T. A. Cavanaugh
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199272198
- eISBN:
- 9780191604157
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199272190.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
Consequentialists oppose while absolutists and deontologists rely upon double-effect reasoning (DER) to address hard cases in which good inextricably binds with evil (such as destroying a legitimate ...
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Consequentialists oppose while absolutists and deontologists rely upon double-effect reasoning (DER) to address hard cases in which good inextricably binds with evil (such as destroying a legitimate military target while concomitantly and foreseeably killing innocents). This book addresses the history, application, and philosophical controversy concerning DER. It traces both the origin of DER in the thought of Aquinas and its development by subsequent ethicists. Considering consequentialist criticisms, proportionalism, and recent revisions of double effect, the book argues at length for the reasonableness of DER, particularly the intended/foreseen distinction. Intent is distinguished from foresight, and this distinction is applied to the classic cases of terror and tactical bombing. Most importantly, the book establishes the ethical relevance of this distinction, grounding its import both in broadly Aristotelian-Thomistic features of action as voluntary, and in a Kantian focus on the victim as an end in himself. The book also considers typically neglected albeit intriguing issues such as DER’s application to allowings and how constitutional legal systems that incorporate exceptionless norms employ a legal analogue to DER.Less
Consequentialists oppose while absolutists and deontologists rely upon double-effect reasoning (DER) to address hard cases in which good inextricably binds with evil (such as destroying a legitimate military target while concomitantly and foreseeably killing innocents). This book addresses the history, application, and philosophical controversy concerning DER. It traces both the origin of DER in the thought of Aquinas and its development by subsequent ethicists. Considering consequentialist criticisms, proportionalism, and recent revisions of double effect, the book argues at length for the reasonableness of DER, particularly the intended/foreseen distinction. Intent is distinguished from foresight, and this distinction is applied to the classic cases of terror and tactical bombing. Most importantly, the book establishes the ethical relevance of this distinction, grounding its import both in broadly Aristotelian-Thomistic features of action as voluntary, and in a Kantian focus on the victim as an end in himself. The book also considers typically neglected albeit intriguing issues such as DER’s application to allowings and how constitutional legal systems that incorporate exceptionless norms employ a legal analogue to DER.
David Albert Jones
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199287154
- eISBN:
- 9780191713231
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287154.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This book considers two basic questions: how can we live well in the face of death?; and when, if ever, is it legitimate deliberately to bring human life to an end? It does so by considering the ...
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This book considers two basic questions: how can we live well in the face of death?; and when, if ever, is it legitimate deliberately to bring human life to an end? It does so by considering the distinct theological approaches to death shown by four outstanding Christian thinkers: Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, Thomas Aquinas, and Karl Rahner. These philosophers' thoughts constitute a single extended argument on the theology of death which can be set out in relation to the practical realities of grief, fear, and hope in the face of death. There is a rightful place for grief, a good grief, even for a Christian. Augustine teaches us that death is something with which we have to contend, and indeed that the difficult and painful process of contending with death is a means through which we are brought to our final joyful end. A key point for Thomas Aquinas is that, in itself, it is always wrong to kill a human being on account of the dignity of human nature. Rahner adds that it also stands in contradiction to the supernatural destiny of human beings. Rahner is at his most profound in describing how the need to surrender oneself to God in death is anticipated throughout life. The aim of this book is not primarily to make a contribution to the knowledge of the history of theology, but rather, through engagement with the thought of theologians of the past, to reflect on some of the practical and existential issues that the approach of death presents for us.Less
This book considers two basic questions: how can we live well in the face of death?; and when, if ever, is it legitimate deliberately to bring human life to an end? It does so by considering the distinct theological approaches to death shown by four outstanding Christian thinkers: Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, Thomas Aquinas, and Karl Rahner. These philosophers' thoughts constitute a single extended argument on the theology of death which can be set out in relation to the practical realities of grief, fear, and hope in the face of death. There is a rightful place for grief, a good grief, even for a Christian. Augustine teaches us that death is something with which we have to contend, and indeed that the difficult and painful process of contending with death is a means through which we are brought to our final joyful end. A key point for Thomas Aquinas is that, in itself, it is always wrong to kill a human being on account of the dignity of human nature. Rahner adds that it also stands in contradiction to the supernatural destiny of human beings. Rahner is at his most profound in describing how the need to surrender oneself to God in death is anticipated throughout life. The aim of this book is not primarily to make a contribution to the knowledge of the history of theology, but rather, through engagement with the thought of theologians of the past, to reflect on some of the practical and existential issues that the approach of death presents for us.
Terrance W. Klein
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199204236
- eISBN:
- 9780191708039
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199204236.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
What is the meaning of the word ‘grace’? Can Wittgenstein's maxim that the meaning of a word is its usage help explicate the claims that Christians have made about grace? When Christians use the ...
