Thursday, July 27, 2006

Q31 A4: Whether an exclusive diction can be joined to the personal term?

No. Such a way of speaking is not to be taken too literally, but it should be piously expounded, whenever we find it in an authentic work because this diction "alone," properly speaking, refers to the subject, and thus it tends to exclude another Person rather than other things.

This proposition "The Father alone is God" includes two assertions--namely, that the Father is God, and that no other besides the Father is God. But this second proposition is false, for the Son is another from the Father, and He is God. Therefore this is false, The Father alone is God; and the same of the like sayings.