Course of Theology - Volume IX - João Poinsot

This ninth volume of John of St. Thomas’s Course of Theology continues his systematic Thomistic treatment of the moral and supernatural life, bringing the study of virtue toward its practical and sacramental completion, in the tradition of Thomas Aquinas.

The work focuses on the vices and sins that oppose the virtuous life, especially mortal and venial sin. John of St. Thomas analyzes sin as a privation of due order in human acts, explaining its formal structure, causes, and effects on the soul’s relationship with God.

A significant portion is devoted to the dynamics of moral responsibility, including ignorance, passion, habit, and external coercion as factors affecting voluntariness. He carefully distinguishes between imputability and diminished culpability while maintaining a strict account of moral order.

The volume also examines the effects of sin, such as loss of grace, disorder in the faculties, and the weakening of the moral life. It further prepares the ground for sacramental healing, particularly through penance as the remedy for sin.

Throughout, Poinsot applies his characteristic scholastic rigor, using precise distinctions to analyze moral failure and its consequences. The result is a structured account of sin as a disorder within the rational creature, contrasted with the ordered life of virtue under grace.