- Title Pages
- <i>Previous Publication</i>
- <i>Abbreviations</i>
- WISDOM, LAW, AND VIRTUE
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Wisdom and Human Life: the Natural and the Supernatural
- Chapter 2 Wisdom as Foundational Ethical Theory in St. Thomas Aquinas
- Chapter 3 St. Thomas, Metaphysics, and Human Dignity
- Chapter 4 Truth and Happiness
- Chapter 5 Antimodern, Ultramodern, Postmodern: A Plea For The Perennial
- Chapter 6 Is Thomas Aquinas a Spiritual Hedonist?
- Chapter 7 Is Liberty the Criterion in Morals?
- Chapter 8 The Real Distinction Between Intellect and Will
- Chapter 9 ST. Thomas, James Keenan, and the Will
- Chapter 10 ST. Thomas and the Causes of Free Choice
- Chapter 11 St. Thomas and the First Cause of Moral Evil
- Chapter 12 St. Thomas, Our Natural Lights, and the Moral Order
- Chapter 13 Jacques Maritain and the Philosophy of Cooperation
- Chapter 14 Natural Law and the First Act of Freedom: Maritain Revisited
- Chapter 15 Jean Porter on Natural Law: Thomistic Notes
- Chapter 16 ST. Thomas, the Common Good, and the Love of Persons
- Chapter 17 St. Thomas, John Finnis, and the Political Good
- Chapter 18 Thomas Aquinas, Gerard Bradley, and the Death Penalty
- Chapter 19 Death in the Setting of Divine Wisdom: The Doctrine of St. Thomas Aquinas
- Chapter 20 Suicide as a Belligerent Tactic: Thomistic Reflections
- Chapter 21 Jacques Maritain, St. Thomas, and the Philosophy of Religion
- Chapter 22 Philosophy and Spirituality: Cultivating a Virtue
- Chapter 23 St. Thomas and the Ontology of Prayer
- Chapter 24 ST. Thomas, Lying, and Venial Sin
- Chapter 25 Communion with the Tradition: For the Believer Who Is a Philosopher
- Chapter 26 “Obiectum”: Notes on the Invention of a Word
- Chapter 27 St. Thomas and Moral Taxonomy
- Bibliography
- Index
- Moral Philosophy and Moral Theology Series
ST. Thomas, Lying, and Venial Sin
ST. Thomas, Lying, and Venial Sin
- Chapter:
- (p.374) Chapter 24 ST. Thomas, Lying, and Venial Sin
- Source:
- Wisdom, Law, and Virtue
- Author(s):
Lawrence Dewan
- Publisher:
- Fordham University Press
Although Thomas Aquinas, following St. Augustine's lead, held that all lying is bad, what he called a “sin [peccatum],” he nevertheless believed that a harmless lie to save a life is only a venial sin, not a mortal sin. Still, some interpreters of Thomas would like to eliminate even this stricture, and to do so, they sometimes attempt to redefine the event of which Thomas is speaking. In so doing, they tend to undermine our identification of species of sin. They cast doubt on the validity of moral taxonomy. This chapter recalls some features of Thomas's doctrine of venial sin and considers how it applies to the discussion of lying.
Keywords: Thomas Aquinas, lying, venial sin, species of sin, moral taxonomy
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- Title Pages
- <i>Previous Publication</i>
- <i>Abbreviations</i>
- WISDOM, LAW, AND VIRTUE
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 Wisdom and Human Life: the Natural and the Supernatural
- Chapter 2 Wisdom as Foundational Ethical Theory in St. Thomas Aquinas
- Chapter 3 St. Thomas, Metaphysics, and Human Dignity
- Chapter 4 Truth and Happiness
- Chapter 5 Antimodern, Ultramodern, Postmodern: A Plea For The Perennial
- Chapter 6 Is Thomas Aquinas a Spiritual Hedonist?
- Chapter 7 Is Liberty the Criterion in Morals?
- Chapter 8 The Real Distinction Between Intellect and Will
- Chapter 9 ST. Thomas, James Keenan, and the Will
- Chapter 10 ST. Thomas and the Causes of Free Choice
- Chapter 11 St. Thomas and the First Cause of Moral Evil
- Chapter 12 St. Thomas, Our Natural Lights, and the Moral Order
- Chapter 13 Jacques Maritain and the Philosophy of Cooperation
- Chapter 14 Natural Law and the First Act of Freedom: Maritain Revisited
- Chapter 15 Jean Porter on Natural Law: Thomistic Notes
- Chapter 16 ST. Thomas, the Common Good, and the Love of Persons
- Chapter 17 St. Thomas, John Finnis, and the Political Good
- Chapter 18 Thomas Aquinas, Gerard Bradley, and the Death Penalty
- Chapter 19 Death in the Setting of Divine Wisdom: The Doctrine of St. Thomas Aquinas
- Chapter 20 Suicide as a Belligerent Tactic: Thomistic Reflections
- Chapter 21 Jacques Maritain, St. Thomas, and the Philosophy of Religion
- Chapter 22 Philosophy and Spirituality: Cultivating a Virtue
- Chapter 23 St. Thomas and the Ontology of Prayer
- Chapter 24 ST. Thomas, Lying, and Venial Sin
- Chapter 25 Communion with the Tradition: For the Believer Who Is a Philosopher
- Chapter 26 “Obiectum”: Notes on the Invention of a Word
- Chapter 27 St. Thomas and Moral Taxonomy
- Bibliography
- Index
- Moral Philosophy and Moral Theology Series