Question 140. Whether a greater grace can be understood to be participated by a pure creature than to be the Mother of God?

Latin (Borgnet)English

p. 198

QUAESTIO CXL. Utrum major gratia possit intelligi participari purae creaturae, quam esse matrem Dei?

Deinde quaeritur de privilegio quod est matrem Dei esse, ratione cujus etiam dicitur principaliter gratia plena beatissima Virgo. De qua quaeritur, utrum major gratia possit intelligi participari purae creaturae, quam esse matrem Dei?

Et videtur, quod sic:

1. Gratia enim immediata est post Filium Dei per naturam, et ita videtur, quod plus sit esse Filium Dei per gratiam adoptionis, quam esse matrem Dei per naturam creatam.

2. Item, Videtur quod plus sit dari alicui esse Angelum, quam esse matrem Dei: quia natura angelica est supra humanam.

3. Item, Plus est elevari in substantiam quam in accidens: fieri autem Angelum est elevari in substantiam superiorem, fieri autem matrem est elevari secundum accidens tantum: ergo major gratia conferretur beatissimae Virgini si fieret Angelus, quam quod esset mater Dei.

4. Item, Cum Spiritus sanctus sit tertia persona in Trinitate secundum ordinem naturae, et Filius secunda secundum illum modum: ergo sub illa gratia qua aliquis fuit Filius Dei Patris immediate, videtur esse illa qua aliquis fieret Spiritus sanctus: et sic post esse Filium Dei potest gratia major intelligi, quam esse matrem Dei, scilicet esse Spiritum sanctum: et ita videtur non immediata gratia beatissimae Virginis esse post gratiam Filii Dei Domini nostri Jesu Christi.

5. Item, Cum post proprietates personarum sint cujuslibet personae proprietates appropriatae, videtur quod post conjunctionem personarum proprietatum, immediatus sit proprietatum appropriatarum conjunctio quam esse matrem Dei. Et sic post fieri Deum Patrem vel Deum Filium vel Deum Spiritum sanctum, esset fieri omnipotentem, summe sapientem, summe bonum.

6. Item, Si beatissima Virgo adhuc post Christum filium purum hominem genuisset, ille esset filius Virginis et frater Dei, et illius gratia major esset gratia beatissimae Virginis quae fuit mater Dei, sed non filia virginis ¹.

QUESTION 140. Whether a greater grace can be understood to be participated by a pure creature than to be the Mother of God?

Next inquiry is made concerning the privilege which is to be the Mother of God, by reason of which the most blessed Virgin is also principally called full of grace. Concerning this it is asked whether a greater grace can be understood to be participated by a pure creature than to be the Mother of God.

And it seems that it can:

1. For the grace immediately after the Son of God by nature is to be Son of God by the grace of adoption; and thus it seems that it is more to be Son of God by the grace of adoption than to be Mother of God by created nature.

2. Likewise, it seems that it is more to be given to someone to be an Angel than to be Mother of God, because angelic nature is above human nature.

3. Likewise, it is more to be elevated into a substance than into an accident. But to become an Angel is to be elevated into a higher substance; to become a mother is to be elevated only according to an accident. Therefore a greater grace would be conferred on the most blessed Virgin if she became an Angel than that she be Mother of God.

4. Likewise, since the Holy Spirit is the third person in the Trinity according to the order of nature, and the Son is the second according to that mode, then beneath that grace by which someone was immediately Son of God the Father, there seems to be that by which someone would become the Holy Spirit. And thus after being Son of God a greater grace can be understood than being Mother of God, namely being the Holy Spirit. And thus the grace of the most blessed Virgin does not seem to be immediately after the grace of the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ.

5. Likewise, since after the properties of the persons there are the appropriated properties of each person, it seems that after the conjunction of the properties of the persons, the conjunction of appropriated properties is more immediate than being Mother of God. And thus after becoming God the Father or God the Son or God the Holy Spirit, there would be becoming omnipotent, supremely wise, supremely good.

6. Likewise, if the most blessed Virgin after Christ had still generated a son who was a pure human being, he would be son of the Virgin and brother of God, and that one’s grace would be greater than the grace of the most blessed Virgin, who was Mother of God but not daughter of the virgin ¹.

Notes

For the solution of the objections, see below after Question CXLI. (Pro solutione objectorum, vide infra post Quaest. CXLI.) ↩