De modo studendi…

Thomas Aquinas to Brother John:

EPISTOLA DE MODO STUDENDI

A LETTER ON THE METHOD OF STUDY

Quia quaesisti a me, in Christo mihi carissime Ioannes, qualiter te studere oporteat in thesauro scientiae acquirendo, tale a me tibi traditur consilium: ut per rivulos, non statim in mare, eligas introire, quia per faciliora ad difficiliora oportet devenire. Haec est ergo monitio mea et instructio tua. Tardiloquum te esse iubeo et tarde ad locutorium accedentem; conscientiae puritatem amplectere. Orationi vacare non desinas; cellam frequenter diligas si vis in cellam vinariam introduci. Omnibus te amabilem exhibe; nihil quaere penitus de factis aliorum; nemini te multum familiarem ostendas, quia nimia familiaritas parit contemptum et subtractionis a studio materiam subministrat; de verbis et factis saecularium nullatenus te intromittas; discursus super omnia fugias; sanctorum et bonorum imitari vestigia non omittas; non respicias a quo audias, sed quidquid boni dicatur, memoriae recommenda; ea quae legis et audis, fac ut intelligas; de dubiis te certifica; et quidquid poteris in armariolo mentis reponere satage, sicut cupiens vas implere; altiora te ne quaesieris. Illa sequens vestigia, frondes et fructus in vinea Domini Sabaoth utiles, quandiu vitam habueris, proferes et produces. Haec si sectatus fueris, ad id attingere poteris, quod affectas.

Because you have asked me, John, my dearest friend in Christ, how you should study to amass the treasure of knowledge, such is the advice I give to you. You should choose to enter not immediately into the ocean depths, but rather through small streams, for one should reach more difficult matters by going through the easier ones first. This is, therefore, my admonition and your instruction. I bid you be slow to speak and slow to approach the chat-room1. Embrace purity of conscience. Do not fail to have time for prayer. You should frequently choose your own room if you wish to be led into the wine cellar. Present yourself as amiable to all. Do not look for deep, hidden meanings in the deeds of others. To no one should you show yourself to be too familiar, because too much familiarity gives birth to contempt and provides from its eagerness the raw material for backsliding. You should in no way involve yourself concerning the words and deeds of worldly people. Above all else you should flee from common conversation. You should not fail to imitate the steps of the saints and all good people. You should not consider the source from which you hear something, but whatever good is spoken, commit it to memory. Those things that you read and hear, make sure that you understand them. Make yourself certain about doubtful matters, and make it your business to shelve in the bookcase of your mind whatever you can, as if desiring to fill a vase. Do not seek the matters that are above you. Following those well-known paths you will bring forth and produce, as long as you have life, branches and fruits useful in the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts. If you eagerly follow these points, you will be able to attain that which you are striving after.

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1 I have for the most part kept this a fairly literal translation, attempting where reasonable to keep if not precise word order, at least the order of clause arrangement as close as possible to the original. My choice of “chat-room” for locutorium, however may seem a bit too colloquial, but there was a reason for this decision. Aquinas’ metaphors are quite vivid and, for the most part, come across well into modern expression without significant change. The word locutorium refers to a parlor, or place to gather for conversation, so “chat-room” is not altogether inappropriate. Of course, it also suggests the modern connotation of the Internet chat-room, and while Aquinas certainly could not have intended this, I think the modern reader who has this in mind will receive in a more personal way the admonition that Aquinas intended. -- Steve Perkins, 2004

Wind's up…

I recently acquired a complete Latin text of Summa contra gentiles––Is the Internet Archive the best website… or the best website ever?––and have decided to post only significant excerpts or doctrines and my own glosses from my reading of SCG. I will refer to the Latin myself in study. I need to be moving more quickly through SCG and the blog formatting is too tedious.

Henceforth my plan is to post readings from Saints and Augustine only when they are related to feast days or the Mass when the Spirit moves me. I will continue to post German "lessons" for myself, but that will be catch as catch can. I also want to keep posting Albert's De adhaerendo Deo, but, again, will do so as time permits.

In addition, I have decided to adopt a new gym regimen which requires me to be in the gym only two days a week: Monday and Thursday or Tuesday and Friday. I will train my grip on Wednesdays and do some core/ab and aerobic exercise on off days, which may entail using aerobic equipment at the gym if I feel like it. I recently devised my own mace bell (a design which I will tweak once I find longer sections of slightly thicker pipe), and just last night I figured out how to make my own "Gut Wrench" device from the mace as well, so training my core is a breeze now. I've also resolved to start working out in the mornings. I think this will help me get up and sleep earlier, partially because I am obliged to wake up to hit the weights and partially because not working out at night will make me less agitated or "wired" at night.

In other words, enough farting around.

I went on a wonderful retreat with old friends/parishioners this weekend and my Lenten focus got a boost. I also read Sertillanges's splendid The Intellectual Life over the weekend and feel a new resolve to live a more disciplined, more organized, which is to say a humbler life towards my intellectual vocation [my latest readings, btw]. Thus have I weeded out a few more books that are more extraneous than not to my research interests and am taking steps to increase greatly my engagement of Aquinas (and other auctores) in Latin. Interesting what one must do to make up for a relatively poor education, and what one can do based on a relatively excellent education.

Stay tuned.

