The Speculative Intellectual Virtues
St. Thomas Aquinas: “the habits of the speculative intellect do not perfect the appetitive part, nor affect it in any way, but only the intellective part; they may indeed be called virtues in so far as they confer aptness for a good work, viz. the consideration of truth (since this is the good work of the intellect): yet they are not called virtues in the second way, as though they conferred the right use of a power or habit. For if a man possess a habit of speculative science, it does not follow that he is inclined to make use of it, but he is made able to consider the truth in those matters of which he has scientific knowledge: that he make use of the knowledge which he has, is due to the motion of his will. Consequently a virtue which perfects the will, as charity or justice, confers the right use of these speculative habits.”
Understanding
St. Thomas Aquinas: “the virtues of the speculative intellect are those which perfect the speculative intellect for the consideration of truth: for this is its good work. Now a truth is subject to a twofold consideration—as known in itself, and as known through another. What is known in itself, is as a “principle,” and is at once understood by the intellect: wherefore the habit that perfects the intellect for the consideration of such truth is called “understanding,” which is the habit of principles.”
Knowledge
St. Thomas Aquinas: “On the other hand, a truth which is known through another, is understood by the intellect, not at once, but by means of the reason’s inquiry, and is as a “term.” This may happen in two ways: first, so that it is the last in some particular genus; secondly, so that it is the ultimate term of all human knowledge.”
Wisdom
St. Thomas Aquinas: “And, since “things that are knowable last from our standpoint, are knowable first and chiefly in their nature” (Phys. i, text. 2, 3); hence that which is last with respect to all human knowledge, is that which is knowable first and chiefly in its nature. And about these is “wisdom,” which considers the highest causes, as stated in Metaph. i, 1,2. Wherefore it rightly judges all things and sets them in order, because there can be no perfect and universal judgment that is not based on the first causes.”
Studiositas and Curiousitas
https://www.primematters.com/foundations/search-truth/studiositas-and-curiositas
These two Latin words, studiositas and curiositas, have a long and important history in the Christian understanding of the life of the mind. Unfortunately, when they are transliterated into English by the words “studiousness” and “curiosity,” they significantly change their meaning and we can loNegligence refers here to the tendency to avoid the mental work necessary to grasp knowledge. Many of its expressions are obvious and hardly need detailing. Our desire for physical comfort can often blunt the keenness of mind necessary to understand some aspect of reality, and we can be smitten by a mental lethargy that prefers to “zone out” rather than to engage important truths. More momentously, we often purposely avoid gaining knowledge of truths that will prove inconvenient or challenging to us, and we can turn our minds away from whatever makes us uncomfortable.se much of their significance.
Studiositas
We all have a natural desire to know… But as with our physical desires, our desire for knowledge needs to be rightly tempered… “the corrupation of the best is the worst”… Studiositas is the virtue that maintains our intellects in proper balance such that we can firmly and confidently grasp the truth of things.
This is where the English word “studiousness” fails as a description of this virtue. The need to be studious mainly applies to full-time students, and refers to the practice of “hitting the books,” of being conscientious in getting our assignments done. This is certainly an important habit for a student, but it hardly touches the rich depths of the virtue of studiositas. The strength of mind cultivated by this virtue goes far beyond student life. It is necessary for every one of us, all the time. Whatever our age, occupation, or circumstances, our minds are constantly reaching out toward knowledge.
The two vices associated with this virtue of strength of mind are negligence, its defect, and, in its Latin form, curiositas, its excess.
Negligence
Negligence refers here to the tendency to avoid the mental work necessary to grasp knowledge. Many of its expressions are obvious and hardly need detailing. Our desire for physical comfort can often blunt the keenness of mind necessary to understand some aspect of reality, and we can be smitten by a mental lethargy that prefers to “zone out” rather than to engage important truths. More momentously, we often purposely avoid gaining knowledge of truths that will prove inconvenient or challenging to us, and we can turn our minds away from whatever makes us uncomfortable.
