Saturday, June 20, 2009

Q103 A8: Whether anything can resist the order of the Divine government?

No. Nothing can resist the order of the Divine government because every inclination of anything, whether natural or voluntary, is nothing but a kind of impression from the first mover.

Nihil contranititur ordini divinae gubernationis quia omnis inclinatio alicuius rei, vel naturalis vel voluntaria, nihil est aliud quam quaedam impressio a primo movente.

From the fact that one thing opposes another, it follows that some one thing can resist the order of a particular cause: but not that order which depends on the universal cause of all things.

Ex hoc quod una res alteri contrapugnat, ostenditur quod aliquid reniti potest ordini qui est ex aliqua causa particulari: non autem ordini qui dependet a causa universali totius.

Boethius says (De Consol. iii): "There is nothing that can desire or is able to resist this sovereign good. It is this sovereign good therefore that ruleth all mightily and ordereth all sweetly," as is said (Wisdom 8) of Divine wisdom.

Dicit Boetius, in III de Consol., "non est aliquid quod summo huic bono vel velit vel possit obsistere. Est igitur summum bonum quod regit cuncta fortiter, suaviterque disponit"; ut dicitur Sap. VIII, de divina sapientia.