1

Aquinas and Environmental Ethics:

A Filipino Protestant Reflection

Victor R. Aguilan, D. Theol.

International Philosophical Conference

THOMISM AND ASIAN CULTURES:
CELEBRATING 400 YEARSOF DIALOGUE ACROSS CIVILIZATIONS.
University of Santo Tomas
Manila, Philippines
May 23-26, 2011.

Introduction

In his most widely read work, Summa Theologica, Aquinas writes

that God made animals and plants for humanity; animals are irrational
or non-rational, so human beings can use them as they wish; and
killing animals is a violation only if they are someone's property. 1 Peter
Singer2 and Lynn White3 have pointed the finger to Aquinas for the
Christian anthropocentric arrogance toward nature. They alleged that
Aquinas’ teaching opened the way for rapacious exploitation of nature.
This criticism of Aquinas has led to the conclusion that Aquinas’
doctrine of creation is irrelevant to contemporary Christian
environmental ethics.
This paper will revisit the doctrine of creation of Aquinas from a
Protestant perspective. It will argue that Aquinas’ doctrine of creation
does not set up a support system for an ideology of domination toward
creation. In fact, there are those who have re-appropriated the ideas of
Aquinas to show instead not the arrogance of humanity toward nature
but a deeper relationship with nature in relation to God.
It is true that Protestants take as authoritative only the
Scriptures and the doctrinal affirmations of the Apostolic Church up to
1
Aquinas Summa Theologica II, II Q. 64. All in text citations will refer to the Summa
Theologiae, Benzinger Brother Edition, 1947 Web. 1 December 2010
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/aquinas/summa.titlepage.html
2
Peter Singer, Animal Liberation, Chap. 5
3
White, Lynn, Jr. “The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis.” Science 155 (March 10, 1967):
1203–7.
 2

the 4th century. It is also true that beginning the 5th century, there
were medieval developments in doctrine and practice with which the
Protestant evangelicals cannot agree.
But not everything that developed in the Middle Ages was a
deviation from the Scriptures. There were teachings which remained
biblical and which Protestants may find affinity with. I believe my basic
Protestant affirmations are not endangered, but are in fact enriched,
when I read the writings St. Thomas Aquinas (c.1225-1274) a favourite
theologian of Roman Catholics. And he made certain statements with
which Protestants need not disagree. One of these is Aquinas’ doctrine
of Creation.
There are three points which I would like to highlight in this paper
which shows Aquinas doctrine of creation enriching contemporary
Christian environmental ethics
First, God is the Creator of heaven and earth
The Christian declaration that God is the Creator signifies that
God is transcendent. God is the foundation and source of creation. For
Aquinas, God the Creator is the First Mover and the First Efficient
Cause.4 The Bible says “In the beginning, God created the heavens and
the earth” (Genesis 1.1). Everything begins with God. It also implies
that God is the only necessary being. By that, he means that God does
not belong to the order of reality inhabited by transitory and finite
creatures. God is distinct, beyond or above creation. To express this
concept, Aquinas reiterated the Christian formulation that God formed
the world out of nothing -“creatio ex nihilo.”5 Ex nihilo underscores
the distinction between God and creation. It affirms that God is prior to
any finite entity.
Protestants find agreement with Aquinas. There is an “infinite
6
qualitative distinction” between God and human, heaven and earth,

4
Aquinas, Summa theologica, I:Q. 2, A. 3
5
Aquinas, Summa theologica, 1.8; 1.9
6
Karl Barth, The Epistle to the Romans, trans. Edwyn C. Hoskyns (London: Oxford University
Press, 1935), p. 10.
 3

