the ultimate end of the human act. St. Augustine, 7 centuries later, reiterates the end of man as happiness, namely eternal life. He also continues to say that faith is the only way to find the ultimate end. (Philosophy, 90-1) St. Thomas Aquinas, eight centuries later, reaffirms God as the end of our desires. The following quote from The Pocket Aquinas, page 192 continues to explain his understanding. The act whereby we are primarily joined to Him is basically and substantially our happiness. But we are primarily united with God by an act of understanding; and therefore, the very seeing of God, which is an act of the intellect, is substantially and basically our happiness. The greatest happiness then is thinking of the ultimate being, God. This greatest happiness is a union with the Everlasting, or as St. Augustine called it, eternal life. Life in this world is less of a good than life in paradise. This is due to the fact that life in paradise is eternal and the life of a man in this world is just a brief stretch of time. Paradise is also more perfect than earth and life there is a greater good because of this. Another 1500 years later, Tolstoy in the Confessions again comes to the conclusion of an eternal paradise. He drew the conclusion from a very simple path of premises. One, you must live “according to God’s law.” Two, “eternal torment or eternal bliss” result from life. Three, the meaning that is not lost to death is “the union with the infinite God.” (Elements, 549) Throughout a span of over two centuries philosophers have agreed upon the ultimate end of man or else have been confronted with absurdity. Does God Predestine the Human EndHow does faith lead man to his eternal end? It leads man to God by helping him to avoid the vices. Since God is the ultimate being, could God predestine man’s end? This is an important question since if men are predestined by God,...
