Potuit, Decuit, Fecit

Homily for the Memorial of Bl. John Duns Scotus

On the sarcophagus that holds the body of Blessed John Duns Scotus there is a short poem. The English translation of this poem sums up his entire life and reads: “Scotland brought me forth. England sustained me. France taught me. Cologne holds me.” The poem can be misleading because he was educated in England at Oxford University and taught in France at the University of Paris. Scotus's great work is his commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard, which contains nearly all the philosophical views and arguments for which he is well known.

Perhaps the most influential point of Duns Scotus's theology was his defense of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. At the time, there was a great deal of argument about the subject. The general opinion was that it was appropriately deferential to the Mother of God, but it could not be seen how to resolve the problem that only with Christ's death would the stain of original sin be removed. The great philosophers and theologians of the West were divided on the subject. Indeed, even Thomas Aquinas sided with those who denied the doctrine. Citing Anselm of Canterbury's principle, "potuit, decuit, ergo fecit" (He [i.e., God] could do it, it was appropriate, therefore He did it), Duns Scotus devised the following argument: Mary was in need of redemption like all other human beings, but through the merits of Jesus' crucifixion, given in advance, she was conceived without the stain of original sin.

It would take more than five hundred years for his argument to be accepted as dogma for the Catholic faith. Pope Pius IX proclaimed this dogma in 1854, and he also declared Scotus's position as "a correct expression of the faith of the Apostles." Another of Scotus's positions also gained official approval of the Catholic Church in 1925 when his doctrine on the universal primacy of Christ became the underlying rationale for the feast of Christ the King. In 1993, Pope St. John Paul II, known for his great devotion to the Blessed Mother, beatified Scotus and instituted his memorial on November 8.

The Gospel text for this particular Tuesday in the thirty-second week of Ordinary Time asks us to consider an appropriate attitude among servants (which we obviously are). The Gospel points us toward the virtue of humility, a virtue that we can see exemplified in the life of this Franciscan friar who persevered in his love of philosophy and theology, as well as of the Blessed Mother, despite the fact that he was not recognized for his tremendous contribution until long after his death. In fact, the controversy regarding his position on the Immaculate Conception probably led to his unexpected removal from the faculty of the University of Paris, after which he was sent to Cologne, Germany, where he died shortly thereafter. Today he is known as the “subtle doctor” for his great contribution to the faith of Catholics everywhere.