On the Sources of Merit of the Active and Contemplative Lives. A Comparative Study
On the Sources of Merit of the Active and Contemplative Lives. A Comparative Study

Summary/Abstract: The article is concerned with the question of which life is the best kind of life to live – the active life or the contemplative life. Its point of departure is Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics; there, he concludes that the contemplative life is superior to the active life because it is a life that is more divine in character. For Aristotle, the contemplative life divinizes man because it is a life lived most in accordance with reason, which is the highest and most divine element in man, and it is a life which most resembles the life of God. But since Christ, and with the introduction of grace into the lives of the faithful, it seems that both the active and the contemplative lives acquire a kind of divine character when lived in accordance with God’s will. For this reason, Aristotle’s conclusion must be re-evaluated in light of the Incarnation. The thesis shows how Aristotle’s conclusion is in fact confirmed by Christ in the Martha and Mary story, where he says that Mary’s contemplative role is the “better part” in comparison with Martha’s action. This point, that the contemplative life is generically more meritorious than the active life, is brought out by the Church Doctors and is shown to be reinforced by the lives and writings of the active saints. Indeed, the contemplative life is found to be the best kind of life that man can live, and contemplation is the source of merit for the active and contemplative lives alike.

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