Man's Action Upon Things

Man acts upon his fellow man. In special, man canenlighten or teach others.

Man cannot teach or enlighten angels, but by his speechor prayer he can make known to angels what they could not otherwiseknow, that is, his own secret thoughts and intentions.

Man cannot move or affect bodies directly by acts offree will. Indirectly his will can move or change bodies by itsdecision which makes a man take hold on bodies and change them. Andindirectly, by holding the mind and imagination to a certain trainof thought or fancy, the will can work a change in a man’s ownbody. Thus may a man move himself to resolution, to calmness intrial, to anger; and concomitant changes result in the body itself.Of course, by natural action, man’s will commands the normalmovements of the body exercised in such acts as stretching out thehands, or walking.

When the human soul is separated from its body bydeath, it has no further control over the members of that body, orof any other body, unless God, by a miracle, should give it thatpower.