Thomas Aquinas and Martin Luther on the Creating Power of Divine Love

Abstract

This paper expounds the different models that Martin Luther and Thomas Aquinas used to describe the creating power of divine love. Common to both concepts is the basic view that God’s love (genitivus subiectivus) changes man, that it brings about the love of God (genitivus obiectivus) and thus the conformity of the human with the divine will, so that being and life of the person (initially) correspond to God’s idea at creation. For Luther, this transformation means a radical turnaround, while for Thomas the change is in line with what man naturally wants. According to both, the Christian life owes itself entirely to God’s continuous and ongoing current action.