Saturday, July 08, 2006

Q27 A2: Whether any procession in God can be called generation?

Yes. The procession of the Word in God is called generation and the Word Himself proceeding is called the Son because the Word proceeds by way of intelligible action, which is a vital operation.

He proceeds from a conjoined principle (i.e., He is begotten), by way of similitude (inasmuch as the concept of the intellect is a likeness of the object conceived) and exists in the same nature (because in God the act of understanding and His existence are the same).

The act of human understanding in ourselves is not the substance itself of the intellect; hence the word which proceeds within us by intelligible operation is not of the same nature as the source whence it proceeds; so the idea of generation cannot be properly and fully applied to it.

In our way of understanding we use the word "conception" in order to signify that in the word of our intellect is found the likeness of the thing understood, although there be no identity of nature.

But the divine act of intelligence is the very substance itself of the one who understands (Q14, A4). The Word proceeding therefore proceeds as subsisting in the same nature; and so is properly called begotten, and Son.

Scripture employs terms which denote generation of living things in order to signify the procession of the divine Wisdom, namely, conception and birth.

In the perfection itself of the divine existence are contained both the Word intelligibly proceeding and the principle of the Word, with whatever belongs to His perfection.