Article First. On the Nature of Charity of Self

65. Notions. 1. Self-love which is an innate appetite must be distinguished from self-love which is a moral act. Man by natural necessity is borne toward his own conservation, his own perfection, and his own happiness; and since he cannot attain these unless he appropriates that which is good for him, by natural necessity he is borne toward that which is good for him. But to will good for oneself is to love oneself. Now if man wills good to himself by an act which proceeds from a deliberate will, this act is moral self-love.

2. In acts of love there must be distinguished the necessary condition on the part of the object and the formal motive. For man cannot desire except that which is represented to the will as good and fitting for the one desiring. For a power cannot be moved to act except by its proper object; but the proper object of the will is that which is good and fitting for the one willing. But that which the one desiring knows and ought to know to be his own good, he can desire either because it is his own good, or because it is good in itself, or because it is good for another. Wherefore every act of love is implicitly self-love, insofar as in every act of love the love of one's own good is contained as a necessary condition, but not explicitly, insofar as one's own good is the formal motive of love; and this has place only in acts of love of concupiscence.

3. Self-love is called natural by reason of the object if it tends toward natural perfection and happiness, and by reason of the principle if it is elicited by the powers of nature alone; it is called supernatural by reason of the object if it tends toward supernatural perfection and happiness, which consists in the goods of grace and glory, and by reason of the principle if it is elicited by the help of grace.

Since natural self-love tends to this, that man procure for himself the goods of nature and avoid the evils of nature, this love must be ruled by divine law, lest he seek goods which indeed please the senses but harm the spirit, or avoid evils which must be borne so that man may attain his end.

4. Supernatural self-love is the love of hope if man loves God, his eternal beatitude, for himself, that it may be well with him; and it is theological charity if he loves himself for God's sake, namely because he is a participant of grace and glory and thus, as it were, of the family of God.

The foundation and condition of moral love and charity toward oneself is a fitting esteem of oneself (Selbstachtung), by which we know ourselves according to the natural dignity of the person and according to the supernatural dignity of sons of God and heirs of eternal life. Yet this esteem of self does not impede contempt and despising of self (Selbstverachtung), which the Christian religion commends to us as an exercise of humility: for humility is founded on recognition of those things which are in us from ourselves; but charity toward ourselves is founded on knowledge of those things which are in us from God.

¹ Lehmkuhl, I, nn. 569-590. Goepfert, II, nn. 1-10. Th. Meyer, Institutiones iuris naturalis, Freiburg: Herder, 1900, II, nn. 29-47. V. Cathrein, Moralphilosophie, Freiburg: Herder, 1904, II, pp. 46-54. E. Muller, Theologia moralis, Vienna: Mayr, 1894, II, p. 86 ff.