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What is the meaning of the word ‘grace’? Can Wittgenstein's maxim that the meaning of a word is its usage help explicate the claims that Christians have made about grace? When Christians use the word, they reference within language the point of contact between humanity and the divine. This book suggests that grace is not an occult object but rather an insight, a moment when we perceive God to be active on our behalf. The book examines the biblical evidence that grace begins as a recognition of God's favour, before considering Augustine as the theologian who champions history rather than nature as the place of encounter with grace. Aquinas' work on grace is also explored, retrieving the saint's thought on three seminal concepts: nature, form, and the striving intellect. Overall, the book suggests that grace is the perception of a form, an awareness that the human person is being addressed by the world itself.Less
What is the meaning of the word ‘grace’? Can Wittgenstein's maxim that the meaning of a word is its usage help explicate the claims that Christians have made about grace? When Christians use the word, they reference within language the point of contact between humanity and the divine. This book suggests that grace is not an occult object but rather an insight, a moment when we perceive God to be active on our behalf. The book examines the biblical evidence that grace begins as a recognition of God's favour, before considering Augustine as the theologian who champions history rather than nature as the place of encounter with grace. Aquinas' work on grace is also explored, retrieving the saint's thought on three seminal concepts: nature, form, and the striving intellect. Overall, the book suggests that grace is the perception of a form, an awareness that the human person is being addressed by the world itself.
Matthew Levering
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199535293
- eISBN:
- 9780191715839
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199535293.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
This book serves as an introduction to natural law theory. The Introduction proposes that natural law theory makes most sense in light of an understanding of a loving Creator. The first chapter then ...
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This book serves as an introduction to natural law theory. The Introduction proposes that natural law theory makes most sense in light of an understanding of a loving Creator. The first chapter then argues the Bible sketches both such an understanding of a loving Creator and an account of natural law that offers an expansive portrait of the moral life. The second chapter surveys the development of natural law doctrine from Descartes to Nietzsche, and shows how these thinkers reverse the biblical portrait by placing human beings at the center of the moral universe. Whereas the biblical portrait of natural law is other-directed, ordered to self-giving love, the modern accounts turn inward upon the self, with reductive consequences. The final two chapters employ theological and philosophical investigation to achieve a contemporary doctrine of natural law that accords with the biblical witness to a loving Creator. These two chapters interact creatively with the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas. The book revives discussion of natural law among biblical scholars while also challenging philosophers and theologians to re-think their accounts of natural law.Less
This book serves as an introduction to natural law theory. The Introduction proposes that natural law theory makes most sense in light of an understanding of a loving Creator. The first chapter then argues the Bible sketches both such an understanding of a loving Creator and an account of natural law that offers an expansive portrait of the moral life. The second chapter surveys the development of natural law doctrine from Descartes to Nietzsche, and shows how these thinkers reverse the biblical portrait by placing human beings at the center of the moral universe. Whereas the biblical portrait of natural law is other-directed, ordered to self-giving love, the modern accounts turn inward upon the self, with reductive consequences. The final two chapters employ theological and philosophical investigation to achieve a contemporary doctrine of natural law that accords with the biblical witness to a loving Creator. These two chapters interact creatively with the thought of St. Thomas Aquinas. The book revives discussion of natural law among biblical scholars while also challenging philosophers and theologians to re-think their accounts of natural law.
Brian Davies
- Published in print:
- 1993
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198267539
- eISBN:
- 9780191600500
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198267533.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
The aim of this book is to give a general and introductory overview of the teaching and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1224–26 to 1274), a Dominican friar, and one of the greatest Western philosophers, ...
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The aim of this book is to give a general and introductory overview of the teaching and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1224–26 to 1274), a Dominican friar, and one of the greatest Western philosophers, and Christian theologians. Books on Aquinas invariably deal either with his philosophy or his theology; Aquinas himself, however, made no such arbitrary division, and this book allows him to be seen as a whole, in introducing almost the full range of his thinking, and relating this to writers both earlier and later. The author points out that all Aquinas’ major conclusions can be found in his first important work – Commentary on the Sentences, and that he did not change his mind radically throughout his writings, although some emphases shifted. Nevertheless, in this book, Aquinas’ thinkings are followed broadly in accordance with the scheme he provides in Summa Theologiae, which is considered to be his greatest achievement and is the best‐known synthesis of his thinking. Ways in which the thinking in Summa Theologiae differs from his thinking presented elsewhere are noted, and some of the treatment is selective (for example politics and aesthetics are not dealt with directly). Discussion is also omitted of Aquinas’ contribution to thirteenth‐century debates on the legitimacy and running of certain religious orders in the Catholic Church, which is now merely of historical interest.Less
The aim of this book is to give a general and introductory overview of the teaching and thought of Thomas Aquinas (1224–26 to 1274), a Dominican friar, and one of the greatest Western philosophers, and Christian theologians. Books on Aquinas invariably deal either with his philosophy or his theology; Aquinas himself, however, made no such arbitrary division, and this book allows him to be seen as a whole, in introducing almost the full range of his thinking, and relating this to writers both earlier and later. The author points out that all Aquinas’ major conclusions can be found in his first important work – Commentary on the Sentences, and that he did not change his mind radically throughout his writings, although some emphases shifted. Nevertheless, in this book, Aquinas’ thinkings are followed broadly in accordance with the scheme he provides in Summa Theologiae, which is considered to be his greatest achievement and is the best‐known synthesis of his thinking. Ways in which the thinking in Summa Theologiae differs from his thinking presented elsewhere are noted, and some of the treatment is selective (for example politics and aesthetics are not dealt with directly). Discussion is also omitted of Aquinas’ contribution to thirteenth‐century debates on the legitimacy and running of certain religious orders in the Catholic Church, which is now merely of historical interest.
