Angelicum Thomistic Institute La Teoria dell'Appropriazione di San Tommaso | Kevin O'Reilly, OP
Nov 26, 2025
In this engaging discussion, Kevin O'Reilly, OP, a Dominican priest and expert on Thomas Aquinas, dives deep into the concept of appropriation in theology. He explains how divine attributes are distinctly attributed to the Son of the Trinity, revealing a Christologically centered view of beauty. O'Reilly explores the elements of beauty—integrity, proportion, and clarity—arguing that created beauty reflects the divine Word. He also discusses how creatures mirror the Trinity and connect beauty to form, goodness, and providence.
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Appropriation Frames Divine Beauty
- Kevin O'Reilly explains 'appropriation' as assigning a common divine attribute specially to one Person of the Trinity.
- He argues beauty is appropriated to the Son by integritas, proportio, and claritas as shown in Summa Theologiae Ia, q.30, a.8.
Integrity: The Son's Perfect Completeness
- Integritas means full possession of the divine nature and perfect completeness, exemplified in the Son's equality with the Father.
- O'Reilly connects this divine integrity to divine simplicity and the Son's eternal sameness with the Father.
Proportion As The Divine Image
- Proportio refers to the Son as the Father's image and word, reflecting the Father's species and origin.
- O'Reilly uses Thomas's discussion of image and procession to show why the Son uniquely manifests divine proportion.