Luis de Molina (29 September 1535 – 12 October 1600) was a Spanish

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

Catholic priest, jurist, economist and theologian renowned for his contributions to philosophy and economics within the framework of the second scholasticism. A prominent member of the School of Salamanca, pioneered a distinctive theory of divine grace and human freedom known as Molinism, which defends human autonomy in the face of divine omniscience. His pro-liberty perspectives influenced not only theological debates on

free will Free will is generally understood as the capacity or ability of people to (a) choice, choose between different possible courses of Action (philosophy), action, (b) exercise control over their actions in a way that is necessary for moral respon ...

but also extended to economic and political thought, making him an intellectual precursor to individual rights and market dynamics. His work in developing early economic principles, particularly regarding human action, voluntarism, and

property rights The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership), is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their Possession (law), possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely ...

, laid a foundation that later contributed to Austrian economic theory and the evolution of modern libertarian thought.

Life

Born into a noble and wealthy family in Castile, Luis de Molina followed the aspirations of his parents who wanted him to become a jurist. After learning Latin and literature at the Cathedral School of Cuenca, he enrolled at the

University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca () is a public university, public research university in Salamanca, Spain. Founded in 1218 by Alfonso IX of León, King Alfonso IX, it is the oldest university in the Hispanic world and the fourth oldest in the ...

. During his studies, Molina discovered the Spiritual Exercises of

Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola ( ; ; ; ; born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Basque Spaniard Catholic priest and theologian, who, with six companions, founded the religious order of the S ...

, which led him to join the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

and abandon his law studies. In 1553, he became a

novice A novice is a person who has entered a religious order and is under probation, before taking vows. A ''novice'' can also refer to a person (or animal e.g. racehorse) who is entering a profession with no prior experience. Religion Buddhism ...

Alcalá de Henares Alcalá de Henares () is a Spanish municipality of the Community of Madrid. Housing is primarily located on the right (north) bank of the Henares River, Henares. , it has a population of 193,751, making it the region's third-most populated Municip ...

, where he showed a taste and talent for Christian philosophy. In 1554, he was sent by his superiors to study philosophy at the

university of Coimbra The University of Coimbra (UC; , ) is a Public university, public research university in Coimbra, Portugal. First established in Lisbon in 1290, it went through a number of relocations until moving permanently to Coimbra in 1537. The university ...

. Following the advice of Pedro da Fonseca, he continued his studies after obtaining his master's degree in 1558 in order to become a priest and obtain a doctorate in theology. Between 1563 and 1567, he was a professor of philosophy and theology in Coimbra. At the request of their superiors, Molina and Fonseca then left to teach at the University of the Holy Spirit in Évora. After expounding his theological views in his work ''Liberi Arbitrii cum Gratiae Donis, Divina Praescientia, Providentia, Praedestinatione et Reprobatione Concordia'', better known simply as Concordia and which was a commentary on the first part of the '' Summa Theologiae'' of

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

, he was violently attacked by Tomas de Lemos and Domingo Báñez. The latter went so far as to denounce Molina to the

Spanish Inquisition The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition () was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile and lasted until 1834. It began toward the end of ...

. As a result, he returned to his village of Cuenca to serve as a parish priest and write his major work, ''De iure et iustitia''. In 1597,

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII (; ; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 January 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born in Fano, Papal States to a prominen ...

asked Cardinal Michele Bonelli to gather theologians to verify the conformity of Molinism with the Catholic faith. Taking the name of Congregatio de Auxiliis, this assembly would sit until 1607, when

Paul V Pope Paul V (; ) (17 September 1552 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a mem ...

declared this doctrine acceptable. Sent to Madrid in 1600 by his superiors to teach moral theology at the

university of Alcalá The University of Alcalá () is a public university located in Alcalá de Henares, a city 35 km (22 miles) northeast of Madrid in Spain and also the third-largest city of the region. It was founded in 1293 as a ''Studium Generale'' for t ...

. He died in that city on October 12, 1600.

Doctrine

Molinism

It is to the first of these that his fame is principally due. It was an attempt to reconcile, in words at least, the Augustinian doctrines of

predestination Predestination, in theology, is the doctrine that all events have been willed by God, usually with reference to the eventual fate of the individual soul. Explanations of predestination often seek to address the paradox of free will, whereby Go ...

and efficacious grace with the new ideals of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

concerning

. Assuming that man is free to perform or not to perform any act whatever, Molina maintains that this circumstance renders the grace of God neither unnecessary nor impossible: not impossible, for God never fails to bestow grace upon those who ask it with sincerity; and not unnecessary, for grace, although not an efficient, is still a sufficient cause of salvation (''gratia mere sufficiens'', "merely sufficient grace"). Nor, in Molina's view, does his doctrine of free will exclude predestination. The omniscient God, by means of His ''scientia media'' ("middle knowledge", a phrase of Molina's invention, though the idea is also to be found in his older contemporary Fonseca), or power of knowing future contingent events, foresees how we shall employ our own free-will and treat his proffered grace, and upon this foreknowledge he can found his predestinating decrees. These doctrines, which opposed both traditional understanding of Augustinism and

