God According to St. Thomas and His Interpreters (Faith and Reason: Studies in Catholic Theology and Philosophy)

What kind of natural desire is this? How can there be a natural desire for what can only be supernaturally obtained? How can such a desire be reconciled with the gratuitousness of grace and glory? What are its implications for apologetics? These and similar questions have caused a debate to rage for centuries over the proper interpretation of the natural desire to see God. This work seeks to determine the nature of this desire and its relationship with the supernatural order through an examination of the thought of St. Thomas and some of his most prominent interpreters, including Scotus, Cajetan, Suárez, and Henri de Lubac. The natural desire to see God Natural desire according to St. Thomas St. Thomas's texts on the natural desire to see God Scotus Denis the Carthusian Can there be a natural inclination for a supernatural perfection? : Cajetan's refutation of Scotus Cajetan and obediential potency Cajetan's interpretation of the natural desire to see God Francis Sylvester of Ferrara (Ferrariensis) An eclectic recourse to Scotus : Domingo de Soto and Francisco de Toledo Medina, Báñez, Suárez, and the formation of a consensus : the natural desire to see God is not an innate inclination The formation of a consensus, part 2 : the natural desire to see God is a conditional desire Jansenius's rejection of the possibility of a state of pure nature Henri de Lubac's interpretation of the natural desire to see God Is de Lubac's interpretation compatible with St. Thomas? Why an innate appetite for the vision of God is impossible : summary of the arguments. Lawrence Feingold. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [449]-466) And Indexes.