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Objection 1: It would seem that the inferior angel does not speak to
the superior. For on the text (1 Cor. 13:1), "If I speak
with the tongues of men and of angels," a gloss remarks that the
speech of the angels is an enlightenment whereby the superior enlightens
the inferior. But the inferior never enlightens the superior, as was
above explained (Question 106, Article 3). Therefore neither
do the inferior speak to the superior.
Objection 2: Further, as was said above (Question 106,
Article 1), to enlighten means merely to acquaint one man of what is
known to another; and this is to speak. Therefore to speak and to
enlighten are the same; so the same conclusion follows.
Objection 3: Further, Gregory says (Moral. ii): "God speaks
to the angels by the very fact that He shows to their hearts His
hidden and invisible things." But this is to enlighten them.
Therefore, whenever God speaks, He enlightens. In the same way
every angelic speech is an enlightening. Therefore an inferior angel
can in no way speak to a superior angel.
On the contrary, According to the exposition of Dionysius (Coel.
Hier. vii), the inferior angels said to the superior: "Who is
this King of Glory?"
I answer that, The inferior angels can speak to the superior. To
make this clear, we must consider that every angelic enlightening is an
angelic speech; but on the other hand, not every speech is an
enlightening; because, as we have said (Article 1), for one angel
to speak to another angel means nothing else, but that by his own will
he directs his mental concept in such a way, that it becomes known to
the other. Now what the mind conceives may be reduced to a twofold
principle; to God Himself, Who is the primal truth; and to the
will of the one who understands, whereby we actually consider
anything. But because truth is the light of the intellect, and God
Himself is the rule of all truth; the manifestation of what is
conceived by the mind, as depending on the primary truth, is both
speech and enlightenment; for example, when one man says to another:
"Heaven was created by God"; or, "Man is an animal." The
manifestation, however, of what depends on the will of the one who
understands, cannot be called an enlightenment, but is only a speech;
for instance, when one says to another: "I wish to learn this; I
wish to do this or that." The reason is that the created will is not
a light, nor a rule of truth; but participates of light. Hence to
communicate what comes from the created will is not, as such, an
enlightening. For to know what you may will, or what you may
understand does not belong to the perfection of my intellect; but only
to know the truth in reality.
Now it is clear that the angels are called superior or inferior by
comparison with this principle, God; and therefore enlightenment,
which depends on the principle which is God, is conveyed only by the
superior angels to the inferior. But as regards the will as the
principle, he who wills is first and supreme; and therefore the
manifestation of what belongs to the will, is conveyed to others by the
one who wills. In that manner both the superior angels speak to the
inferior, and the inferior speak to the superior.
From this clearly appear the replies to the first and second
objections.
Reply to Objection 3: Every speech of God to the angels is an
enlightening; because since the will of God is the rule of truth, it
belongs to the perfection and enlightenment of the created mind to know
even what God wills. But the same does not apply to the will of the
angels, as was explained above.
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