Arguments Of Bonaventure

Cullen, Christopher. Bonaventure. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.

This book made by Cullen is so crucial in this research for it offers a bird’s eye view of Bonaventure’s writings and thoughts. Aside from that, it also serves as a great introduction for some scholars or interested in mediaeval thinking especially that of Bonaventure’s. The author attempted to analyze Bonaventure’s thought by following the philosopher’s own discussion of sciences and presented Bonaventure’s perspective on the ways where philosophy and theology come together. There are some scholars who do not consider Bonaventure and other medieval thinkers as not classified philosophers. However, Cullen presented some arguments of Bonaventure that attests the
authenticity of the philosophy without entering formally into theology. As Cullen, would agree that Bonaventure’s philosophy could be termed as “Christian Philosophy”. This book is composed of three parts namely: Love of Wisdom, The Light of Philosophical Knowledge, and the light of Theological Knowledge. On the first part, it is an account regarding wisdom, particularly a Christian Wisdom. At the beginning of his most important works, he exhorts us to be “lovers of wisdom” (sapientiae amatores), for apart from wisdom we know neither the peace nor the happiness that alone satiates the human being. In other words, man’s final end is directed towards the highest wisdom and true source of happiness, which is God. The term wisdom (sapientia) must be understood by its nuance on St.
Bonaventure’s different senses of the term. First, wisdom in both subjective and objective sense. This refers to a quality of mind in the human subject as well as to an object of the mind which brings the subjective quality upon sufficient familiarity. Second, it is also applied in a less-common sense that refers to the cognition of the things. It is where Bonaventure distinguishes wisdom from science, that is the cognition of created things. Third, wisdom is used in a proper sense. It is the cognition of God according to piety. It is a cognition of God as worshipped in faith, hope, and love. Lastly, wisdom in a stricter sense, refers to the mind’s ecstatic union with God. This sense was very evident on the way the Seraphic Doctor devoted his life and work as wisdom directed to the final end. Bonaventure associates wisdom with one of its principal effects, a peace born of ecstatic going out of the self into the loving union with God. It is in this sense that wisdom becomes a “Christian Wisdom” for man’s going out of the self signifies a realization that it is only Christ who makes possible this ascent of the mind into
God. On the next part, Cullen discussed the Light of Philosophical Knowledge and the Light of Theological Knowledge.
For St. Bonaventure, philosophy should not be pursued for its own sake but this must be of service to theology which is the end of every knowledge as explained on his work “On the Reduction of Arts to Theology”. This book will be of great help in the research, since it provides a bird’s eye view of the philosophy of St. Bonaventure. The researcher will benefit from this book since the author discussed wisdom and the connection of philosophy and theology which is also central to Bonaventure’s Itinerarium that the researcher would use as a basis. However, this research aims to delve more on establishing the virtue of prudence in explaining a particular ethical dimension in St. Bonaventure’s Itinerarium and that differentiate from the
other.

Cullen, Christopher M. Bonaventure’s Philosophical Method. Boston: Koninklijke Brill NV, 2014.

The book A Companion to Bonaventure edited by Hammond, Hellmann, and Goff is a collection of an essays coming from the different aspects of Bonaventure’s insights, namely philosophical, theological, pastoral, and mystical. One of the articles of this book is the article made by Cullen entitled Bonaventure’s Philosophical Method. This book speaks of how could a man classified as a theologian viewed philosophy, or is there such thing that can be called a philosophical theology. The purpose of this article is to show that Bonaventure himself, has able to device his own philosophical method by not just using the different persons or sources in philosophy which are available. But he himself philosophizes, for a person to be said as philosophizing must not just reechoed things that are already been said. But a person philosophizes when he tries to evaluate those ideas in order to arrive at something. Even while engaging in theology, Bonaventure strictly observes what we can call philosophy’s “integrity”: it is a distinct discipline with its own method of argumentation and its own principles. In that sense, philosophy, in the service of theology is still preserve, for philosophy alone can inquire on its own. For there are modern thinkers that thinks of the autonomy of philosophy would be unconditional or must be absolute. With that modern thinkers, thinks that any subordination to philosophy undermines its ability or integrity. In this book, Cullen laid down some of the key concepts in order to understand St. Bonaventure philosophical method. First, is through one’s understanding of the historical and intellectual context in which Bonaventure worked. Second, is to examine the object of philosophy – wisdom. Third, is to examine the complex relationship of philosophy to the other disciplines especially that of philosophy and theology. Fourth, is knowing its foundation wherein it can show its capability in knowing a reality. Fifth, is to inquire into considered highest branches of philosophy like metaphysics and natural theology. Sixth is to examine its limitation. Lastly, is to consider philosophy’s heteronomous relation to a transcendent order. This research differs from this paper for it only ventures the realm of methods of Bonaventure’s philosophy. This paper will also venture furthermore the philosophical ideas and its methods but would deal more on the ethical or moral aspect of Bonaventure’s Itinerarium Mentis in Deum particularly on prudence. This book will be of great help in this research for it was able to show the demarcation line between St. Bonaventure’s philosophical and theological ideas. Hence, the researcher would be able to decipher the philosophical ideas of the Seraphic Doctor from its theological.

Goff, J. Isaac. Caritas in Primo. A Study of Bonaventure’s Disputed Questions on the Mystery of the Trinity. New Bedford: Academy of the Immaculate 2015.

This book offers help and appreciation to the historical setting and to the cultivation of a faith that seeks understanding. This study primarily focuses on the Trinitatis oeconomica or the mystery of the trinity which lies on the heart of the Godhead where man’s life with sharing the life of the Divine Persons lies. The author has also discussed the dependency of philosophy and theology to one another. The author contends that autonomous philosophy without the benefit of the revelation or theology might lead to erroneous theological concepts that may lead to pantheistic characters, or in our present time named as the ontologism or ontic theology. On the other hand, Dr. Goff said that it has a tendency on philosophical agnosticism or atheism or what is known today as the irrational fideism, that cannot lead to the knowledge of truth but serves only as a guide to religious experience. In this article, Dr. Goff demonstrates what Scotus calls univocity of being and transcendentals together with the formal distinction a parte rei and the perfectio simpliciter simplex in showing 1) God is one, simple, infinite, eternal, immutable, necessary because triune, and 2) triune and personal precisely because one, simple, infinite, eternal immutable and necessary. This asserts the primacy of essence of all three divine persons. The Father, having the primacy, enjoys the primacy of person as the plenitude of charity as what is stated in the title of this book, Caritas in Primo. In short, man or finite person shares with that primacy of the charity appropriated to the Holy Spirit through grace. In the end of the book, Dr. Goff deals with what Bonaventure means when he says that all knowledge of the Blessed Trinity is the most practical of all forms of knowledge, precisely because it instructs us not on how to do something useful a but on what the goal or joy of life is, sharing the love of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit: Caritas in Primo. This book basically differs from this research since the main focus of it is to Trinitatis oeconomica or to Bonaventure’s Disputed Questions on the Mystery of the Trinity. This study is in reference to the Godhead who is the fontal plenitude of all goodness or charity, whereas the human person participates through grace. This book is