eternity and time, and revealed and natural theology according to a

leading Protestant theologian, Karl Barth. God is the “Wholly Other.”
For him, God is not identical with or contained in the creation He made.
The universe is not self-creating or self-sustaining. There is nothing
intrinsic to creation which demanded or permitted it to come into
existence. The whole created order owes its existence and purpose to
God.7
Nonetheless, Aquinas also affirms the immanence of God as the
Creator. God is intimately present in creation. He is present in every
moment of our lives, never absent to us, sustaining all lives, even when
it does not honor the grace bestowed on it. Aquinas said “God is in all
things; not, indeed, as part of their essence, nor as an accident, but as
an agent is present to that upon which it works.”8   Aquinas is neither a
Deist, who thinks that God after creating the universe left it running on
itself with no further connection with His creation, nor a pantheist, who
believes that creation is divine. To say that God is immanent in the
world is simply to say that God makes Himself present throughout all of
the realm of creation.
The Creator God is transcendent and immanent in all things. It
affirms the biblical truth that God is distinct from His creation but not
detached or indifferent to creation. It shows Aquinas fidelity to what St.
Paul said “For in him we live and move and have our being”(Acts
17.28). God is ontologically independent of the creation yet God is
actively present in His creation. He is intimately involved in the affairs
of His creation and governing and overseeing the created order.
Aquinas manages to keep in balance God’s transcendence and His
immanence. 
This view of Aquinas has an important contribution to
contemporary Christian environmental ethics. It corrects the tendency

7
Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics, volume 3/part 1, trans. Geoffrey Bromiley (Edinburh: T & T
Clark,, 1958), 27-28, 42-43, and § 41
8
Aquinas, Summa theologica, I:Q. 8, A. 1
 4

in contemporary Protestant religiosity to fall into a form of dualism. 9

This is a fragmented vision of reality where the only meaningful things
in existence are those things that are “spiritual.” It diminishes the
natural in favor of the spiritual, the body in favor of the soul, and this
historical (temporal) life in favor of the hereafter. It emphasizes the
preparation of going to heaven while avoiding earthly (worldly) or social
involvement.10 Salvation is understood as a process by which humans
and humans alone are rescued from the material world. They also
believe that the created world will face the final end and it is pointless
to try to alter destiny. They are so fixated on going to heaven or
meeting Christ in heaven that what is happening in the real world is
ignored.
Aquinas could help today’s Christians rediscover the
transcendence and immanence of God in relation to creation to give
warrant for Christian involvement on earth which includes caring,
protecting and conserving the environment. Saving souls and saving
the planet can go together. To be involved in environmental issues does
not separate us from God. And to be concerned about our souls and
supernatural things should not divorce us from environmental (earthly)
concerns.

Second, the Goodness of Creation

This transcendence and immanence of God in relation to creation

is also reflected in Aquinas’ view of the goodness of creation. He wrote:
“Every being that is not God is God's creature. Now every creature of
God is good (1 Tim. 4:4): and God is the greatest good. Therefore
every being is good.”11 This view is shared by Karl Barth who said
“creation, as it is known by the Christian, is benefit.” 12 Christians first
recognize that creation is a work of God only when we apprehend it to

9
Melba Maggay, Transforming Society. (Quezon City: Institute for Studies in Asian Church and
Culture. 1996)
10
Ronald J. Sider, “Redeeming the Environmentalists,” Christianity Today [21 June 1993]: 26.
11
Aquinas, Summa theologica, 1.5.3
12
Karl Barth, Church Dogmatics III/1 331-32
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be an irrevocably good reality. Creation is good because God has

caused it to exist.
Thus, creation’s goodness is given by God. Aquinas has a
theocentric understanding of goodness. God is goodness, but goodness
can neither be God nor can it surpass God. God is the source of all
goodness. Human or other creatures cannot impart goodness upon the
created order but only God. The whole of creation gets its goodness
from God because everything that exists participates in the divine
goodness. By participation, everything gets its existence from God. And
God is essentially good because he exists and is fully actualized.
Aquinas writes “God is good through his essence, whereas all other
things are good by participation.... Nothing, then, will be called good
except in so far as it has a certain likeness of divine goodness. Hence,
God is the good of every good.”13
Though Aquinas held the view that all creatures are good, all
creatures nevertheless vary in the extent of their goodness. There is
more goodness in a thing the more it is like God, the supreme good.
For him, this gradation of good is attributed to the diversity of beings
which God created.14 This means the very diversity of beings in creation
is necessarily good. And the diverse beings are united in the very
purpose of God. Aquinas describes the unity brought about by their
harmonic interactivity as the greatest created good. 15 When all parts
function in relation to one another as intended by God, the universe is
indeed good, manifesting God’s highest goodness and divine glory. 16
This interaction among created beings includes sustaining other
creatures. Aquinas affirms that some things exist for the sake of others

