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Objection 1: It would seem that charity precedes hope. For
Ambrose says on Lk. 27:6, "If you had faith like to a grain of
mustard seed," etc.: "Charity flows from faith, and hope from
charity." But faith precedes charity. Therefore charity precedes
hope.
Objection 2: Further, Augustine says (De Civ. Dei xiv, 9)
that "good emotions and affections proceed from love and holy
charity." Now to hope, considered as an act of hope, is a good
emotion of the soul. Therefore it flows from charity.
Objection 3: Further, the Master says (Sent. iii, D, 26)
that hope proceeds from merits, which precede not only the thing hoped
for, but also hope itself, which, in the order of nature, is
preceded by charity. Therefore charity precedes hope.
On the contrary, The Apostle says (1 Tim. 1:5): "The end
of the commandment is charity from a pure heart, and a good
conscience," i.e. "from hope," according to a gloss. Therefore
hope precedes charity.
I answer that, Order is twofold. One is the order of generation and
of matter, in respect of which the imperfect precedes the perfect: the
other is the order of perfection and form, in respect of which the
perfect naturally precedes the imperfect. In respect of the first
order hope precedes charity: and this is clear from the fact that hope
and all movements of the appetite flow from love, as stated above
(FS, Question 27, Article 4; FS, Question 28, Article
6, ad 2; FS, Question 40, Article 7) in the treatise on
the passions.
Now there is a perfect, and an imperfect love. Perfect love is that
whereby a man is loved in himself, as when someone wishes a person some
good for his own sake; thus a man loves his friend. Imperfect love is
that whereby a man love something, not for its own sake, but that he
may obtain that good for himself; thus a man loves what he desires.
The first love of God pertains to charity, which adheres to God for
His own sake; while hope pertains to the second love, since he that
hopes, intends to obtain possession of something for himself.
Hence in the order of generation, hope precedes charity. For just as
a man is led to love God, through fear of being punished by Him for
his sins, as Augustine states (In primam canon. Joan. Tract.
ix), so too, hope leads to charity, in as much as a man through
hoping to be rewarded by God, is encouraged to love God and obey His
commandments. On the other hand, in the order of perfection charity
naturally precedes hope, wherefore, with the advent of charity, hope
is made more perfect, because we hope chiefly in our friends. It is
in this sense that Ambrose states (Objection 1) that charity flows
from hope: so that this suffices for the Reply to the First
Objection.
Reply to Objection 2: Hope and every movement of the appetite
proceed from some kind of love, whereby the expected good is loved.
But not every kind of hope proceeds from charity, but only the
movement of living hope, viz. that whereby man hopes to obtain good
from God, as from a friend.
Reply to Objection 3: The Master is speaking of living hope,
which is naturally preceded by charity and the merits caused by
charity.
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