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Six Ways The Context Since I teach to seminarians,the UsesPhilosophy questionwhich is often raisedis "how is philosophy used by theology?" My answers,at first, did not Foster. Ph.D. move pastthe generalitiesthat philosophy is the in- strumentof theologyor that philosophytaught you to Yote: This paper wasfirst presentedin Venice,April, 1996 at think logically. Realizing the inadequacyof those 'he International Conferenceon Preparation for Priesthood answers,I began to study the relationship. with the support of the Wethersfield Institute. As a result,this paperaims to describein betterr detail how theology usesphilosophy. Its main con- tributionsare 1) a descriptionof the instrumentaluses of philosophy,2) the identification of the intrinsic role of philosophy as material to theology. Becauseof the focus on the theologicaluses of philosophy,I will leave aside other contributionsof philosophyto theology students,such as, helping them to understandthe modern , disciplining their thinking, stimulatingcreative thought, and providing order for a complex world. These contributions of philosophyare important, but are not unique to the- ology.

The Traditional Ways Theology UsesPhilosophy Four main uses quickly emergedas a working hypothesis:philosophy serves theology as a preamble, a tool, a bridge, and a shield.2 Theseare the more traditional ways of describing how theology uses philosophy.The list eventually grew to six. Philosophyis a preamblein thatit preparespeople for understandingthe . It is a tool in that it is usedas an instrumentto better understandthe Faith. It is a bridge in that it provides common principles where believer and nonbeliever can meet. It is a shieldin thatit can be usedto defendthe Faith against argumentsof nonbelievers3.The seconduse, as a tool, is the most commonand the most importantto articulatefor theologystudents.

As a Preamble St.Thomas says "the existenceof andother

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like truthsabout God, which canbe known by natural use in mind when he speaksof philosophyas the ,are not articlesof faith, but preambles are to handmaidor servantof theology. It is the most com_ the articles;for faith presupposesnatural knowledge, mon way that philosophyserves theology and the one evenas gracepresupposes .,,a philosophy is a most in needof .I will return to this use preamble to theology by refining conceptssuch as later. God,, substance, person, nature, justice, , and . When St. Paul beginsto preachto the Greeks, As a Bridge he can build on the considerablereflection they had Philosophy,as the reflective articulationof the given to eachof the ideasjust mentioned. In Acts 17 common questionsand experienceof mankind,natu_ Luke tells us that Paul had been disputing with the rally provides a common spot where believer and Epicureanand Stoic in (v.lg). non-believer can meet (a bridge, as it were). Among Later when he is invited to address the Atheniansin those common principles are the following: the spe_ the Areopagus, Paul quotes the third century stoic cial dignity of the humanperson and the recognition poet, Aratus. The scene paul shows St. putting a of rights, as in the UN Declaration of Human Rights; philosophicalpreamble to apologeticuse. that no man is an island and the complementaryprin_ They were to seekGod, yes grope " to for him and ciple that everyone is a unique individual; that we perhaps eventually - to find him though he is not have a natural moral knowledge that judges generos_ really far from any one of "In us. Him we live and ity as good and murder as evil; and that the reasonfor move and haveour being" as someof your own poets human action is .Add to this that none of have put itl /for we too are His offspring.', If we are us are ever completelysatisfied with our happiness in fact God's offspring, we ought not to think of and we havecommon ground to begin a discussionof as somethinglike a statueof gold or silver or God and the things of God. stone, a product of man's genius and his art. Acts This philosophicalbridge can also help the non- 17:21-29. believercross over to faith as in the caseof the young Philosophyis a naturalpreamble to faith and the St. Augustinewho,like many others,was troubledby chosenpreamble to the betterunderstanding of faith. the of evil. It was a Neoplatonicinsight that It is partly for this reason that seminariansstudy evil is a privation that helpedhim overcomethe con- philosophyfirst. For seminarians,philosophy is not tradiction betweena loving God and the reality of a preamble to their faith, but to their better under- evil. standing of the faith. Maritain suggeststhat God In 1879Aeterni Patrrs stressedphilosophy's use preparedfor the by making the Greeks the in defenseof the faith. In the presentday, however, chosenpeople just of reason, asHe hadby makingthe the use as a bridgeis more prominent. The outstand- Jewsthe chosenpeople of faith.s If so, theneven God ing exampleis Vaticanll's Pastoral Constitutionon usesphilosophy preamble as a to theology. the Church in the Modern World. Addressed to all humanity, it justifies this addresswith extendeddis_ As an Instrument cussionof the commonhopes and fearsof all people. Theology usesphilosophy as an instrumentto It would be academicmyopia to think thatgood explain and thus developthe depositof faith. The philosophyrather than the faceof Christ won hearts, developmentis organic; philosophydoes not add to but philosophydoes have its roll to play in the New revelationbut helps it to flower. St. Thomashas this Evangelizationcalled for by rheHoly Father.Its roll

