Chapter 14: On the life of God; second-genus attributes; definition
CHAPTER FOURTEEN. On the life of God.
The former attributes agree and declare God's absolute perfection as a being negatively: now there follow attributes of the second genus, which affirmatively note God's highest perfection as spiritually living — that is, evidently with respect to intelligent life. And these exist in God as principles of actions; for which cause they are also attributed to creatures, not indeed as they are in God with the degree of supereminence, but in their own limited mode, namely by participation and according to some likeness, which still infinitely falls short of God's perfection.
Hence it is that men are said to be made in God's image (Genesis 1:27) and to become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4). But these second-genus attributes are affirmative, because first and formally they indicate a positive perfection, and therefore are also rather conceived and expounded by us through affirmation or position. Yet the mode of supereminence added to them always includes a negation. The life of God is His highest perfection, by which His essence is excellently active.
Latin
CAPUT DECIMUM QUARTUM, De vita Dei. Conveniunt et absolutam perfectionem Dei, ut entis, negative declarant: nunc sequuntur attributa secundi generis, quae affirmative notant summam perfectionem Dei, ut spiritualiter viventis, hoc est, evidenter respectu vitae intelligentis. Atque haec veluti principia actionum existunt in Deo; qua de causa etiam creaturis tribuuntur, non quidem ut in Deo sunt, cum gradu supereminentiae, sed suo et limitato modo, per participationem videlicet et secundum aliquam similitudinem, quae tamen a Dei perfectione infinite deficit. Hinc est quod homines ad imaginem Dei conditi, Gen. I.27, et naturae divinae consortes fieri, II Pet. I.4, dicuntur. Sunt autem haec secundi generis attributa affirmativa, quia primo et formaliter perfectionem positivam indicant, ac propterea etiam per affirmationem seu positionem potius a nobis concipiuntur et exponuntur. Modus tamen supereminentiae, qui illis adjicitur, semper negationem includit. Vita Dei est summa illius perfectio, qua essentia ipsius excellenter actuosa est.