Habit, Art, and Virtue (Aquinas 101)

Everyone naturally admires excellence in human beings. So, one must ask: what is excellence? How do human beings come to be that way?

Habit, Art, and Virtue (Aquinas 101) - Fr. James Brent, O.P.

❓ Questions you want answered? Make sure to put #AskAFriar in your comment!

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[rheacatera]

I am absolutely delighted to discover that Catholics finally have videos such as these! Long has Youtube been dominated by TedEds and School of Life lectures. And now for us to watch and learn theology in such wonderfully animated and clearly presented manner is a gift from the Heavens. God bless the Thomistic Institute! My prayers are with you.

[GilMichelini]

I have a background in the art of television production, and I can tell you trying to light a person dressed in dark brown against a dark background with fair skin and light hair is not easy. Thumbs up to your video crew, Sons of Dominic!

[dantecualesjr.]

The similarities between art and virtue are fascinating! Could we say that virtue is, in a sense, the art of living well morally?

[kristindreko]

Thank you Aquinas 101, may God bless you!

[EnyaBayting-pzzv]

Thank you very much father's, , father pine, father little..you gave me Justice..GOD GAVE JUSTICE.

[byron]

Truth hurts but sets us free! From our Good Lord Jesus Christ

[annakareninacamara]

May seem random but I see no one talking about it. I absolutely love that the intro is just bells ringing (and some soothing bass). It fits so much with the theme, theology and Church in general. It also makes us feel back home (in a Church or Monastery) which imediately evokes peace.

[byron]

Keep it up Dominican Fathers O.P Order of Preachers! Thanks for this enlightening simple to understand videos I like the visual drawings you put in the videos. When i study the Art of Communication it states there that Good Communication 80% of A successful communication and learning lies in the visual and the rest 20% is the verbal aspect k! Godbless and Godspeed k! More of this kind of teaching stuff k!

[josealvaroadizon]

Thanks for these!! Please keep them coming.

[byron]

Living a virtuous life well developed ourselves as a person and it will Grow at the sametime God will infuse us with His Loving Grace He is the Living water like a Good Gardener He takes care of us His children like plants He warer us constantly prunes us gives us pain trials n sufferings cultivates us so that we bear much fruit in His Grand eternal scheme! K

[roisinpatriciagaffney]

Phenomenally good. Thank you.
Pax Christi.

[maryjohnstone]

Yes, a great lecture n important video to note .thanks.

[maryjohnstone]

All beautifully n clearlyexplained, thanks!

[lucidlocomotive]

The opening tune reminds me of futurama

[paleotomista]

Father, thank you for this video!
But it arose a doubt in me.

I am a portuguese philosophy student.
(My main interest is Saint Thomas Aquinas; but, as I am now undertaking my Master Degree on Contemporary Philosophy, I study mainly Jacques Maritain.)

If I understood what you've here said correctly, and if I understood Maritain correctly, I believe the both of you are giving two different interpretations on Aquinas' thought.

You have divided habitus between Arts and Virtues: the arts being habitus concerning the making and the virtues habitus concerning the doing.

Now, Maritain's account is different. He says (cf. Art and Scholasticism) that the habits are divided between entitative and operative: the entitative being those habitus which concern the form of the being which has the habitus (e.g., health and beauty) and the operative being those habitus which concern directly the operation of the being which has the habitus. Thence, Maritain divides operative habitus between virtues and vices: the virtues are operative habitus towards good; the vices are operative habitus towards evil. Furthermore, as we are talking about operative habitus, Maritain distinguished moral and intellectual operative habits, and hence moral and intellectual virtues. Then he says art is an intellectual virtue, like wisdom.

So, after all these distinctions, Maritain's counterposition is not between "Arts" and "Virtues", as yours; but between the "Virtue of Art" and the "Virtue of Prudence". The reason of this distinction is the same as yours distinction between arts and virtues: the virtue of art guides the person that has it to "make good works"; the virtue of prudence guides the person that has it to "do good deeds".

Now, as I study Maritain, I've trace his thought to Aquinas' teaching, and it seemes to me to follow from it.
Can you please enlight me? Would you argue that the correct distinction that St. Thomas makes is between Arts and Virtues? Or would you say that that distinction is an attempt to summarize Aquinas' teaching, but the more extensive and accurate interpretation would that of Maritain's?

Thank you in advance!

[leszekp]

Why these people on the animations are a little sad ;-) Generally good job 👍

[jungjunk]

The music and sound in the animation are a distraction