The Harmony of Goodness: Mutuality and Moral Living According to John Duns Scotus

7. The Harmony of Goodness

I n this final chapter we reprise the elements of Scotus's moral vision and reflectupon itssignificancefor contemporary ethical discussion. It does little good to examine the thoughts of the past if we do not consider how they might influence present-day concerns. At the outset of this study, I indicated that it is not possible to transplant Scotist thought into the late 20th century. The more modest goal which has informed our efforts is that of a dialogue with the mind of this great Franciscan thinker. This has been difficult insofar as his works are not yet totally available in criticalform. Despite thedifficulties presentedby the textual evidence, it has been possible to present and clarify key insights from this intricate and subtle "unravelling" of reality typical ofScotus. These insightshave stretchedfrom a precise analysis ofthe compositionof the individual in Mecceitas, through the central element of freedom which undergirds all reality, to a communion with the divine in the order of merit. From the most delicate detail to the greatest grasp of cosmic order, the mind of Scotus seeks to place everything exactly where it belongs withinan essentialorder which unites God and allcreation In his philosophical and theological reflections, Scotus has great concern for detail and precision. This is evident in the power of his analytic mind and logical rigor. While most scholarly studies highlight these elements, few call attention to his concern for integration. This aspect is perhaps even more important than the value of his analytic gifts. For Scotus, the intricate parts form a glorious whole,just as the myriad bits of colored glass join together in forming the beautiful 137 138 THE HARMONY OF GOODNESS stained-glass windows in medieval cathedrals. The vision of the whole does not negate the beautyofthe parts,butbringsvarious colors,shapes and sizes into harmonic relationship. I have chosen to call this relatedness "mutuality" because it exists to an eminent degree among persons. Althoughallreality ispart ofa relationalorder,person-based mutuality is a free relationship,enteredinto out of love and self-giftItis proper to the divine reality of the Trinitarian mystery and the goal of human moralliving.Scotus's profound insights demonstrate not only analytic, butsyntheticgifts aswell Throughout this presentstudy we have seen that the Subtle Doctor does not offer a preciseor step-by-step method for moral decisions. He offers, rather, a presentation of moral living and moral elemerits which constitute a paradigm focused on beauty and harmony. This presentation is centered around love, and thus, around the will as a free,-rational potency. The will reaches out toward all that is good and works to balance concerns for self with objective values. The dynamic process of rational loving involves natural dispositions toward goodness and divine assistance in grace. The manner in which Scotus discusses moral living and his efforts toward the integration of nature and grace into a work of art suggest that he would be a significant partner in any moral dialogue. As we conclude, it is appropriate to review thematically the key aspects which stand out as important qualities of Scotist thinking: the aesthetic integration of goodness and beauty, the centrality of love and the will in moral discussion, the goods of balance and harmony for human flourishing, the integrity of rational loving and the primacy of mutuality for moralliving. The Aesthetic Integration Beauty has only recently re-entered the philosophicaldiscussion as a serious element Umberto Eco's works on Aquinas's aesthetic theories continue to influence a renaissance of scholarship on medieval thinkers and particularly in ligl;u of theories of beauty!Jan Aertsen examines the importance of aesthetic concerns in his recent article "Beauty in the Middle Ages: A Forgotten Transcendental?'" Aertsen focuses on Thomas Aquinas and underscores the importance of the I Umberto Eco,ArtandBeautyin theMiddleAges,Yale UniversityPress1986 and The AestheticsofThomasAquinas,HarvardUniversityPress1989. , MedUivalPhilosophyarui Theowgy,vol1(1991), pp.68-97. The Harmony ofGoodness 139 integration of beauty with truth and goodness for the medieval mind. Beauty was not seen to be a separate transcendental but part of an overall "integrated sensibility" of medieval experience.' Francis Kovach studies the importance of beauty for Aquinas and Scotus in his several articles.4 Beyond the specifically medieval relevance of a theory of beauty, MarthaNussbaum's TheFragilityofGoodrl£SS'overtly links the notions of moral goodness with beauty. Hans Urs von Balthasar's The Glory ofthe Lord seeks to begin a discussion on a "theological aesthetics." Von Balthasar maintains that a loss...