"A Human Being is the most precarious and the most noble of all creatures" Introduction Humans are

the most complicated animals on earth. This is not only because they are smart, but also because they think, speak, and feel. Since this is true, humanity seems as if it is greater than all other creation. Though this is true, there are many parts of humanity that dont make sense. One example is that humans are a walking contradiction, in that they may do something and say another, or that they are something and the opposite at the same time. Have you ever been told that your teacher is introverted? By definition an introvert would rather be by themselves than with others. Why then would the person want to be a teacher? A contradiction on a deeper and more uncontrolled level is that a human is both the most precarious and the most noble of all creatures, all at the same time.

Man is Precarious When I generally think of something as being precarious, I think of that something as unstable. When I put precarious in the same context as with human beings, though, it seems to take on a deeper definition. It, when introduced with humans, means much more, taking on the form of inadequacies or instabilities that can lead to bad circumstances. In this sense it can be noted that these circumstances can be shortcomings or even sins. This is common knowledge, for all people sin, or they miss their intended target. One point that Maritain states that makes sense of this is that, Man is very far from being a pure person (Maritain 60). Since the fall of mankind, it has been known that man is imperfect, for he has not been able to do exactly what God wills of him, like refraining from eating of the tree which was forbidden (Gn. 3). With this in mind, it becomes known that man is not perfect, and that he has selfish desires. These selfish desires are intentional because they allow man to need God. One way that man needs God, is by laws, for it is through laws that man knows, generically, what to do and what not to do. Also, it is through laws that man can see how precarious he really is; for man can see that he is unstable and unable to keep all the commands given to him. In the Old Testament God gave through his prophets, especially Moses, many rules and regulations that showed man what was needed of him. There are various sorts, some that have greater expectation of man than others. One example of the laws given to man is the Ten Commandments, which serve as the main basis of many current religious laws. One thing that must be noted is that Gods laws are not in place because He hates the faults of man and wishes to show them that they are flawed, but it is because God desires man to do well. Laws given to us from God are just guidelines for man to not stray away from His path. Basically, God wants you to be perfect, like Jesus says, you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Mt. 5:48). It can sometimes seem impossible for man to be perfect, especially when man is said to be precarious. Since precarious is defined as unstable, it almost seems like it is the complete opposite of perfection. This is, however, true and the reason why perfection is a struggle for man. With this, it can almost seem like man is helpless in the sense that he cannot become what is desired of him, perfection. Something that Maritain once said strikes me, the human person is the person of a poor material individual, of an animal born more helpless than any other animal (Maritain 60). This is true in a sense, not that any other animal is better than humans, but that they are not helpless like humans. This sense of the helplessness of humans is that they cannot complete their ultimate

goal, heaven, by their selves. Since animals cannot enter into heaven by their own accord, only humans are susceptible to this helplessness. So, in this sense, helplessness can be a great thing. This can also be shown by what St. Paul says to the Corinthians, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me (2 Cor. 12:9b). This is a powerful verse, for it shows that man is precarious and weak, but it also shows that through giving this precariousness to God, man is able to achieve true perfection.