Thomism Thomism is the philosophical and theological school which arose as a legacy of the work and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), the Dominican philosopher, theologian, and Doctor of the Church. In philosophy, Thomas's disputed ques ...

concerning the respective roles of free will and efficacious grace, and the teachings of

Martin Luther Martin Luther ( ; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, Theology, theologian, author, hymnwriter, professor, and former Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. Luther was the seminal figure of the Reformation, Pr ...

and

John Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French Christian theology, theologian, pastor and Protestant Reformers, reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of C ...

, excited violent controversy in some quarters, especially on the part of the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers (, abbreviated OP), commonly known as the Dominican Order, is a Catholic Church, Catholic mendicant order of pontifical right that was founded in France by a Castilians, Castilian priest named Saint Dominic, Dominic de Gu ...

and of the Jansenists, and at last rendered it necessary for the Pope ( Clement VIII) to intervene. At first (1594) he simply enjoined silence on both parties so far as Spain was concerned; but ultimately, in 1598, he appointed the Congregatio de auxiliis Gratiae for the settlement of the dispute, which became more and more a party one. After holding very numerous sessions, the congregation was able to decide nothing, and in 1607 its meetings were suspended by

, who in 1611 prohibited all further discussion of the question de auxiliis and of discussions about efficacious grace, and studious efforts were made to control the publication even of commentaries on Aquinas. Several regent Masters of the Dominican College of St. Thomas, the future Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas (''Angelicum''), were involved in the Molinist controversy. The Dominicans Diego Álvarez (c. 1550–1635), author of the ''De auxiliis divinae gratiae et humani arbitrii viribus'', and Tomás de Lemos (1540–1629) were given the responsibility of representing the

in debates before

and Pope Paul V.

Contract law

Although he is a convinced supporter of contractual consensualism, Molina remains aware of the differences that still exist between civil law and canon law, but calls for their disappearance. With his opinions, he also prepares the emergence of a theory of the autonomy of the will, later formulated by Pedro de Oñate. Like most members of the School of Salamanca, he discusses the respect of the principles of equity and commutative justice in contractual exchanges, which he considers fundamental. Discussing the “ diamond-water paradox”, Molina cogitated a theory of just price where the utility wasn't take into account. Thus, in his ''De jure et Justitia'' he said, “the just price of a pearl, which can be used only to decorate, is higher than the just price of grain, bread, or horses, even if the utility of these things is superior.” Furthermore, he discusses the effect of defects of consent on the validity of contractual commitments and allows, with Lessius, to distinctly separate the matters of contract law and testamentary law.

Economy

In his writings on economics, Molina helped further develop a theory of price inflation proposed by Juan de Medina and Martín de Azpilcueta in Salamanca, writing that " equal circumstances, the more abundant money is in one place, so much less is its value to buy things or to acquire things that are not money."Luis de Molina,
A Treatise on Money
''. CLP Academic, 2015, p.96.

Works

*''De liberi arbitrii cum gratiae donis, divina praescientia, praedestinatione et reprobatione concordia'', 4 vols., Lisbona, 1588; 2nd ed. Antwerp, 1595. * *''De jure et justitia'', 6 vols., 1593–1609. ** ** ** ** ** * ** File:Molina, Luis de – De Hispanorum primogeniorum origine ac natura, 1588 – BEIC 4510384.jpg, ''De Hispanorum primogeniorum origine ac natura'', 1588 File:Molina - De iustitia et iure, 1733 - 4495353.tif, ''De iustitia et iure'', 1733

Notes

References

* *

by Alfred J. Freddoso on Luis Molina's thoughts.

from ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' (1911)

from ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' (1911) * Ulrich L. Lehner (ed.), ''Die scholastische Theologie im Zeitalter der Gnadenstreitigkeiten'' (monograph series, first volume: 2007) https://web.archive.org/web/20070812004619/http://www.bautz.de/rfn.html * Luis de Molina,
A Treatise on Money
'. CLP Academic, 2015.

External links

*
Luis de Molina in the Historical Archives of the Pontifical Gregorian University''On Divine Foreknowledge: Part IV of the Concordia''
at the Internet Archive {{DEFAULTSORT:Molina, Luis 1535 births 1600 deaths 16th-century Spanish Jesuits 16th-century Spanish jurists 16th-century Spanish male writers 16th-century Spanish philosophers 16th-century Spanish Roman Catholic theologians Academic staff of the University of Évora Catholic philosophers Jesuit philosophers Jesuit theologians People from Cuenca, Spain School of Salamanca Spanish male non-fiction writers Spanish Roman Catholic writers University of Coimbra alumni University of Salamanca alumni