Naturalne pragnienie Boga według św. Tomasza z Akwinu i idea dowodu eudajmonistycznego

St. Thomas Aquinas’s notions of the good and desire are inextricably connected with his theory of being. Therefore, a correct understanding of desire, and particularly of what St. Thomas understands by the natural desire for happiness, requires an examination of his metaphysical theory. The analysis of these notions also require an examination of St. Thomas’s anthropology, especially of the problem of the unity of body and soul and the structure of the human faculties. Rational desire is, alongside knowledge, one of the two spiritual activities of man. It can be satisfied only by an infinite good, which alone can bring complete and lasting happiness. Since according to St. Thomas no natural desire, and in particular the desire for happiness, can be vain, the analysis of the natural pursuit of happiness can become the basis for another argument for the existence of God: The desire would be futile if God did not exist. Traces of such an argument, called the eudaimonic argument, can already be found in St. Augustine, who also considered the desire for happiness to be a necessary aspect of human nature and capable of being satisfied only by God.