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is partly as a common startingpoint as witnessedby of philosophy by theology as somethingakin to St. Paul'suse of the Stoic Poet(cited above)and the mapping. This simply means that I read through Pope's recentbook Crossing the Thresholdof Hope. theological works from the various periods (being sure to include the various types of works), all the As a Shield while noting where a use of philosophy was found The useof philosophyto defendthe faith is clear and what its characteristicswere. In doing so, I in the tradition. Due to the nature of the times, the identified two common uses which I had not yet of Leo XIII, , stressesthis articulated. use of philosophy. Speakingof Greek philosophy, Leo quotesthis statementby Clementof Alexandria: Material Use "though it does not by its approachmake the truth As the mappingproceeded, I noticeda category more powerful, it has yet been called a fit hedgeand that I had not listed nor heard discussed,i.e., that ditch for the vineyard, because it weakensthe arsu- philosophical terms were sometimesthe in ments of sophists against the which theology expresseditself.8 truth, and wards off the crafty Once considered,philosophy as tricks of those by whom the material to theology seemedrather truth is attacked."6 Anytime a philosophy obvious and logically linked to St. Thomas says that if has a true philosophy's use as a preamble. someone insight does not accept the Thosesame refined understandings authority of Scripture into then one the nature of the of man and the world that are a can still show by reason that world and the human preambleto the faith are then used nothing of the faith is contrary by theologiansto expressthe mys- to reason.T The SummaContra condition, it can be of teries of faith. Theology presup- Gentiles is an extendedexample use to posesphilosophy, as faith presup- of philosophy theology. being used to posescommon senseunderstand- defend the Faith. ing. There is no break or even Both the uses as a shield radical shift, but rather the slow and as a bridge have an apologeticcharacter as both refinementof our common understandings. are directed to the nonbeliever. As noted,Vatican II Just as the Gospel presupposesthe common emphasizesphilosophy as a bridge to all mankind. understandingsin which it will expressitself; so the_ Philosophy still functionsas a defenseagainst attack, ology presupposesphilosophy, which refines and but when the attack is not argument but slander, defendsthese common understandings.The images philosophy is not the bestdefense. When the wound of farmers,fishermen, and shepherdshave conveyed is self-inflicted, the Fedrqin€ is nor philosophy but the Gospelfrom its first preachingby Jesusof Na zareth penance. V^erj'b until the presentday. Theseimages have done so with a simplicity, clarity, and profundity that reflect their Further Exploration Divine origin. Theseimages are like sturdy but soft lumber; they are good for framing, they support the Mapping the Use of Philosophy bold truth,but they arenot meantfor detailedcarving. I thought of my effort to find the different uses As the Church preaches,explains, and defends

