Concordia of the Free Will - 4, 5 & 6

Luis de Molina's Concordia of Free Will (Parts 4, 5, and 6)Luis de Molina’sConcordia liberi arbitrii, first published in 1588, remains a cornerstone of 16th-century theology and philosophy, emerging amid the intellectual vitality of Iberian scholasticism and the Catholic response to the Reformation. This monumental work addresses the challenge of reconciling human freedom with divine grace, foreknowledge, providence, predestination, and reprobation—sparking the famousDe Auxiliiscontroversy within the Catholic Church.This volume presents Parts 4, 5, and 6 of theConcordia, which explore Molina’s mature reflections on divine knowledge, will, and providence.Part 4: On Divine Foreknowledgeexamines how contingency—the possibility that something may or may not occur—can coexist with God’s infallible knowledge of future events. Molina, following Thomas Aquinas yet diverging from some of his interpreters, affirms that all things existing in time are eternally present to God. However, he denies that divine foreknowledge arises merely from this eternal presence. Instead, he introduces his doctrine ofscientia media(middle knowledge), according to which God knows, with certainty, what every free creature would choose under any possible set of circumstances. This knowledge precedes every act of the divine will, preserving both the certainty of divine foreknowledge and the freedom of created will.Part 5: On the Will of Godexplores how divine volition relates to salvation and sin. Interpreting 1 Timothy 2—“God wills that all men be saved”—Molina distinguishes between God’s antecedent (conditional) and consequent (absolute) wills. By His antecedent will, God sincerely desires the salvation of all, provided they do not resist His grace. By His consequent will, He decrees what accords with His justice, such as the punishment of sinners for their demerits. Molina maintains that not all conditionally willed goods are realized, but all absolutely willed outcomes are. He also insists that God is not the cause of sin: while He permits e