Tuesday, August 08, 2006

Q35 A1: Whether image in God is said personally?

Yes. The Image in God is a relation and is thus a personal name because for a true image it is required that one proceeds from another like to it in species or at least in specific sign (and whatever imports procession or origin in God, belongs to the persons).

In corporeal things the specific sign consists chiefly in the figure. For we see that the species of different animals are of different figures but not of different colors. Hence if the color of anything is depicted on a wall, this is not called an image unless the figure is likewise depicted.

Further, neither the similitude of species or of figure is enough for an image, which requires also the idea of origin; because, as Augustine says (QQ. lxxxiii, qu. 74): "One egg is not the image of another, because it is not derived from it."

Image, properly speaking, means whatever proceeds forth in likeness to another.

That to the likeness of which anything proceeds, is properly speaking called the exemplar.