CU Theses
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- The Minister of Marriage in the Catholic Churches
- The Minister of Marriage in the Eastern and Latin Churches." The "conventional wisdom" is that in the Latin Church, the couple are the ministers of marriage and that in the Eastern Churches (because of our requirement for a priestly blessing) that the priest is the minister of the marriage. This is not correct. In both cases, the couple are the ministers of the marriage., Canon law, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America
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- Abel
- Abel;A chamber opera in two acts; Music and Libretto by Matthew R. Brown; Based upon Abel Sánchez (1917) by Miguel de Unamuno , Musical composition, Composition, Degree Awarded: M.M.--Composition. The Catholic University of America
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- The American Culture as a Cause of Error Concerning the Bonum Sacramenti
- The American culture is one that has been marked by an emphasis on the values of individualism and freedom; this can be observed through the development of the culture up to the present age. The emphasis on individualism and freedom has impacted the ways that Americans understand marriage, in particular, the role that divorce plays in the understanding of marriage. This can be seen through the development of divorce law in the United States. The acceptance of divorce has eroded the understanding of marriage as an indissoluble reality which has led to many influenced by the culture accepting the erroneous idea that marriage is, in fact, dissoluble. This has impacted the formulation of matrimonial consent for many Americans. The error that marriage can be dissolved can impact the will which can result in an invalid marriage. In particular, these errors could lead to partial simulation excluding the bonum sacramenti (c.1101) or even to determining error (c. 1099)., Canon law, American Culture, Divorce Law, Error, Marriage Nullity, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America
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- An Analysis of the Hierarchy of Authentic Magisterial Teachings Presented in Canon 750 and 752
- In the code of canon law for the Latin Church, the teachings of the Church are divided into a hierarchy which distinguishes doctrines according to the authority of each teaching's source. Cc. 750 and 752 define three levels of magisterial teachings: those which have been divinely revealed, those proposed definitively by the Magisterium, and those authoritatively declared by the pope or college of bishops. These canons also prescribe the duty of Latin Catholics to respond with a distinct degree of assent or submission to doctrines at each level. This hierarchy of teaching has developed across the history of the Church, and the study of the same provides important insight necessary for assessing the present canons and fully interpreting the required response of the Christian faithful., Canon law, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America
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- The Application of the Canonical Presumption of Innocence during the Preliminary Investigation of an Alleged Delict Contra Sextum with a Minor: Canon 1321.1
- The recent revision of Book VI of the 1983 Code of Canon Law has brought with it various updates and improvements. Among these is the introduction of the presumption of innocence in canon 1321 §1. While the stated legal presumption of innocence in the universal law of the Church is a welcomed addition, it is also a source of curiosity among canonists. What kind of presumption is it? Who enjoys this presumption? What does it mean to speak of “innocence”? The current project aims to elucidate these questions and point to ways in which the presumption of innocence could be applied within the canonical system. , Canon law, Law, Canon 1321, Precautionary Measures, Preliminary Investigation, Presumption of Innocence, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America
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- Aquinas and Ulrich on Being as Gift
- The goal of this thesis is to illuminate the gift of God's giving of esse creatum to existing things as understood by Thomas Aquinas and Ferdinand Ulrich. Each chapter opens with a brief exposition of Aquinas on gift, followed by a metaphysical unpacking of the elements involved in proving creation to be a gift. After unpacking the terms at play, the metaphysical thought of Aquinas and Ulrich will be explored to argue that the characteristic of gift in question is true of creation. Ferdinand Ulrich takes Aquinas as master, but richly explores and develops Aquinas’s thought in dialogue with other contemporary philosophers including Hegel, Nietszche, and Heidegger; consequently, while Ulrich is very faithful to Aquinas’s metaphysical thought, Ulrich’s metaphysics sometimes goes beyond that of Aquinas in a speculative and idiosyncratic manner. (1) In the first chapter of my thesis, I will present how the gift of esse creatum really belongs to God the giver, as His gift to give. Presenting how esse creatum really belongs to God the giver entails exploring what is meant by esse as well as the relationship between esse and the divine through examining exemplar causality, Ulrich’s notion of “ideality,” the non-subsistence of being, and the crucial theme of participation. (2) After analyzing how the gift really belongs to God, the second part of my thesis will address how the gift of esse is really and freely given away by God. I will explore creation as a communication without loss and as a relation between Creator and creature, along with Ulrich’s notions of the “movement of finitization” and the “for-nothing” aspect of creation. (3) In the third part of my paper, I will turn to creatures and consider how God gives esse to creatures to have as their own. To scrutinize this element of gift, I will analyze Ulrich’s “moment of reality” in conjunction with Aquinas’s thoughts on the relationship between esse and essence and the question of multiplicity. I will then address Ulrich’s thought on the “uncaused character of being.” (4) Finally, in the fourth chapter, I will examine how God the giver is, in a certain sense, present to creatures in the gift of esse creatum that creatures really possess. In this section I will explore Ulrich’s notion of “bonicity.” The overall investigation of this thesis will not only prove that creation is a gratuitous gift of the Creator, but will also provide the reader with a metaphysical lens through which to view all elements of reality as gift., Metaphysics, Philosophy, Aquinas, Creation, Gift, God, Metaphysics, Ulrich, Philosophy, Degree Awarded: Ph.L.--Philosophy. The Catholic University of America