Nicholas J. Healy
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- February 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199278367
- eISBN:
- 9780191603419
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199278369.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This book represents a study of the meaning of "the end" in the writings of Hans Urs von Balthasar, that highlights both the originality and the fruitfulness of his vision of a reciprocal drama ...
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This book represents a study of the meaning of "the end" in the writings of Hans Urs von Balthasar, that highlights both the originality and the fruitfulness of his vision of a reciprocal drama between God and the world. The argument of the book can be summed up simply: being -creaturely being and trinitarian being -unveils its final countenance as love in the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. After setting forth three basic problems inherent in Christian eschatology, Healy introduces Balthasar's trinitarian perspective: eschatology is concerned with the life of the Trinity, as revealed by Jesus Christ, and as the origin and final destiny of the whole created cosmos. The book presupposes that a critical engagement with Balthasar's thought requires attending to the original way he uses philosophy within theology. Thomas Aquinas' analogy of being, fulfilled in the person of Christ, is both the abiding precondition of, and is ultimately disclosed in, the drama between God and the world whose form takes shape within Christ's return to the Father. The ultimate form of the end, and thus the measure of all that is meant by eschatology, is given in Christ's eucharistic and pneumatic gift of himself - gift that simultaneously lays bare the mystery of the Trinity and enables Christ to "return" to the Father in communion with the whole of creation. Insofar as Christ reveals the trinitarian life and the mystery of creation in their dramatic interplay, he establishes the form of eschatology as a participation in God's engagement with the world. Under the sign of the Holy Spirit and the Eucharist, Christian eschatology involves a sharing in Christ's double movement into the world and, together with the world, into God. By developing the metaphysical dimensions of Balthasar's doctrine of the last things, Healy shows that his writings on the eschaton contain unexpected resources for the ecclesial renewal envisaged by the Second Vatican Council and its missionary opening to the world.Less
This book represents a study of the meaning of "the end" in the writings of Hans Urs von Balthasar, that highlights both the originality and the fruitfulness of his vision of a reciprocal drama between God and the world. The argument of the book can be summed up simply: being -creaturely being and trinitarian being -unveils its final countenance as love in the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. After setting forth three basic problems inherent in Christian eschatology, Healy introduces Balthasar's trinitarian perspective: eschatology is concerned with the life of the Trinity, as revealed by Jesus Christ, and as the origin and final destiny of the whole created cosmos. The book presupposes that a critical engagement with Balthasar's thought requires attending to the original way he uses philosophy within theology. Thomas Aquinas' analogy of being, fulfilled in the person of Christ, is both the abiding precondition of, and is ultimately disclosed in, the drama between God and the world whose form takes shape within Christ's return to the Father. The ultimate form of the end, and thus the measure of all that is meant by eschatology, is given in Christ's eucharistic and pneumatic gift of himself - gift that simultaneously lays bare the mystery of the Trinity and enables Christ to "return" to the Father in communion with the whole of creation. Insofar as Christ reveals the trinitarian life and the mystery of creation in their dramatic interplay, he establishes the form of eschatology as a participation in God's engagement with the world. Under the sign of the Holy Spirit and the Eucharist, Christian eschatology involves a sharing in Christ's double movement into the world and, together with the world, into God. By developing the metaphysical dimensions of Balthasar's doctrine of the last things, Healy shows that his writings on the eschaton contain unexpected resources for the ecclesial renewal envisaged by the Second Vatican Council and its missionary opening to the world.
Daniel Schwartz
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- May 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199205394
- eISBN:
- 9780191709265
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199205394.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Ancient Philosophy
This book examines the views on friendship of the great medieval philosopher Thomas Aquinas. For Aquinas, friendship is the ideal type of relationship that rational beings should cultivate. The book ...
