Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Q52 A3: Whether several angels can be at the same time in the same place?

No. There are not two angels in the same place because it is impossible for two complete causes to be the causes immediately of one and the same thing.

This is evident in every class of causes: for there is one proximate form of one thing, and there is one proximate mover, although there may be several remote movers.

Nor can it be objected that several individuals may row a boat, since no one of them is a perfect mover, because no one man's strength is sufficient for moving the boat; while all together are as one mover, in so far as their united strengths all combine in producing the one movement.

Hence, since the angel is said to be in one place by the fact that his power touches the place immediately by way of a perfect container (Q52 A1), there can be but one angel in one place.