13
Thomas Aquinas, Summa Contra Gentiles, Bk. 1, ch. 40. hereafter Summa Contra Gentiles.
All in text citations will refer Thomas Aquinas, Summa Contra Gentiles, translated by Anton C.
Pegis, James F. Anderson, Vernon J. Bourke, and Charles J. O'Neil (Notre Dame, IN: Univ. of
Notre Dame Press, 1955-57), Web 1 Dec 2010 http://dhspriory.org/thomas/ContraGentiles.htm
14
Thomas Aquinas, Summa theologica, I a.47.1.
15
Aquinas, Summa contra gentiles 2, chap. 39.7; Also see Aquinas, Summa theologica, 1.15.2,
1.22.1–2.
16
Aquinas, Summa theologiae 1, q. 65, a. 2.
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because some are needed by others to maintain the integrity of

creation.17
What is the implication of Aquinas’ understanding of the goodness
of creation to environmental ethics? His concepts about the goodness of
creation could yield significant implications for behaviours that can be
responsive to environmental degradation. All species, the earth, the
waters and the air are good since they are integral parts of the planet
which sustain their shared existence. This is how God created the
universe and declared it good. Goodness of creation implies integrity of
creation. The various creatures, the land, the waters and the air are all
interconnected. And humans are part and integral with God’s creation.
When the integrity of creation is disrupted its goodness is diminished.
Moreover, since creation is basically good, God entrusted it to
human beings. Humans are God’s stewards. If all of God’s creation is
“good,” then His followers must have the same regard He has. This is
to counter the tendency amoung pious Christians who withdraw from
the world thinking that it is evil, corrupt and hopeless. For some, the
world is so evil that we have to avoid it so as not to get contaminated.
But God declares that creation is good. Thus, there is a divine
imperative for humans to take care of creation. Christians are called to
witness the goodness of creation by caring and valuing the earth, the
waters, the air and all God’s creatures.
Valuing the goodness of creation would have an implication on
how humans use nature. Aquinas did write that humans could use
animals and plants; but for their needs to be sustained. 18 He taught
that humans’ natural dominion over other creatures is always
subservient to God’s absolute dominion over all. 19 Accordingly, human
dominion is aimed at cooperating with God in realizing out God's plan
for creation and not hindering it in any way. 20 Humans should only

17
Aquinas, Summa contra Gentiles, 3.112.
18
Aquinas, Summa contra Gentiles, 3.78. Summa Theologica 2.2.25.3
19
Aquinas, Summa theologica, 1.96.1
20
Aquinas, Summa contra gentiles 3, chap. 78-79
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utilize creation according to God purpose and plan which is for the good
of creation. Hence, the avaricious abuse of the earth could not be in
accordance with the Divine plan. 21
Third, creation as revelation of God
How do we know the Divine plan? We know through his
creatures. We have seen so far that God is the source of creation and
declared creation very good. For Aquinas, if God created the world,
God’s imprint may be found within the created order. Aquinas puts this
point as follows
Now, God brought things into being by His wisdom… Hence, from
reflection upon God’s works we are able to infer His wisdom,
since, by a certain communication of His likeness, it is spread
abroad in the things He has made.22
Something of God’s beauty, power, goodness and wisdom can thus be
known from creation. Creation reveals the glory of God
This is one of the teachings of Aquinas which modern Protestants
misunderstood. John Calvin, however, shares the same view about
creation that it reveals the knowledge, wisdom and creative artistry of
God. Calvin writes God “daily discloses himself in the whole
workmanship of the universe;” and "innumerable evidences both in
heaven and on earth…declare his wonderful wisdom" 23 Aquinas and
Calvin are reaffirming what the Psalmist has written: “The heavens are
telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his
handiwork.”(Ps 19.4) And what Paul wrote: “Ever since the creation of
the world (God’s) eternal power and divine nature, invisible though
they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has
made.” (Romans 1. 20-21) Creation teaches humans about the God of
the universe. What is great about this form of revelation from God is
that it is accessible to all those who are able to observe and have any

