Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

THE GREEK PHILOSOPHY.483»revelation, because few only, and they after longinquiries, and with the admixture of many errors,would convey to man the truth concerning God"68'as searched out by reason.What the philosophers from the time of Thaleshad taken as their special work was to measureand estimate the visible world. And for the lastfour centuries of this period especially they madethe .nature and the needs, the supreme good andthe happiness of man their chief concern, in subordinationto which they continued their physicalinquiries. And surely the judgment which aninspired writer formed of their travail must recurto the mind with great force at the end of the precedingreview : "If they knew so much as to beable to estimate the visible world, why did theynot more easily discover its Lord ?"69 Why fromthe goods which they beheld had they not powerto know the sole possessor of being, nor whenthey gave attention to his works, recognised theirartificer ? Why did they esteem fire or breath,rapid air or circling stars, or»the force of water,or the lights of heaven rulers of the universe ?For if the visible beauty of these delighted themso that they conceived them to be gods, how didthey not draw the conclusion that the Lord ofthese was so much better than they ? for it wasthe Author of beauty who created them. If theywere struck dumb with the sense of their power68 S. Thomas, Summa, p. 1. 9, 1, a. 1. 69 Sap. xiii. U.