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the Gospel,it is ableto use(sometimes forcedto use) parisonsare often usedas theologicaltools, and by a philosophically refined understandingsof man and tool'snature once its work is doneit is setapart. peter the world. These understandingsare like hard wood Kreeft makes the following comparison to explain that is able to receive the detailed work of the why we are not able to graspthe reasonfor the ex_ carpenter'schisel. istenceof evil: just aswe cannotcommunicate all we If it is true that philosophical terms are material know to animals,so God cannotcommunicate all He as well asinstrumental for theology,then it shouldbe knowsto us.r0 Justas we cannotexplain to our dog evident by this difference: the material use should why he must get a rabies shot, so the full reality of remain in the theologicalstatement, whereas the in- God's world cannot be explainedto us. Once this strumentaluse remainsonly in the backgroundor, so ideais grasped,the homely imagecan be droppedand to speak, on the shelf. This is becausematerial cause we are left with an inkling of how much the reality is intrinsic to something;whereasinstrumental cause, of God escapesour grasp. Other examplesinclude which is a type of efficient cause,is alwaysother than distinctionssuch as substanceand accidenceor the the thing itself. analogicaluse of a tenn. Once we understandhow This does happen as, for example, when the the analogicaluse of languageallows us to use terms questionis "How asked, can we be free in heavenif in reference to God without limiting God, then the we are not able to ?". The answercomes in part referenceto the tool fades and we continue to speak from a betterunderstanding of freedom,one that shows about the knowledge and of God. that the slaveryof sin hasnothing to do with freedom, and that the freedom to be ourselveshas nothing to Systematic Use do with sin. Insofar as philosophy has given us a There is anotheruse, akin to instrumentaluse, better understandingof freedom, it is now incoqpo- yet differentenough to deserveits own category.il It rated as the matter in which the faith is expressed. occurswhen an entirephilosophical system is adopted Thus, it remains. to providea perspectivefrom which to systematically Other examplesof philosophybeing material for do theology. It is perhapsthe most often referred-to theology could be terms such as substance,nature, usenowadays because this is theuse meant when one and person. Substance( in Greek), which has speaksof "pluralism" in philosophy. I do not know a rich tradition in ancientphilosophy, is given a tech- of a namefor this use;I will call it thesystematic use nical sense by the Church in compounds such as of philosophy. homoousios,which is used by the Council of Nicea In comparisonwith the instrumentaluse, this use (325 A.D.) to expressthe Son's completeequality is more like a workbenchthan a tool. It is the use of with theFather, or ,which is adopted a metaphysicsto provide a perspectiveand a consis- by the Fourth LateranCouncil (I215 A.D.) to express tent approachto answeringthe theologicalquestions. the real presenceof Christ in the Eucharist. Like a workbench it provides the level Surface Homoousioswas not found in the Scripturesbut was area(horizon) of the theologybeing done; it purs the consciouslychosen to clarify themeaning of the Scrip- systemin systematictheology. tures.e It remainsin our Creed. Anytime a philosophyhas a true insighrinto the An exampleof the instrumentaluse of philoso- natureof the world and the humancondition, it can phy will showthat, unlike a materialuse, instrumental be of use to theology. Occasionallythere comes a use is extrinsicto the theologicalstatement. Com- radicallynew insightthat opens up realityfor philoso-

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phers the way aerial photographyand then satellite who seek a foundation are naive or frightened or photographyopened new possibilitiesfor map mak- schemingto keep othersin subjection. The valuable ers. insights of the postmodernsregarding the effect of Although this has long been the case 1e.g., historicalcontext, the impact of cultureand language, Augustine'spersonal discovery of ), it and the subjectiveaspect of all our knowing, strouta is especiallyin moderntimes that such new perspec- chastenour theology. Yet, the hiddenpremises of the tives have been sought out. Some examples are: postmodernphilosophers about God and man, lead Kantianphilosophy, , Marxist theory,phe- them to extremeconclusions and show them not to be nomenology,, processthought, and postmodernbut ultramodern. They felt themselves feministphilosophy. While philosophy is legitimately post modernbecause they no longer soughta founda_ a sourceof new insights,there is a high risk of dis_ tion for knowledge as had Descartes,Locke, Kant, torting the Gospel. This effect etc.. They show themselves, is evident in . Some dis- however, the children of modern tortion is caused by the thought by acceptingthe modern Neoplatonism of , the Legitimatepluralism reductionsof God to man, of man Averroism of , stemsfrom the depth to beast, and of knowledge to aswell asby the processphiloso- sensation. Given theseassump- phy of some contemporary of being that is never theo- tions their denial of objective logians. exhaustedby our mth isffievitable outcomeof The currentadvocacy ofplu- modernphilosophy. ralism in philosophy rese&rches. (and,there- To sumup, the two charac- fore, also in theology)contains a teristicsof the systematicuse of trap about which new theologians philosophy (which provides a should be warned. The pluralism which is appropri- workbench as it were) are: 1) it uses a metaphysical ate to philosophy and which finds support in the systemto provide a certainperspective for theology, documentsof Vatican II is not basedon the impos- 2) it provides the principles for a consistentset of sibility of truth bur the impossiblerichness of truth. answers to theological questions. The Scriptures, Legitimate pluralism stemsfrom the depth of being however, are not neutral in regard to certain meta- that is never exhaustedby our researches.We will physical positions and it is the job of the theologian never say all there is aboutlove or friendship,but it to use one that is compatiblewith the Gospeland the is true to say that we needfriends. The richnessof job of the magisteriumto ultimarelyjudge this. being always leavesus with somethingmore to ex- plore. Our human nature makes misunderstanding Detailing the Instrumental Use possiblebut doesnot makeunderstanding impossible. The most common way for theologiansto de- On the other hand, I warn seminariansabout a scribetheir use of philosophyis as an instrument. It pluralism based on the postmoderncritique. is found,among others, in Rahner,Lonergan, Aquinas, Postmodernscall naive any claim for transhistorical Maritain, and in Church documentslike Aeterni Patris. truth, such as to professthe samefaith as did our Of the six usesof philosophyas preamble,instru- fathers. This is so becausethere is no "foundation" ment, bridge, shield, material, and system,the com- upon which such knowledgecan be based. Those plexities of the instrumentaluse are most important

