Aquinas 101 - Course 2: Introduction to Thomistic Philosophy Episode 19 – The Fifth Way | Fr. Steven Brock
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Nov 4, 2019 AI Snips
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Purpose in Natural Bodies
- Natural bodies without cognition consistently act toward specific goals based on their nature, showing purpose in their behavior.
- This tendency to reach the "best" result is not by chance but demonstrates an innate goal-directed activity.
Mind Directs Non-Cognitive Things
- Things lacking cognition do not naturally aim toward goals without direction from an intelligent being.
- Just like an arrow requires an archer's cognition for goal-directed action, natural things need an intellectual cause to explain their purposeful tendencies.
Natural Good Is Self-Preservation
- The goal natural things tend toward is the conservation and flourishing of their own nature, not human-centered good.
- They act intelligently within their nature, yet lack intellect themselves, showing intentional ordering by a higher intellect.