Natural Knowledge of God in the Philosophy of Saint Thomas Aquina

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II TRODUCTIOlf
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PrOll the work. ot ftrioul writer. OIl the subjeot of' natural theology,
it appears that the po.aibility' ot natural blJwledge ot God'. exiltenoe
and ot Hil attribute. hal of'ten been que.tioned and has ... tiM. even been
denied.
hther Me CoJ'llick. in his Iatural 1heology, tell. us that
trOltl the tiile of Protagoral the Sophi.t (tifth
century B.C.), who i. reputed to haTe laid. not
the god I nothiBg ean be mown, .ei ther that they
are, nor that they are not," there haa existed
in philo.ophy a tendenay to deny to the hu.an
mind the oapability ot attaining to anything ulttaate
or ab.olute.l
Siailarly, Father Joyce inf'onaa u. that lome philolopherl hold
that altlaough in order to a.coa-t tor the world
of' experience we are cempelled to pOltulato an
\Ulkncnm gro1lD.d ot being,r.alon will oarry u. no
further than tllle. Bo attribute can be aftirmed
of' this ulti_te grotmd except that it i. unknown
and UIlknOftble.1
!go Cormick, J. P., S.J., .atural theology, Loyola UniTerdty Pr ....
1939, p. 13.
2Joyoe, G. B., Prinoiples of' •• tural .e010q, LongMn"
London, 1923, Vol. I, p. z11. --
Gl"e8n &I Co.,