Sentire cum Ecclesia: Albertus Magnus: "De Adhaerendo Deo"

Chapter 4: How man's activity should be purely in the intellect and not in the senses [Qualiter operatio humana debeat esse in solo intellectu, et non in sensibus?]

Happy therefore is the person who by continual removal of fantasies and images [per abstersionem continuam phantasmatum et imaginum], by turning within, and raising the mind to God, finally manages to dispense with the products of the imagination [obliviscitur phantasmatum], and by so doing works within [operatur interius], nakedly and simply, and with a pure understanding and will [nudo ac simplici ac puro intellectu et affectu], on the simplest of all objects, God [circa objectum simplicissimum Deum]. So eliminate from your mind all fantasies, objects, images and shapes of all things other than God [Omnia igitur phantasmata, species, imagines, ac formas rerum omnium citra Deum a mente rejicias], so that, with just naked understanding, intent and will, your practice will be concerned with God himself within you. For this is the end of all spiritual exercises - to turn the mind to the Lord God and rest in him with a completely pure understanding and a completely devoted will, without the entanglements and fantasies of the imagination [Nempe finis omnium exercitiorum hic est, scilicet intendere et quiescere in Domino Deo intra te per purissimum intellectum, et devotissimum affectum sine phantasmatibus et implicationibus].

This sort of exercise is not practised by fleshly organs nor by the exterior senses, but by that by which one is indeed a man [per quod quis homo est]. For a man is precisely understanding and will [homo vero quis est intellectu et affectu] {!}. For that reason, in so far as a man is still playing with the products of the imagination and the senses, and holds to them, it is obvious that he has not yet emerged from the motivation and limitations of his animal nature [nondum exisse motus et limites bestialitatis suae], that is of that which he shares in common with the animals. For these know and feel objects by means of recognised shapes and sense impressions and no more, since they do not possess the higher powers of the soul. But it is different with man, who is created in the image and likeness of God with understanding, will, and free choice [secundum intellectum et affectum et liberum arbitrium, ad Dei imaginem et similitudinem creato], through which he should be directly, purely and nakedly impressed and united with God, and firmly adhere to him [pure et nude imprimi, et uniri, firmiterque inhaerere] {Notice the use of inhaerare…. I wonder if there was any significant difference between adhaerare and inhaerare in Albert's time.}.

For this reason the Devil tries eagerly and with all his power to hinder this practice so far as he can, being envious of this in man, since it is a sort of prelude and initiation of eternal life [quodammodo praeambulum et initium vitae aeternae]. So he is always trying to draw man's mind away from the Lord God, now by temptations or passions, now by superfluous worries and pointless cares [nunc sollicitudine superflua et cura indiscreta], now by restlessness and distracting conversation and senseless curiosity [nunc turbatione, et conversatione dissoluta, curiositateque irrationabili], now by the study of subtle books [nunc per studia librorum subtilium], irrelevant discussion, gossip and news [colloquia aliena, rumores et novitatem] {Facebook! Yahoo! Google!}, now by hardships, now by opposition, etc. Such matters may seem trivial enough and hardly sinful [etsi nonnumquam levia et tamquam nulla videantur peccata], but they are a great hindrance to this holy exercise and practice [tamen magna sunt impedimenta hujus sancti exercitii et operis]. {Note the pragmatic valuation: even what is not "sinful" is still not glory, and therefore to be "hated".} Therefore, even if they may appear useful and necessary, they should be rejected, whether great or small, as harmful and dangerous, and put out of our minds.

Above all therefore it is necessary that things heard, seen, done and said, and other such things, must be received without adding things from the imagination, without mental associations and without emotional involvement [sine phantasmatibus, imaginibus et occupationibus], and one should not let past or future associations, implications or constructs of the imagination form and grow [nec etiam ex consequenti vel antea vel tunc super hoc phantasmata et implicationes formentur et nutriantur]. For when constructs of the imagination are not allowed to enter the memory and mind, a man is not hindered, whether he be engaged in prayer, meditation, or reciting psalms, or in any other practice or spiritual exercise, nor will they recur again.

So commit yourself confidently and without hesitation, all that you are, and everything else, individually and in general, to the unfailing and totally reliable providence of God, in silence and in peace, and he will fight for you {cf. Sir 4:28}. He will liberate you and comfort you more fully, more effectively and more satisfactorily than if you were to dream about it all the time, day and night, and were to cast around frantically all over the place with the futile and confused thoughts of your mind in bondage, nor will you wear out your mind and body, wasting your time, and stupidly and pointlessly exhausting your strength. So accept everything, separately and in general, wherever it comes from and whatever its origin, in silence and peace, and with an equal mind, as coming to you from a father's hand and his divine providence [Cuncta ergo et singula, undecumque et qualitercumque occurrentia ortum habeant, sic accipe cum taciturnitate et tranquillitate aequanimiter, quemadmodum de manu paternae divinaeque providentiae tibi venirent]. So render your imagination bare of the images of all physical things as is appropriate to your state and profession, so that you can cling to him with a bare and undivided mind [nuda mente et sincere inhaereas ei], as you have so often and so completely vowed to do, without anything whatever being able to come between your soul and him, so that you can pass purely and unwaveringly from the wounds of his humanity into the light of his divinity [pure fixeque fluere possis a vulneribus humanitatis in lumen suae divinitatis].