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80. The Appetitive Human Faculties

1. Everything has an inclination towards what accords withits nature; this inclination or tendency is called appetency orappetite. Things that lack knowledge have naturalappetency only; this is exampled in the tendency of a plant togrow, of a body to cohere, of a stone to fall to the ground. Livingbodies that have knowledge (animals and men) have, in addition tonatural appetency, tendencies that are roused in them by theirknowing, by their cognition; these are cognitionalappetites. Cognitional appetency is of two orders: the order ofsense, and the order of intellect. Sentient or sensitive appetencyinclines animal or man towards what is sensed as good or desirable,and away from what is sensed as evil or harmful. Intellectualappetency inclines intelligent creatures (angels and men) towardswhat is intellectually understood as good, and away from what isunderstood as evil. The intellectual appetency or appetite iscalled the will.

2. The will is a faculty distinct from the sentientappetite, for it belongs to the intellective order, not thesensitive order. These two appetites sometimes conflict, as, forexample, when a Catholic has hunger (i.e., sentient appetite) formeat on Friday, but wills not to eat it.

"It is vanity to love what passes quickly and not to look ahead where eternal joy abides. "
Thomas á Kempis

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"We must not be behind time in doing good; for death will not be behind his time. "
St Phillip Neri

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"Shun too great a desire for knowledge, for in it there is much fretting and delusion. Intellectuals like to appear learned and to be called wise. Yet there are many things the knowledge of which does little or no good to the soul, and he who concerns himself about other things than those which lead to salvation is very unwise. "
Thomas á Kempis

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