What term describes the ordering of loves and affections according to Augustine?

• A. The Great Chain of Being
• B. Teleology
• C. Ordo Amoris
• D. Logos

Answer: (C)

The idea being tested is how Augustine orders our loves and affections. Ordo Amoris is the exact term for this concept—the Latin phrase meaning the order or ranking of love. Augustine argues that we should structure our loves so that the highest love governs all the rest, with love for God at the top, followed by love for neighbor, family, and other goods in proper secondary places. When loves are rightly ordered, our desires align with the ultimate good, guiding virtue and right action. When loves are disordered—placing earthly things, money, or status above God—desire becomes misdirected and can lead to sin and unhappiness.

The other options don’t describe this idea. The Great Chain of Being refers to a cosmic hierarchy of all creatures, not how we prioritize our affections. Teleology concerns the ends or purposes toward which actions aim, not the specific arrangement of loves. Logos can mean reason or the divine Word, a broader concept about order and truth, but it does not denote Augustine’s specific notion of the ordered hierarchy of love.