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Objection 1: It would seem that all the senses are not in act
there. For touch is the first of all the senses (De Anima ii,
2). But the glorified body will lack the actual sense of touch,
since the sense of touch becomes actual by the alteration of an animal
body by some external body preponderating in some one of the active or
passive qualities which touch is capable of discerning: and such an
alteration will then be impossible. Therefore all the senses will not
be in act there.
Objection 2: Further, the sense of taste assists the action of the
nutritive power. Now after the resurrection there will be no such
action, as stated above (Question 81, Article 4). Therefore
taste would be useless there.
Objection 3: Further, nothing will be corrupted after the
resurrection because the whole creature will be invested with a certain
virtue of incorruption. Now the sense of smell cannot have its act
without some corruption having taken place, because smell is not
perceived without a volatile evaporation consisting in a certain
dissolution. Therefore the sense of smell is not there in its act.
Objection 4: Further, "Hearing assists teaching" (De Sensu et
Sensato i). But the blessed, after the resurrection, will require
no teaching by means of sensible objects, since they will be filled
with Divine wisdom by the very vision of God. Therefore hearing will
not be there.
Objection 5: Further. seeing results from the pupil receiving the
species of the thing seen. But after the resurrection this will be
impossible in the blessed. Therefore there will be no actual seeing
there, and yet this is the most noble of the senses. The minor is
proved thus: That which is actually lightsome is not receptive of a
visible species; and consequently a mirror placed under the sun's rays
does not reflect the image of a body opposite to it. Now the pupil
like the whole body will be endowed with clarity. Therefore it will
not receive the image of a colored body.
Objection 6: Further, according to the science of perspective,
whatever is seen is seen at an angle. But this does not apply to the
glorified bodies. Therefore they will not have actual sense of sight.
The minor is proved thus. Whenever a thing is seen at an angle, the
angle must be proportionate to the distance of the object seen: because
what is seen from a greater distance is less seen and at a lesser
angle, so that the angle may be so small that nothing is seen of the
object. Therefore if the glorified eye sees at an angle, it follows
that it sees things within a certain distance, and that consequently it
does not see a thing from a greater distance than we see now: and this
would seem very absurd. And thus it would seem that the sense of sight
will not be actual in glorified bodies.
On the contrary, A power conjoined to its act is more perfect than
one not so conjoined. Now human nature in the blessed will be in its
greatest perfection. Therefore all the senses will be actual there.
Further, the sensitive powers are nearer to the soul than the body
is. But the body will be rewarded or punished on account of the merits
or demerits of the soul. Therefore all the senses in the blessed will
also be rewarded and in the wicked will be punished, with regard to
pleasure and pain or sorrow which consist in the operation of the
senses.
I answer that, There are two opinions on this question. For some
say that in the glorified bodies there will be all the sensitive
powers, but that only two senses will be in act, namely touch and
sight; nor will this be owing to defective senses, but from lack of
medium and object; and that the senses will not be useless, because
they will conduce to the integrity of human nature and will show forth
the wisdom of their Creator. But this is seemingly untrue, because
the medium in these senses is the same as in the others. For in the
sight the medium is the air, and this is also the medium in hearing and
smelling (De Anima ii, 7). Again, the taste, like the touch,
has the medium in contact, since taste is a kind of touch (De Anima
ii, 9). Smell also which is the object of the sense of smell will
be there, since the Church sings that the bodies of the saints will be
a most sweet smell. There will also be vocal praise in heaven; hence
a gloss says on Ps. 149:6, "The high praises of God shall be
in their mouth" that "hearts and tongues shall not cease to praise
God." The same is had on the authority of a gloss on 2 Esdra
12:27, "With singing and with cymbals." Wherefore, according
to others we may say that smelling and hearing will be in act there,
but taste will not be in act, in the sense of being affected by the
taking of food or drink, as appears from what we have said (Question
81, Article 4): unless perchance we say that there will be taste
in act through the tongue being affected by some neighboring humor.
Reply to Objection 1: The qualities perceived by the touch are
those which constitute the animal body. Wherefore the body of an
animal has, through its tangible qualities according to the present
state of life, a natural aptitude to be affected with a natural and
spiritual alteration by the object of touch. For this reason the touch
is said to be the most material of the senses, since it has a greater
measure of material alteration connected with it. Yet material
alteration is only accidentally related to the act of sensation which is
effected by a spiritual alteration. Consequently the glorified
bodies, which by reason of their impassibility are immune from natural
alteration, will be subject only to spiritual alteration by tangible
qualities. Thus it was with the body of Adam, which could neither be
burned by fire, nor pierced by sword, although he had the sense of
such things.
Reply to Objection 2: Taste, in so far as it is the perception of
food, will not be in act; but perhaps it will be possible in so far as
it is cognizant of flavors in the way mentioned above.
Reply to Objection 3: Some have considered smell to be merely a
volatile evaporation. But this opinion cannot be true; which is
evident from the fact that vultures hasten to a corpse on perceiving the
odor from a very great distance, whereas it would be impossible for an
evaporation to travel from the corpse to a place so remote, even though
the whole corpse were to be dissolved into vapor. This is confirmed by
the fact that sensible objects at an equal distance exercise their
influence in all directions: so that smell affects the medium
sometimes, and the instrument of sensation with a spiritual
alteration, without any evaporation reaching the organ. That some
evaporation should be necessary is due to the fact that smell in bodies
is mixed with humidity; wherefore it is necessary for dissolution to
take place in order for the smell to be perceived. But in the
glorified bodies odor will be in its ultimate perfection, being nowise
hampered by humidity: wherefore it will affect the organ with a
spiritual alteration, like the odor of a volatile evaporation. Such
will be the sense of smell in the saints, because it will not be
hindered by any humidity: and it will take cognizance not only of the
excellences of odors, as happens with us now on account of the very
great humidity of the brain, but also of the minutest differences of
odors.
Reply to Objection 4: In heaven there will be vocal praise (though
indeed some think otherwise), and in the blessed it will affect the
organ of hearing by a merely spiritual alteration. Nor will it be for
the sake of learning whereby they may acquire knowledge, but for the
sake of the perfection of the sense and for the sake pleasure. How it
is possible for the voice to give sound there, we have already stated
(Sent. ii, D, 2; Question 2, Article 2, ad 5).
Reply to Objection 5: The intensity of light does not hinder the
spiritual reception of the image of color, so long as the pupil retains
its diaphanous nature; thus it is evident that however much the air be
filled with light, it can be the medium of sight, and the more it is
illumined, the more clearly are objects seen through it, unless there
be a fault through defective sight. The fact that the image of an
object placed in opposition to a mirror directly opposite the sun's
rays does not appear therein, is not due to the reception being
hindered, but to the hindering of reflection: because for an image to
appear in a mirror it must needs be thrown back by an opaque body, for
which reason lead is affixed to the glass in a mirror. The sun's ray
dispels this opacity so that no image can appear in the mirror. But
the clarity of a glorified body does not destroy the diaphanous nature
of the pupil, since glory does not destroy nature; and consequently
the greatness of clarity in the pupil renders the sight keen rather than
defective.
Reply to Objection 6: The more perfect the sense the less does it
require to be altered in order to perceive its object. Now the smaller
the angle at which the sight is affected by the visible object, the
less is the organ altered. Hence it is that a stronger sight can see
from a distance more than a weaker sight; because the greater the
distance the smaller the angle at which a thing is seen. And since the
sight of a glorified body will be most perfect it will be able to see by
the very least alteration (of the organ); and consequently at a very
much smaller angle than now, and therefore from a much greater
distance.
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