Religion CUR DEUS HOMO TEST
CHAPTERS 1-5
1. What is the title of the book St. Anselm writes about the Incarnation? You’ll have to use Latin…
CUR DEUS HOMO
2. When did St. Anselm write this book?
~1100 AD (LATE 1090s)
3. What is the fundamental question that Boso poses to Anselm in this book?
WHY DOES GOD SAVE US BY MEANS OF THE INCARNATION WHEN HE COULD DO IT OTHER (BETTER) WAYS?
4. Name two of the primary sources that influence St. Anselm’s composition of the book.
ST. AUGUSTINE’S DE TRINITATE
GREGORY THE GREAT MORALIA IN JOB
NEW TESTAMENT
5. What does infidel mean?
UNBELIEVER (SPECIFICALLY IN CHRIST, IN THIS CASE)
6. What is one of the “convenient” things about the Incarnation? Be clear.
WONT USE
7. Why does Boso insist that Anselm give a different kind of answer than his first conveniens attempt?
IT IS NOT PERSUASIVE TO UNBELIEVERS–THEY NEED RATIONAL PROOF OF NECESSITY/POSSIBILITY FIRST
8. To what divine attributes does Anselm appeal when he gives his second answer to Boso?
OMNISCIENCE/OMNIPOTENCE (GOD CANNOT FAIL)
9. What would ruin God’s plan for the human race if He did nothing about it?
SIN
10. How does Anselm respond to Boso’s suggestion that God save us by means of an intermediary?
THAT WOULD MAKE US SERVANTS OF BOTH GOD AND WHOEVER SAVED US, AND IN OUR FINAL STATE WE MUST BE SERVANTS OF GOD ALONE, EQUAL TO THE HOLY ANGELS
Answer each of the following questions with one complete sentence.
2. What was St. Anselm’s job when he wrote this book?
ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
4. How does St. Anselm’s work in this book relate to St. Augustine’s de Trinitate?
AUGUSTINE ARGUES THAT THE INCARNATION IS “CONVENIENT” BUT ANSELM WANTS TO STRENGTHEN THAT TO “NECESSARY”
5. Why would the details of the Incarnation be considered a dishonor to God?
THE INDIGNITIES OF CHANGE AND HUMAN LIFE ARE (INFINITELY) BENEATH HIM
6. What is one of the “convenient” things about the Incarnation? Be clear.
WONT USE
7. What does Boso insist that Anselm do to justify his use of conveniens arguments?
FIRST GIVE A RATIONAL DEMONSTRATION OF NECESSITY
8. What is wrong with Anselm’s response that omniscient/omnipotent planners cannot fail?
IT ONLY PROVES THAT GOD MUST SAVE US; IT DOES NOT ADDRESS BOSO’S QUESTION ABOUT HOW HE DOES SO
10. What do the angels have to do with God’s final solution to the problem of human sin?
IN OUR FINAL STATE WE MUST BE EQUAL TO THE HOLY ANGELS (REASON REVEALED LATER IN BOOK)
CHAPTERS 11-15
1. What is the primary question of the book that Anselm and Boso are attempting to answer?
WHY DOES GOD SAVE US BY MEANS OF THE INCARNATION WHEN HE COULD DO IT OTHER (BETTER) WAYS?
2. What definition of justice does Anselm use in chapter eleven?
TO RENDER TO ANOTHER WHAT IS DUE TO THEM
3. What part of an injustice does satisfaction fix?
THE SECONDARY HARM OF DISHONOR/INSULT
4. What are the three conditions or characteristics of satisfaction that he discusses?
MORE THAN WHAT WAS TAKEN
PLEASING TO THE INJURED PARTY
DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WAS PREVIOUSLY OWED
(DO NOT SHORTEN TO MORE-PLEASING-DIFFERENT)
5. What alternative to satisfaction does Anselm discuss in chapter twelve?
PUNISHMENT (ON THE QUIZ I ACCEPTED ‘DO NOTHING’ BUT DONT USE THAT HERE)
6. What absurdities does Anselm think arise if God does nothing about sin (in chapter twelve)?
NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GUILTY AND INNOCENT, INJUSTICE MORE FREE THAN JUSTICE, SIN = GOD
7. What divine attributes “would be lost” (per impossibile) if God were to tolerate the supreme injustice against Himself (discussed in chapter thirteen)?
