nancyann wrote:From what I know, God knows all things and He has all knowledge. Anybody out there have a Catholic Catechism handy. I am not home at the present moment and my books are not handy and I do not want to say the wrong thing.
But, from my knowing of the teachings of God in my theology classes, He has all-knowledge. And He can do all things!
Help me theologians out there! Good Question!
The Catechism of the Catholic Church talks around the issue, essentially rolling the concept of omniscience into the concept of onmipotence (see
268 - 278). However, The attribute of omnicience specificaly is ascribed to God in
The Baltimore Catechism, which asserts, in
Part One - The Creed, Section 2, God and His Perfections:
Quote:12. What are some of the perfections of God?
Some of the perfections of God are: God is eternal, all-good, all-knowing, all-present, and almighty ...
... 15. What do we mean when we say that God is all-knowing?
When we say that God is all-knowing we mean that He knows all things, past, present, and future, even our most secret thoughts, words, and actions.
Behold, O Lord, thou hast known all things, the last and those of old: thou hast formed me, and hast laid thy hand upon me. Thy knowledge is become wonderful to me: it is high, and I cannot reach it. (Psalm 138:5-6)
Catechism of The Eastern Orthodox Church also directly ascribes the attribute of omniscience to God, as do the catechisms of various Protestant sub-sects of Christianity, notably those of the Anglican Communion and of those developed from Luther's teachings. A number of passages in both the Old and New Testaments, whether Catholic or Protestant by imprimatur (and, where corresponding to Christian Old Testament tradition, passages in The Talmud, the progenitor of the the Christian canon), also directly or indirectly ascribe to God the attribute of omniscience.
Among the works of The Doctors of the Church, much is made of the question in the writings of both Augustine and Aquinas.