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- Aquinas on the Possibility of Comprehending God: The Extent to Which the Divine Essence Can be Known by the Human Intellect in the Beatific Vision
- Philosophers and theologians have debated for centuries about man’s ultimate end. Aristotle postulated that man’s end was primarily intellectual. The early ideas of human happiness in Christianity did not depend upon man’s intellect, but instead argued that some sort of union with God would be sufficient for human happiness. In the 13th century, Thomas Aquinas attempted to reconcile these two traditions. Aquinas postulates that man has two ends, one natural and one supernatural. While it is only through Divine intervention that man may attain or even know of the supernatural end, Aquinas thought that anyone could obtain the natural end. Both ends, according to Aquinas, are intellectual. The natural end is that of understanding the world, and the supernatural end is an intellectual union with God whereby man comes to direct knowledge of God in His essence. When man learns of God’s grace through revelation, man’s end is no longer merely natural, but instead it is the knowledge of God. In order to make this move, Aquinas relied not only upon Aristotle and the Christian tradition but also arguably upon the Aristotelian tradition as understood by Arabic philosophers such as Averroes. , Metaphysics, Epistemology, Philosophy of Religion, Agent Intellect, Aquinas, Beatific Vision, Comprehension, Intention, Possible Intellect, Philosophy, Degree Awarded: M.A.--Philosophy. The Catholic University of America
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- Aquinas on the Ratio of Res as a Transcendental
- I interpret Aquinas’s texts and doctrines on semantics, the transcendentals, and the meaning of the term ‘res’ to determine his account or ratio of the transcendental res or ‘thing.’ A thing is a being that has an essence or quiddity. The forma significata of the name ‘thing’ or ‘res’ is essence taken most generally, insofar as it is analogously common to all beings in all ten categories.In my first chapter, I examine Aquinas’s doctrine on the transcendentals in general and his affirmation that res is a transcendental. In my second chapter, I examine the doctrine on signification and semantics that Thomas presupposes, and consider three key texts in which he discusses the signification of the transcendental res: Aquinas’s Commentary on Peter Lombard’s Sentences, b. 1, d. 25, q. 1, a. 4; b. 2, d. 37, q. 1, a. 1, and Aquinas’s Commentary on Aristotle’s Metaphysics, b. 4 c. 2. In my third chapter, since all transcendentals express a general mode of being not expressed by the name and notion ‘being,’ I examine three options for understanding how ‘res’ expresses essence in a way not expressed by ‘being.’ First, I argue against understanding res as a negative transcendental, that is, as expressing essence insofar as essence is a kind of non-being. Second, I argue that it is possibly but less probably correct to understand ‘being’ as already expressing essence but emphasizing existence, while ‘res’ emphasizes essence. Third, I argue for understanding the transcendental ‘res’ as an affirmative transcendental, expressing essence insofar as essence taken generally is an actuality or perfection not already expressed by the name and notion ‘being.’ , Metaphysics, Logic, aquinas, essence, res, signification, thing, transcendental, Philosophy, Degree Awarded: Ph.L.--Philosophy. The Catholic University of America
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- Aquinas on Truth as the Foundation of Language
- In this thesis, I aim to present Thomas Aquinas’s semantic theory and its relationship to his understanding of truth. For the sake of clarifying certain themes in the Thomistic approach, I briefly offer an alternative account of the same subject in the work of Willard Van Orman Quine. Finally, I have sought to differentiate Aquinas’s semantic theory from that of Quine by emphasizing two features of Aquinas’s account that are less prominent in Quine’s account: the place of concepts in our understanding of discourse; and the presence of truth within different components of language. The former point highlights the value of the semantic triangle; the latter point reaches into the perhaps deeper question of how truth is made manifest in speech., Philosophy, Medieval Semantics, Semantic Triangle, Speech-Act Theory, Thomas Aquinas, Willard Van Orman Quine, Philosophy, Degree Awarded: Ph.L.--Philosophy. The Catholic University of America
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- Argent Mass
- Mass for SATB chorus and Orchestra, Musical composition, Chorus, Mass, Orchestra, Composition, Degree Awarded: M.M.--Composition. The Catholic University of America
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- The Ars interrogandi in the Judicial Examination (cc. 1534; 1558–1571)
- The instruction phase is a crucial part of the canonical judicial process, as it is particularly aimed at uncovering the truth of the controverted matter by providing the judge(s) the proofs necessary to make a correct judgment. Canon law envisions that most of the proofs in a trial usually come from judicial examinations of parties and witnesses. The norms governing the judicial examination help to ensure that it is carried out in a way that is just and aimed at uncovering the truth. Beyond these norms—and in accordance with them—there is also the ars interrogandi, the art of questioning which best uncovers the truth. This paper seeks to develop the art of questioning in the judicial examination, drawing from both canonical and forensic literature., Canon law, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America
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- Blessed are They Who are Persecuted: Finding the Beatitude Promised by Christ in the Midst of Suffering
