Philosophy the Handmaid of Theology · §38 · Robert Baron

Whether there is faith in demons

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Article XI. Whether there is faith in demons.

1. Do demons have faith? James 2:19 — the demons believe and tremble — shows some faith is in them.

2. Distinguish: theirs is historical or dogmatic faith — intellective assent to what God revealed — not justifying or fiducial faith. They believe that God is and that much about Christ is true; they do not rest on Christ as Savior or love God.

3. So Augustine and the Scholastics: demons' faith is without love and trust — dead, and of no avail for salvation. Saving faith in adults is inseparable from charity and trust.

4. Is demons' faith an infused habit? Rather it is knowledge from experience and revelations, not a habit of grace — sanctifying grace is not in them.

Latin

ART. XI. An in Daemonibus sit fides. 1. Quaeritur an daemones fidem habeant. Scriptura dicit, Jacob.2.19. daemones credunt & contremiscunt. Unde colligitur iis inesse aliquam fidem. 2. Distinguendum tamen est: fides quae daemonibus inest, est fides historica seu dogmatica — assensus intellectus de veritate eorum quae DEUS revelavit — non fides justificans seu fiducialis. Credunt DEUM esse, & multa de CHRISTO vera esse; sed non recumbunt in CHRISTUM ut Salvatorem, nec amant DEUM. 3. Unde Augustinus & Scholastici: fides daemonum est sine dilectione & sine fiducia; ideoque mortua est, & ad salutem non confert. Fides salvifica formatur charitate (ut loquuntur), seu potius a charitate & fiducia inseparabilis est in adultis. 4. Bonaventura & alii quaerunt an fides daemonum sit fidei habitus infusus. Respondemus eam potius esse notitiam acquisitam ex experientia & revelationibus, non habitum gratiae; nam gratia sanctificans daemonibus non inest.

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About this text

Robert Baron, Philosophia theologiae ancillans (Philosophy in Service to Theology): exercises on being and essence, on the origin of the soul and the spread of sin, and on faith, science, and opinion, rendered from the 1658 Latin.

Dateby 1621 AD (first printed at St Andrews, 1621; this text is from the corrected Oxford reprint of 1658; Reformed)

English follows 1658 Oxford Latin. Prima Art. I-XII from IA PDF leaves ~15-53. Secunda Art. I-XV from PDF leaves 56-107 / printed pp.54-105 (tess+pdftotext+DjVu). No modern English copied. The third exercise, on faith, science, and opinion, is included.

Reference

Wing B887. IA bim_early-english-books-1641-1700_philosophia-theologi-an_baron-robert_1658. Exercitatio Prima Art. I-XII; Exercitatio Secunda Art. I-XV (De origine animae & propagatione peccati). Exercitatio Tertia Art. I-XXX is included.

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