JUSTICE (BECOMING PARTY TO THE SIN) OR OMNISCIENCE (DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT IT) OR OMNIPOTENCE (COULDN’T DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT)
8. How does punishment restore God’s honor according to Anselm in chapter fourteen?
BY TAKING FROM MAN WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN HIS, GOD REASSERTS THE DOMINION THAT WE DENIED
9. What distinction about honor does Anselm make in chapter fifteen to answer Boso’s question about God preserving His honor?
IT IS BOTH/EITHER A DIVINE ATTRIBUTE OR THE ORDER AND BEAUTY OF THE UNIVERSE PRAISING HIM
10. So how is it that God’s honor is always preserved and never lost?
IN THE FIRST SENSE IT CANNOT CHANGE AND IN THE SECOND SENSE IT IS ALWAYS REGULATED BY DIVINE WILL AND TURNED BACK TO ORDER ONE WAY OR ANOTHER (COMMAND, PERMISSION, PUNISHMENT, ETC.)
Answer each of the following questions with one complete sentence.
2. How does Anselm define sin in chapter eleven?
NOT TO RENDER TO GOD WHAT IS DUE TO HIM
(OR INJUSTICE AGAINST GOD)
3. What is it that we owe God, according to Anselm?
THAT OUR WILL BE COMPLETELY SUBJECT TO HIS
4. What are the two basic possibilities for restoring lost honor (chapters 11 and 12)?
PUNISHMENT AND SATISFACTION
5. What notion of mercy does Anselm reject in chapter twelve?
IGNORING THE PROBLEM OR DOING NOTHING ABOUT IT (SKIPPING OUT ON PUNISHMENT OR SATISFACTION)
6. If God cannot “forgive” sin as Anselm says, why does He command us to do so (in the Our Father)?
HE IS COMMANDING US NOT TO DO HIS JOB FOR HIM
CHAPTERS 19-25
2. Analogy of the pearl: what does the treasure case represent?
HEAVEN
3. Analogy of the pearl: what does the rich man represent?
GOD
5. What is the first reason, according to St. Anselm, we cannot make satisfaction for our sins?
WE CANNOT GIVE GOD ANYTHING THAT WE DON’T ALREADY OWE HIM PRIOR TO SIN (WE OWE HIM “EVERYTHING”)
7. How “big” is sin according to Anselm and Boso?
GREATER THAN AN INFINITE NUMBER OF UNIVERSES
9. What is the example of the servant and the hole in the ground meant to illustrate?
WHEN IT IS OUR FAULT WE CANNOT DO SOMETHING, OUR INABILITY TO DO IT IS NOT AN EXCUSE
10. Why is it no good for us if God “drops us off in heaven” without actually making us just?
WE WOULD BE MISERABLE SINCE WE WOULD ALWAYS DESIRE TO BE JUST AND NEVER BE ABLE TO DO SO–HEAVEN WOULD BE HELL TO US
2. Analogy of the pearl: what does the pearl represent?
THE HUMAN RACE
3. Analogy of the pearl: what do the “choice treasures” represent?
ANGELS
5. What is the second reason (chapter 21), according to St. Anselm, we cannot make satisfaction for our sins?
WE COULD NEVER GIVE ANYTHING “MORE” BECAUSE THE GRAVITY OF THE SIN IS INFINITE
6. What silly sin does Anselm give as an example when he covers the second problem with making satisfaction for sin?
A LOOK CONTRARY TO THE WILL OF GOD
7. What did God place Adam in the garden to do, according to Anselm?
VINDICATE HIS HONOR BY SHAMING THE DEVIL
8. What would we have to do in order to return the thing we took from God originally?
RESTORE ETERNAL LIFE TO THE HUMAN RACE BY MAKING SINNERS INTO NON-SINNERS
9. How does ruling out both punishment and satisfaction as options prove the necessity of the Incarnation?
IT MEANS THE DILEMMA IS BROKEN AND THERE WAS A MISTAKE MADE EARLIER IN THE ARGUMENT WHEN THEY RULED OUT THE INCARNATION AS A POSSIBILITY
10. What does the title of the book mean?
WHY A GOD-MAN (DEUS AND HOMO SHOULD BE THOUGHT OF AS A HYPHENATED WORD)