Auctoritas siquidem ex vera ratione processit, ratio vero nequaquam ex auctoritate. Omnis enim auctoritas, quae vera ratione non approbatur, infirma videtur esse. Vera autem ratio, quum virtutibus suis rata atque immutabilis munitur, nullius auctoritatis adstipulatione roborari indigent.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Authority comes from true reason, not the other way around. Authority without reason is weak, while true reason needs no authority to be strong.
- In plain terms
- Reason is stronger than authority and does not need it to be valid.
- What can you take from it?
- Trust reason over authority.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When should authority override reason?
- Can reason exist without any authority?
Another view
Some decisions require deference to authority even without full rational proof.
More from Johannes Scotus Eriugena
Cum ergo audimus, Deum omnia facere, nil aliud debemus intelligere, quam Deum in omnibus esse, hoc est, essentiam omnium subsistere.
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