- Since antiquity, philosophers have considered questions about ethics in relation to the question of what constitutes human happiness. In Greek thought, especially that of Aristotle, the concept of eudaimonia, or happiness, was linked to the practice of virtue. Thus, the virtuous life was a happy life. This relationship, however, is not always that simple. Many things can occur within a lifetime which are the result of fortune or chance, and this fact seems to undermine the basic connection of virtuous choice with happiness. Furthermore, many of the philosophical schools held that it would be better to suffer evil, even death, than to do evil. In these cases, the pursuit of virtue leads directly to persecution and death, which seems most at odds with the concept of happiness.These questions are relevant and have value within the context of Christian morality as well. Following recent moral theologians such as Servais Pinckaers, O.P., there has been a recovery in Catholic moral theology of a morality of happiness, a view in which the virtues and the acts which they generate are intrinsically linked with happiness in this life and the life to come. This recovery has relied on the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas, who made great use of the philosophy of Aristotle as he articulated his theology. This use of philosophy was made subservient to the revealed truths of faith, particularly as found in Scripture. Beyond the basic contours of virtue and happiness as found in the Greek and Roman philosophers, Aquinas would consider the distinctly Christian elements of eternal life and the grace of the Holy Spirit, using the work of the Fathers of the Church and earlier Scholastic authors. Within the development of Catholic moral theology, the Sermon on the Mount emerged as an important Scriptural text. The Beatitudes at the beginning of the Sermon would occupy an especially important place in the life of grace of the disciple of Christ. While Catholic moral thought reserves perfect happiness for the life of the blessed in Heaven, the life of virtue perfected by the Gifts of the Holy Spirit is the beginning of happiness now. This requires Catholic moral theology to address the same questions as earlier philosophy regarding the possibility of happiness when the virtuous life leads to, or cannot prevent, suffering. In this thesis, I examine the basic structure of Aquinas’ theology on happiness and virtue, giving particular attention to his sources, especially the Philosopher. I then look to some of the debates within recent Thomistic scholarship on the place of chance and fortune in his thought, together with the potential for suffering and personal struggle in the pursuit of virtue. Afterwards, I look to situate the Beatitudes, which seem to contradict the philosophical wisdom of Aristotle, within the nexus of graced action that Aquinas elaborates in the Prima Secundae of his Summa Theologiae. Finally, I carefully examine each Beatitude within Aquinas’ account, relying on some modern authors, in order to establish their connection with happiness, even in spite of the suffering which they often seem to imply. My conclusion is that the life of grace, considered within the framework of virtue and happiness, makes possible the beginnings of a real, albeit imperfect, happiness in this life. , Theology, Moral Theology/Ethics, Degree Awarded: S.T.L. Moral Theology/Ethics. The Catholic University of America
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- Building Information Modeling for Civil Infrastructure
- Building Information Modeling (BIM) is an information-sharing platform for exchanging and modifying building data, easily accessible by engineers, architects, and project managers. BIM enables teams of engineers and stakeholders to collaborate in a single platform, visualizing modifications in real-time, combining data from different sources, and storing all the design files in the same place. While BIM is highly utilized to design vertical structures (i.e., buildings), the use of BIM for horizontal infrastructures (i.e., bridges and roads) is still in its infancy. This thesis presents a review of the historical development and recent advances in applying BIM to civil infrastructure, including the design and asset management of bridges and roads. In this context, an overview of BIM is first provided to determine appropriate tools to apply BIM technology to civil infrastructure. Then, a state-of-the-art review of the applications of the BIM paradigm is presented, with a focus on the local and state Department of Transportation in the United States. The review includes examples where BIM was employed for the design and management of new and existing infrastructure. Challenges of bringing BIM into infrastructure design and management are identified, highlighting future opportunities. Finally, a case study of the BIM paradigm applied to a pilot bridge project in the Washington DC area is presented. To this end, BIM was leveraged to solve utility conflicts and facilitate clash analysis. , Civil engineering, Engineering, BIM for Asset Management, BIM for bridges, BIM for Roads and Highways, Building information modeling for civil infrastructure, Building information modeling for infrastructure, Building information modeling for transportation infrastructure, Civil Engineering, Degree Awarded: M.S.E. Civil Engineering. The Catholic University of America
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- Canon 1222: The Relegation of a Church Building to Profane but not Sordid Use
- This thesis examines the two paragraphs of canon 1222 regarding the relegation of church buildings to profane but not sordid use. The first chapter analyzes the canon itself, its history, and its contents. It, therefore, considers what conditions must be in place in order for a bishop to relegate a church. The second paragraph deals with the procedures to be followed in issuing the decree of relegation. The third chapter examines the right of recourse against the decree and the juridic effects of the decree of relegation, especially its execution and the eventual alienation of the church building, if that is to be done., Canon law, Canon 1222, Church Building, Relegation, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America
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- Canon 273 - Clerical Obedience
- Canonical Obedience Towards One's Bishop and its Application, Canon law, Canon Law, Degree Awarded: J.C.L. Canon Law. The Catholic University of America