21
Aquinas, Summa theologiae 2-2, q. 118, a. 1; also see 2-2, q. 83, a. 6. See further Summa
contra gentiles 4, chap. 83.
22
Summa contra Gentiles, Bk II. Q.2 aa. 2-4
23
John Calvin, Institutes of Christian Religion. I, v, 1, 2; 6. (trans. by Ford Lewis Battles.
Library of Christian Classics, Vol. XX-XXI. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960.)pp. 51-53
 8

scope of intelligence. We have no excuse not to know the Creator God

and his divine plan.
For Aquinas, one can legitimately be "instructed through sensible
things.”24 Creation has a pedagogical function. It teaches or evokes on
humans the desire to know, to discover and to appreciate the mystery
and beauty of creation. Beauty possesses a unique power to attract us.
And when we are aroused by the beauty of a painting, sculpture or any
work of art we ask who the artist is. And as humans continue to
discover and marvel about the beauty of creation they will be led to the
Divine Creator, the eternal God. This carries implications
for environmental ethics. Any thing that is beautiful is to be protected.
Our appreciation for nature should trigger our desire to act in ways that
respect nature’s interests and needs. The more we learn about the
environment the more we should start planning our actions to help
other species to flourish.
But instead of preserving and protecting creation like a beautiful
work of art, humans have raped, exploited and abused creation. The
current state of environmental corruption and degradation is a
reflection of human errors. The wide scope of our contemporary
environmental crisis - deforestation and soil erosion, water depletion,
air pollution, global warming, coastal degradation, species extinction,
deforestation, and habitat destruction - indicates that we have erred
dramatically in our treatment of the gift of God's creation. Where did
this corruption of creation come from? We all know the answer – it
came from us. God made the world “very good,” with all things
beautiful and orderly, but corruption in nature is the shadow of sinful
humanity. Environmental degradation exposes human sinfulness.
Stanley Hauerwas has pointed out that nature "seldom tells what we
ought to do, but often tells what we are doing is inappropriate" 25.

24
Aquinas, Summa theologica, 3 Q.61 A.1
25
Hauerwas, Stanley. A Community of Character. (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame
Press. 1981) p. 232
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Protestant theology has constantly emphasized the reality of sin

which corrupted our very nature and creation itself. St. Paul writes in
Romans 1. 21 “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him
as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and
their foolish hearts were darkened.” When we turn our backs on
creation, we turn against God. As pointed out by Aquinas “A mistake
about creation will lead to a mistake about God.” 26 Sin damages not
only our relationship with God but also with creation. As the prophets of
the Old Testament testify, such sin is reflected in the earth's suffering:
'The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers; the
heavens languish together with the earth. The earth lies polluted under
its inhabitants; for they have transgressed laws, violated the statutes,
broken the everlasting covenant' (Isaiah 24:4-5). 'Therefore the land
mourns, and all who live in it languish; together with the wild animals
and the birds of the air, even the fish of the sea are perishing' (Hosea
4:2-3). In other words, the environmental crisis amounts to a rebellion
against God and a rejection of the divine plan.
Despite the corruption of the environment and sinfulness of
humanity, grace continues to abound. Grace perfects nature. One of
Aquinas’ guiding principles is that “grace brings nature to completion.” 27
This sense of grace is what allows Aquinas to make connections
between creation and salvation.28 God’s grace continues to sustain
creation and humanity and preserves order from giving way to chaos.
God “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on
the just and on the unjust.” (Matt 5.45) Whether we are good or bad,
believing or unbelieving, moral or immoral, a magnificent mercy
encompasses us and cares for us and preserves our lives and our
world. Indeed, God’s sustaining grace encompasses not only the
universe but also each one of our individual lives.