Curiositas
One can see that the English word “curiosity” is misleading as a description of this vice. Curiosity typically describes the natural human desire for knowledge. A lack of curiosity in this sense would be as unhealthy to a human mind as a lack of appetite for food would be for a human body. Curiositas on the other hand is always a corruption of the mind’s purpose, which is to grasp the truth in its fullness.
What follows are six expressions of curiositas, each of which dims our vision of what is true and good.
1. Seeking knowledge of one aspect of reality while neglecting the wider picture.
It is often said, “a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.” The person who masters only one aspect of things or who gains only a shallow understanding of something, often thinks that he knows more than he does, and can blunder about causing serious damage. We live in an age of the expert, and our whole educational system is skewed toward knowing a great deal about a very small slice of reality. We are taught to become masters of technical detail to the exclusion of the most important matters.
2. Avidly pursuing unimportant knowledge rather than knowledge that will allow us to fulfill our obligations.
It is easy for our minds to become enchanted with the knowledge of something pleasurable or interesting, like following sports, or practicing gardening, or learning a special skill, and to allow our pursuit of it to overly dominate our minds. When that happens, knowledge of what should demand our intelligent attention, like raising our children, performing our work well, or keeping abreast of our finances, can be given short shrift.
3. Seeking knowledge about things we have no right to know or trying to gain knowledge by unlawful means.
Curiositas is often an expression of pride. The fallen human mind resents the idea that there is anything that is off-limits to know. It wants to assume the place that belongs only to God… We feed on the inner secrets of other people; we greedily devour tidbits of intimate information that have nothing to do with us; we revel in watching the emotional state of people in crisis. The bad habit of gossip is an indulgence in this kind of curiositas. So is the blinding practice of looking at pornography. The majority of what passes for “news,” whether on TV news stations, social media, or printed newspapers, falls under this kind of unlawful knowledge. We love especially to hear of other peoples’ sins and failures, since it allows us to look down on them.
4. Seeking knowledge in order to gain power over others.
But the last few hundred years have taught the lesson that knowledge can be eagerly sought for the worst of reasons. We can pursue knowledge of weaponry that will allow us to kill people in ever greater numbers; we can investigate human psychology and anatomy for the purposes of manipulation and torture; we can develop information technology to dominate human behavior and amass personal wealth.
5. Seeking knowledge in order to take pride in our intelligence and show ourselves superior to others.
We are all prone to this often subtle kind of curiositas. We want to have the latest information on whatever is being discussed; we want to be a member of the inner circle “in the know” concerning what is happening around us; in general we want to be consulted and paid attention to. Surveys have shown that the quality people most desire, even more than being thought physically attractive, is to be thought intelligent.
6. Seeking knowledge of created things for their own sake without viewing them in relation to the source and center of all things, God.
This gets to the heart of the matter, and helps make clear why curiositas is always a diminishment of true sight, even when the knowledge gained is genuine knowledge.
God is light, the one in whose presence we can see. Where there is no light, there can be no seeing. When our vision of truth is corrupted by the absence of God, we lose our grip not only on truth, but also on goodness, and unforeseen evils sprout up in the midst of our activity. The horrific experiments of the last century witness to the human suffering that this kind of rampant curiositas can cause. Both Soviet communism and Nazi fascism prided themselves on being scientific and enlightened. Yet for all their knowledge they were miserable failures with a staggering human cost, because they insisted on leaving God, reality himself, out of their humanly constructed plans.
Conclusion
If we were living in an age of intellectual negligence, cultivating the virtue of studiositas would mainly involve rousing ourselves and others to a proper appreciation of the powers and possibilities of the mind. There have been times and places in the Church’s history when rousing the intellect was the task at hand. But we live in an age of intense curiositas, one in which we are constantly being led to feed our desire for knowledge in ways that dull its capacities and darken its vision. In order to redress the virtuous balance, we will need to practice an asceticism of the intellect, training our minds to grasp the heart of reality in its true proportions and restraining ourselves from reaching out toward knowledge that will only distract and may ultimately destroy us.
External Refs
Prime Matters: Studiositas and Curiousitas Catholic Encyclopedia: Mind Catholic Encyclopedia: Knowledge