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to articulatefor the new theologian. 3. Rational Order: Rational order is the order One way to clarify the instrumental use is to that puts in a clear format. It is evident in review the specific tools used by . the contrastbetween the orderof a catechismor creed and the historical order of the . Thomas' Philosophical Tool Box Thomas' Principles of Nature is a short work 4. Logic: Logic allows for the application of (six chapters),done during his studentdays in Paris revealedprinciples to new situations. It further pro- (L252 - 1256),about the sametime as On Being and vides some, but not all, of the logic for theological . Thomasprobably composedthe work as a argumentation. primer for his fellow studentson the fundamentalsof 's .I think it is aptly described 5. : Analogies are a common and as Thomas' tool box and to review it is to view the effective tool of explanation. The parablesand alle- philosophicaldistinctions most often used by Aquinas. goriesused by Jesusin the gospelare a type of anal- It is a good introductionto the philosophyhe usesin ogy. There are also important differences which are the Theologiae. Appended to this paper is a not easily distinguished.Philosophy categorizes and brief description of main topics in each chapter with explains the different types of . a note on how Thomas will use them in theology. You are invited to view thesefamiliar items as pos- 6. Analogical Terms: Not every analogyuses a sible tools for theology. term analogically. It is the use of a term such as "knowing" with diverse but related meanings that A Contemporary List of Philosophical Tools allows us to predicateit of both man and God mean- Another way to clarify the instrumental use is to ingfully and without equivocation. make a list of the different types. The following is my list of seventypes (categories)of philosophical 7. Models: A model, a type of large scaleanal- tools. ogy, can both explain and spur theological insight. l. Distinctions: The foremost generalcategory For example,Avery Dulles, in his well-known book is the hostof distinctionsthat reveal being by properly on the Church'2, lists five models for the Church: dividing it. Distinctionssuch as betweenthe modes institution, mystical communion,sacrament, Herald, of being, betweenperson and nature,or betweenact and servant. Each model then servesas a guide to and potencyhave all servedtheologians well. These answeringthe fundamentalquestions about the Church. are particular instancesof the next category. As with analogiesand analogicalterms, philosophy can supply not only the tool but also the explanation 2. M etaphysicalStructure: Philosophy attempts of how the tool works. to describethe mostfundamental structure of all being. As in most tool boxesthere are other items to be Put anotherway, philosophydescribes the character- sorted out. There are new insights that arise for istics common to all being save God. The most theological consideration,such as those from phe- successfulof theseefforts is still Aristotle's,i.e., his nomenology. theoryhelps us understand metaphysicalinsight that all being has four causes. the harmony between what Scripture com- The causesreveal both the internal structureof being mands and the natural good for the human person, and its most important relations. The recognitionof the harmony betweennature and

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grace is, in part, philosophical. Finally, thereare the 3. It can be usedto defendthe Gospel,especially specialmetaphors, analogies, and contraststhat help with those who do not acceptScripture. clarify. Like most tool boxes,our box still contains 4. It can articulatethe setof underlyingassump_ things whose origin and use are mysterious. tions and provide a new perspectivefor doing theol_ ogy. Conclusion 5. It providesconcepts that arematerial for theo_ I have suggestedthat the relationshipbetween logical . philosophy and theologyhas often been poorly under- 6. It provides a host of distinctions,analogies, stood. A fuller descriptionof this relationshipwould and conceptsthat areinstruments for doing theology. help studentsunderstand the theologicaltradition and do theology better in the present. As a start to a better Theology studentsneed a clear expressionof articulation, I suggesttheology uses philosophy in six how philosophy can servethem. Thus, I have sus_ ways. gested it will serve them4a preamble, a bridge,-a* 1. It preparesstudents for theology by seeking shield,and a workbench;but most of all (materiatty; as the fine hard wood in the answersto the fundamentalquestions of origin, which to incarnatethe Word and (instrumentally) as the tool with which to carve nature, and destiny, and by refining conceptssuch as the Word. * soul, justice, good, and even God. 2. It provides ground common for discussion Dr. David Foster is a Professor of Philosophy at Seton Hall betweenbelievers and nonbelievers. , South Orange, .

