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Objection 1: It would seem that an angel cannot understand many
things at the same time. For the Philosopher says (Topic. ii,
4) that "it may happen that we know many things, but understand only
one."
Objection 2: Further, nothing is understood unless the intellect be
informed by an intelligible species; just at the body is formed by
shape. But one body cannot be formed into many shapes. Therefore
neither can one intellect simultaneously understand various intelligible
things.
Objection 3: Further, to understand is a kind of movement. But no
movement terminates in various terms. Therefore many things cannot be
understood altogether.
On the contrary, Augustine says (Gen. ad lit. iv, 32):
"The spiritual faculty of the angelic mind comprehends most easily at
the same time all things that it wills."
I answer that, As unity of term is requisite for unity of movement,
so is unity of object required for unity of operation. Now it happens
that several things may be taken as several or as one; like the parts
of a continuous whole. For if each of the parts be considered
severally they are many: consequently neither by sense nor by intellect
are they grasped by one operation, nor all at once. In another way
they are taken as forming one in the whole; and so they are grasped
both by sense and intellect all at once and by one operation; as long
as the entire continuous whole is considered, as is stated in De
Anima iii, text. 23. In this way our intellect understands
together both the subject and the predicate, as forming parts of one
proposition; and also two things compared together, according as they
agree in one point of comparison. From this it is evident that many
things, in so far as they are distinct, cannot be understood at once;
but in so far as they are comprised under one intelligible concept,
they can be understood together. Now everything is actually
intelligible according as its image is in the intellect. All things,
then, which can be known by one intelligible species, are known as one
intelligible object, and therefore are understood simultaneously. But
things known by various intelligible species, are apprehended as
different intelligible objects.
Consequently, by such knowledge as the angels have of things through
the Word, they know all things under one intelligible species, which
is the Divine essence. Therefore, as regards such knowledge, they
know all things at once: just as in heaven "our thoughts will not be
fleeting, going and returning from one thing to another, but we shall
survey all our knowledge at the same time by one glance," as
Augustine says (De Trin. xv, 16). But by that knowledge
wherewith the angels know things by innate species, they can at one
time know all things which can be comprised under one species; but not
such as are under various species.
Reply to Objection 1: To understand many things as one, is, so to
speak, to understand one thing.
Reply to Objection 2: The intellect is informed by the intelligible
species which it has within it. So it can behold at the same time many
intelligible objects under one species; as one body can by one shape be
likened to many bodies.
To the third objection the answer is the same as the first.
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