Kon cepcja rado ści w SumIE TeologiI św. To masza z Akwinu

The purpose of this article is to present the development of Thomas Aquinas’sconcept of joy in the subsequent parts of Summa theologiae. Beginning with thedescription of joy as simple movements of the soul, Thomas comes to present theconcept of spiritual joy, which is fundamental to the human visio beatifica. Therefore,the article is divided into three parts, which discuss Aquinas’s accounts ofjoy: Prima secundae, Secunda secundae and Tertia pars. The first part focuses onthe inclusion of joy as experience and feeling. Joy here is understood as one of thefeelings of the sensitive power is considered in the perspective of human emotionality(vis concupiscibilis). Joy that comes from satisfying the lack of sensory goodsis called pleasure (delectatio). It differs from the joy of affection (gaudium) – theintellectual and spiritual affrct, to which the second part of the article is dedicated.Spiritual joy does not include the sensory-corporal component, and it superimposesitself over purely intelligible beings. Thomas clearly emphasizes that only Godcan be the cause of spiritual joy. This perspective allows Aquinas to develop hisconcept of theology of joy in the next part of Summa (III pars), which is devotedin the last part of this text. The emotionality of Christ is the central problem forThomas here. These considerations throw a lot of light not only on the supernaturalapproach to joy, but also on the ways in which joy – the fruit of the Holy Spirit canbe experienced by a human being in hac via.