Man is Noble The good of the city is more noble, more divine than that of the individual (Maritain 81). Though the good of a person is beneficial for more than just himself, it makes more sense that the good of a city, or society, is greater, and more beneficial. This creates a sense that humans are noble, because it shows that humans can come together for a greater good. This is only for humans, because animals cannot become anything greater than a crowd of animals, they cannot become a society or a community because they have no sense of society. In another sense, other animals may work together for a good, but it is not a common good, because it cannot pertain to all, without compromise (Doc. #8). These animals make every good that they attain useful, for they only use the good for another purpose and not in the sense of universality. In a way, animals are on subject to the physical part of the world. Each of us [human beings] is subject to the determinism of the physical world (Maritain 38). It is true that as beings made of flesh we are required to obey natures laws; laws such as gravity and physics. As humans we also have to eat and sleep and do anything that is needed by the flesh. Out of this though, there are thing that dont subject man to only the physical world, for, Nonetheless, each of us is also a person and, as such, is not controlled by the stars (Maritain38). This means that as humans we have some control over our lives. Humans are noble, for they have a higher authority in what happens in the physical world, for they are also part of the spiritual world. As humans, we also have instilled in us the ability to choose, called free will. Though we are able to choose on many different things, the main sense of free will is the choice either between what is morally right or what is morally wrong. This choice is something great, for only God knows what is truly right or wrong, but He instills in us an understanding of what is potentially right and potentially wrong. This makes us come to the belief that the person is directly related to the absolute. For only in the absolute is it able to enjoy its full sufficiency (Maritain 42). Since in Scripture it says that for in Him we live and move and exist, we are created by God and only by his thought of us are we still in existence (Acts 17:28a). Not only is it true that humans cannot come into existence without being connected with God, but it is also true that through the connection with God that we can become everything that we are meant to be. Therefore, our greatest reason for existence, entering into heaven, must be done through God.

Man is both Precarious and Noble Since humans are imperfect, or precarious, it makes sense that the way we communicate too must be imperfect. Therefore it makes sense that we are unable to fully grasp the higher ideas that pertain to us. One example is the way we describe society. The only possible way for us to express the fact that persons live in society is to say that they are part of, or compose, society (Maritain 57). This is, however, not fully correct, for the person, the noblest creature, as person,

requires to be treated as a whole in society, not as only part of the society (Maritain 58). This can be difficult to understand, for it is saying that person is to be the whole of the society. In the same way, it is sort of saying that a precarious person is at the same time noble. It is in this that we realize that we must find some sort of balance between both the precariousness and the nobleness of mankind. One way to express how this can be is by using the example of society. Society can be used both in a sense of precariousness and nobleness. Society is precarious in that it is unstable and lacks perfection. This however is only the physical side of society. There is the spiritual side, or the divine part, of society. This part of society is not solely between the people it pertains to, but between people through the Divine. For since it is through God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit that we exist, so too must it also be true that it is through the Trinity that we are in communion with each other; not as part of each other, but as each person being the whole of the same society. Through society then, there must be the balance between the precariousness and the nobleness. Humans must strive to become equally part of both the physical societies and the spiritual societies. One great way to look at how humans are both precarious and noble creatures in society is by the way Maritain imposes that the human being is caught between two poles; a material pole and a spiritual pole (31). The material pole, also referred to as the subconscious, is the connection of our person with the physical (Doc. #4). This pole would be associated with the physical society or the precariousness of a human. The spiritual pole, referred to as the surconscious, is the connection of our person with the spiritual (Doc. #4). This pole is associated with the nobleness of humans, according to the spiritual society. These two main poles of unconscious are active simultaneously in everyone. These poles are not a contrast between bad and good, but an interaction which involves physical, speculative and spiritual items, the attractive of material needs and the call of spiritual issues (Doc. #4). This is exactly what is man needs to know, because it is through these interactions of the spiritual pole and the material pole that balance of humanity can be attained. It is only through working with the precarious material pole and the noble spiritual pole is man able to become what he is meant to be, heaven-bound. One great example of this is the image of a tree, where the roots are the material pole and the foliage is the spiritual pole, and more important they are proportionate to each other (Doc. #4). It only makes sense that the amount of foliage is represented by the amount of roots, for a tree without any nutrient-absorbing roots could not produce any sort of foliage in the tree, and vice versa.

Conclusion Humans are affected by many factors that they cannot control. They are inherently unpredictable as well, unless you are God. One factor of humans is that they are, in a way, very precarious. They are unstable in a way that they are able to make mistakes and miss their planned target. Also, humans are noble, for they are of higher authority. In this nobleness humans are able to connect with God and the spirituality of themselves. Humanity, in a way, is both precarious and noble, though it seems as if it is impossible, by the fact that they work through both their precariousness and nobleness to achieve the higher goal, the entering into heaven. Heaven is the ultimate purpose of humans, and it can only be achieved by the balance of being both precarious and noble.