Subject Area
Theology
Description
Since both men and women, made in the divine image, bear rational souls, and the Catholic understanding of redemption requires that persons respond freely to the gift of grace, Saint Paul’s comment to Timothy that women can be saved through childbearing (cf. 1 Timothy 2:13-15) indicates that motherhood must be rational. This thesis responds to three different arguments against that premise—those of Simone deBeauvoir, Julia Kristeva, and Gertrude von le Fort—by illustrating that Thomas Aquinas’ application of Aristotelian principles restores both a proper understanding of rationality and how our hylemorphic construct directs us to our supernatural end. Weaving together a Thomistic view of natural law, the Church’s use of munus in Humanae Vitae, and Charles de Koninck’s explanation of how maternity contributes to the common good, I will show specifically how motherhood itself is rational and why it bears the potential not only to perfect the mother, but also to positively influence the common good—with the Virgin Mary standing as the most perfect example.
Publisher
Providence College
Date
Fall 12-8-2020
Type
Thesis
Format
Text
Language
English
