What is man’s ultimate purpose? (By Lagrange)

Man must know his ultimate purpose in which he can find rest. This purpose will satisfy his desire. Because without a purpose, man wouldnt ever undertake anything. In a series of efficient causes there must be a first cause, in a series of final causes there must be a ultimate cause. This ultimate cause is the ultimate purpose for the mans motivation center of everything.

Fr. Lagrange gives the example that it is to each men what defense of his country is to the commander in chief. hence all men deisre some ultimate goal which will give them total satisfaction and happiness and this ultimate end is God the Sovereign Good. No created values, riches, honors, glory, power, nor bodily advanges, pleasure, knowledge, virtue can give a man the ultimate contentment he desires, because the object of man’s will is unlimited and universal good. And this universal good can be found only in God not creatures. Fr. Lagrange gives another proof for the existence of God via the principle:

“a natural desire, founded not on imagination nor on error but on the universal amplitude of man’s will cannot be vain or chimerical”

Even though we know man has the natural desire to want complete happiness, both reason and experience show why this desire is incapable of being fulfilled by any limited and finite good. This is due to our intellect knowing that Good is infinite and universal.

This desire isnt conditional or inefficacious like how the desire of the beatific vision is (which is founded on conditional judgement). The desire is natural and innate since its found on an absolute judgement that arises without medium from the natural limitless amplitude of man’s will for good. Natural desire presupposes a natural desirable good, so the object of man’s desire must be unlimited as the desire itself. Therefore there exists an unlimited Good, goodness itself where in itself is found that universal good to which our will is proportioned and this unlimited good can be known naturally in the mirror of created goodness. (God) Denying the existence of God is denying the maximal amplitude of our will which no limited good can fill. the will aims at goodness in general (so aims at God indirectly). But charity aims at God directly. We find partial goodness in alot of things but God is the supreme good, therefore in researching good the will leads us from ideas to the ultimate source of good (God). If Man was created in a state that was solely natural he would find ultimate happiness in something natural. But it is due to our intellect which by its nature is meant to know the supreme author of all things. Our will is by nature meant to love and will what is good and what is maximally good as long as its naturally knowable.