26
 St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Contra Gentiles II. 2. 3
27
ST 1.1.8
28
Willis Jenkins, “Biodiversity and Salvation: Thomistic Roots for Environmental Ethics,” Journal
of Religion 83 (2003): 201–20.
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God uses the goodness, beauty and order of creation to remind

humanity of the blessings they regularly receive. But it seems humans
do not recognize nature as a blessing from God. We, instead, want to
use nature without God or against God. Nature suffers and is degraded.
The cure to environmental degradation is to heal the very nature of
human being. And God has the cure called grace which is fully revealed
in Christ Jesus. Only when we receive grace can we recognize these
blessings. Only then can we use nature with appreciation as gift for
meeting our needs. As we come to know creation as the realm of grace,
faith is affirmed. God’s abounding grace moves us to repentance. We
acknowledge our misuse and abuse of nature. We accept our
responsibility. We return to God. We are healed. And creation is
restored, renewed and transformed.

CONCLUSION
Aquinas teaching on the Christian doctrine of creation can guide
Catholics and Protestants in addressing the challenge of environmental
degradation. He may offer us something that we desperately need in
developing an environmental ethics that is faithful to the Christian
tradition. First, Aquinas affirms that God is the Creator. God is above
creation. But he sees an intimate relationship between God and
creation and the interconnection between humans and nonhumans.
This gives us the warrants to get involved in saving the planet and not
just the souls. Second, his emphasis on the goodness of creation helps
us value nature and use nature with care and respect. Third, Aquinas
reminds us that creation serves as a teaching tool to reveal God’s plan
and to expose human’s sinfulness when we abuse and misuse nature.
But it also reveals God’s sustaining grace that perfects nature. This
gives us hope.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologica, Benzinger Brother Edition,

1947 (Web. 1 Dec 2010
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/aquinas/summa.titlepage.html)
2. Aquinas,Thomas. Summa Contra Gentiles, translated by Anton C.
Pegis, James F. Anderson, Vernon J. Bourke, and Charles J. O'Neil
(Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1975), (Web 1
Dec 2010 http://dhspriory.org/thomas/ContraGentiles.htm
3. Barth, Karl. Chruch Dogmatics, volume 3/part 1, trans. Geoffrey
Bromiley (Edinburh: T & T Clark,, 1958
4. Barth, Karl. The Epistle to the Romans, trans. Edwyn C. Hoskyns
(London: Oxford University Press, 1935), p. 10.
5. Calvin, John, Institutes of the Christian Religion, trans. by Ford
Lewis Battles. Library of Christian Classics, Vol. XX-XXI.
Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1960.
6. Calvin, John. Institute of Christia Religion. I, v, 1, 2; Battles 51-
53
7. Hauerwas, Stanley. A Community of Character. (Notre Dame:
University of Notre Dame Press. 1981)
8. Maggay, Melba. Transforming Society. (Quezon City: Institute for
Studies in Asian Church and Culture. 1996)
9. Sider, Ronald J. “Redeeming the Environmentalists,” Christianity
Today [21 June 1993]: 26.
10. Singer, Peter. Animal Liberation: A New Ethics for Our Treatment
of Animals. (2nd ed. Ecco: New York, 2001.)
11. White, Lynn, Jr. “The Historical Roots of Our Ecologic Crisis.”
Science 155 (March 10, 1967): 1203–7.
12. Willis Jenkins, “Biodiversity and Salvation: Thomistic Roots for
Environmental Ethics,” Journal of Religion 83 (2003): 201–20.