Notes I In my experience those who speculate on this question mental characteristicsof unity-continuity, multiplicity- concentrate onthe general relationship without considering uniqueness,contingency-dependence, and purpose-intelli- the specifics. gibility. It is the particular actualization of these four as- Both the Summaand Aeterni Patris give something very pects that needs to be understood in order to know some- similar. thing. These are commonly referred to as the four causes: This assumesthe attacksare reasonedarguments, not slan- material, formal, efficient, and final. ders. The Church's choice of homoousior seems to have de- SummaTheologiae I, q.2, a.2, ab.l pendedon the ordinary and common use of the term and not JacquesMaritain, An Introduction to Philo sophy, trans.by on any alreadyestablished technical sense. E. I. Watkin (New York: Sheedand Ward, 1962),p. 19. Peter Kreeft, Fundamentals of the Faith,(San Francisco: The citation can be found in the text of Aeterni Patris IgnatiusPress, 1988) p.57. printed as a forward to Benziger Edition of the Summa II It is akin to the instrumentaluse in that it seemsto be the Theologiae,Vol. I, p. ix. philosophicaltools takencollectively as part of a consistent Summa TheologiaeI, q.l, a.8. metaphysics. I am using here the categoriesof Aristotle's basic meta- Avery Dulles, Models of the Churclr, Doubleday & Com- physical insight, that all being, save God, has four funda pany, GardenCity, New York, 1914. See,for example,Summa Theologiae I, q.66, aa. I and 4.

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Appendix

Thomas'Principles of NatureBy Chapters

Chapter1 openswith the distinction betweenact Something can be first or claim priority either in and potency. This is the fundamental distinction for generationand time or in substanceand complete_ Thomas becauseit describesthe difference between ness. The boy is prior to the man in generationand God, who is pure act, and everything else, which time; likewise,the imperfectis prior to theperfect and always has some aspect of potency. Next is the potencyis prior to act (agentand material causeare distinction betweensubstance and accidentsthat de- prior in this sense). But accordingto substanceor scribes the two fundamentally different ways we completenessthe man is prior to the boy; likewise, the experiencethings as either existing in themselvesor perfect is prior to the imperfect and act prior to po- existingin another.This alsoprovides the distinction tency (formal and final causeare prior in this sense). betweenchanges wherein something changeswithout You would be surprisedhow often Thomasuses this becoming other than itself (accidental change) and distinctionto settlea disputebetween two things that changeswhere one thing ceasesto be and anotheris are both said to be first.r3 generated(substantial change). Thomas repeatedly Chapter 5 presentsthe order in causesof the usesthese basic distinctions in the SummaTheologiae. sametype. Each of the four causescan be considered Chapter 2 describes matter, form and privation. from the particular to the more universal actualiza- These are Aristotle's principles of nature because tion, which is to say, from the proximate to the uni- natureis that which has an inner principle of change versal. For example,the efficient causeof an animal and theseare principles the neededto explain change consideredas proximate is his parents,the intermedi- as difference and continuity rather than either exclu- ateefficient causeis, perhaps,Mother Nature,and the sively accidentalor annihilation and creation. Tho- ultimate is God. Thomas uses this to explain the mas usesthe intrinsic causesof matter and form to secondarybut real causalitythat humanbeings often describethe relation betwee4body and soul; he uses exercise. privation to describe the nature of evil. Chapter 6 discussesdegrees of samenessand Chapter3 completes the of essentialcauses differenceamong things,noting that their causesare by showing that besides material and formal causes similar and diverseaccordingly. Thomasgives four there is need for an effrcient causethat initiates the degreesof samenessstarting with the identical and action and a final cause that is the reason why the moving toward greaterdiversity. Thus there is: a) efficient causebegins to act. That agents(efficient numericalsameness, as when the samething is spo- causes)act only for an endis easierto seein voluntary ken of and pointed to; b) specificsameness, as when agents,but Thomas must explain how this also ap- two personsare comparedas human beings; c) ge_ plies to natural agents,which do not deliberatebut are neric sameness,as when horseand dog are compared directedto an end by a naturegiven them by the first as animals;d) analogicalsameness, as when the term efficient cause. For Thomas,the whole world finds healthyis saidof manand medicine. The analogical its efficient and final causein God. useof a term, which allowsa wide degreeof differ- Chapter4 explores relationsamong causes, e.g., encewhile beingin somerespect alike, is, of course, types of priority, how causesare causesto one an- crucial to Thomas' explanationof how we can talk other, andhow the final causeis the causeof causes. meaningfullyabout God.

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