The 60-Second Aquinas
Lesson
A Formless Wasteland
August 10, 1998
To say that God created the world out of nothing seems to be in conflict with the beginning of Genesis:
"In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland" (Genesis 1:1)
Clearly there was something there, right? It was a formless wasteland.
But, what exactly is a formless wasteland? In truth, it is nothing, because existence relies on form.
Let’s use an orange as an example. The form of the orange – its shape, texture, etc. – helps us to identify the orange as an orange. If we were to smash an orange and examine the pulp, we would say that the orange is still an orange, but we would also note that it is different than an unsmashed orange.
Aquinas explains that as God created things out of nothing, he also created diversity in things. Material things are diverse because of differing forms. Cats, dogs, trees, rivers are comprised of matter but have different forms.
Furthermore, it is only when something has form that it takes on being: "matter receives existence from form" (Compendium Ch. 71). An orange or cat without ANY form cannot exist.
Thus, a formless wasteland is rightly called nothing.
Explanation of The 60-Second Aquinas Lesson