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This book examines the views on friendship of the great medieval philosopher Thomas Aquinas. For Aquinas, friendship is the ideal type of relationship that rational beings should cultivate. The book argues that Aquinas fundamentally revised some of the main features of Aristotle's paradigmatic account of friendship so as to accommodate the case of friendship between radically unequal beings: man and God. As a result, Aquinas presented a broader view of friendship than Aristotle's, allowing for a higher extent of disagreement, lack of mutual understanding, and inequality between friends.Less
This book examines the views on friendship of the great medieval philosopher Thomas Aquinas. For Aquinas, friendship is the ideal type of relationship that rational beings should cultivate. The book argues that Aquinas fundamentally revised some of the main features of Aristotle's paradigmatic account of friendship so as to accommodate the case of friendship between radically unequal beings: man and God. As a result, Aquinas presented a broader view of friendship than Aristotle's, allowing for a higher extent of disagreement, lack of mutual understanding, and inequality between friends.
Stephen H. Webb
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199827954
- eISBN:
- 9780199919468
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199827954.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This book is the first to reconstruct the obscure origins of Heavenly Flesh Christology, examine its implications, and defend it from the charge of heresy. More importantly, this book uses this ...
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This book is the first to reconstruct the obscure origins of Heavenly Flesh Christology, examine its implications, and defend it from the charge of heresy. More importantly, this book uses this Christology to re‐examine theology's commitment to the metaphysics of immaterialism. After surveying ancient metaphysical debates and the contemporary insights of physics about the nature of matter, the author argues that theology needs to reconsider the relationship of spirit to matter, beginning with a new, post-Platonic understanding of the eternal body of Jesus Christ. The result is a defense of an anthropomorphic and corporeal understanding of the nature of God. This portrait of God is tested against the theologies of Thomas Aquinas and Karl Barth. It is also put into dialogue with the metaphysical materialism of Mormonism. Along the way, the author shows how the thought of Duns Scotus and Caspar Schwenckfeld contribute to a new understanding of heavenly flesh, and how this Christology can enable a new way of appreciating the much-neglected position of Monophysitism.Less
This book is the first to reconstruct the obscure origins of Heavenly Flesh Christology, examine its implications, and defend it from the charge of heresy. More importantly, this book uses this Christology to re‐examine theology's commitment to the metaphysics of immaterialism. After surveying ancient metaphysical debates and the contemporary insights of physics about the nature of matter, the author argues that theology needs to reconsider the relationship of spirit to matter, beginning with a new, post-Platonic understanding of the eternal body of Jesus Christ. The result is a defense of an anthropomorphic and corporeal understanding of the nature of God. This portrait of God is tested against the theologies of Thomas Aquinas and Karl Barth. It is also put into dialogue with the metaphysical materialism of Mormonism. Along the way, the author shows how the thought of Duns Scotus and Caspar Schwenckfeld contribute to a new understanding of heavenly flesh, and how this Christology can enable a new way of appreciating the much-neglected position of Monophysitism.
Brian Davies
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- September 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780199790890
- eISBN:
- 9780199914418
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199790890.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This book offers an in-depth study of Saint Thomas Aquinas's thoughts on God and evil, revealing that Aquinas's thinking about God and evil can be traced through his metaphysical philosophy, his ...
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This book offers an in-depth study of Saint Thomas Aquinas's thoughts on God and evil, revealing that Aquinas's thinking about God and evil can be traced through his metaphysical philosophy, his thoughts on God and creation, and his writings about Christian revelation and the doctrines of the Trinity and the Incarnation. The book first gives an introduction to Aquinas's philosophical theology, as well as a nuanced analysis of the ways in which Aquinas's writings have been considered over time. For hundreds of years scholars have argued that Aquinas's views on God and evil were original and different from those of his contemporaries. The book shows that Aquinas's views were by modern standards very original, but that in their historical context they were more traditional than many scholars since have realized. The book also provides insight into what we can learn from Aquinas's philosophy.Less
This book offers an in-depth study of Saint Thomas Aquinas's thoughts on God and evil, revealing that Aquinas's thinking about God and evil can be traced through his metaphysical philosophy, his thoughts on God and creation, and his writings about Christian revelation and the doctrines of the Trinity and the Incarnation. The book first gives an introduction to Aquinas's philosophical theology, as well as a nuanced analysis of the ways in which Aquinas's writings have been considered over time. For hundreds of years scholars have argued that Aquinas's views on God and evil were original and different from those of his contemporaries. The book shows that Aquinas's views were by modern standards very original, but that in their historical context they were more traditional than many scholars since have realized. The book also provides insight into what we can learn from Aquinas's philosophy.
Richard Cross
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198269748
- eISBN:
- 9780191683787
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198269748.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion, Theology
Duns Scotus, along with Thomas Aquinas and William of Ockham, was one of the three most talented and influential of the medieval schoolmen, and a highly original and ...
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Duns Scotus, along with Thomas Aquinas and William of Ockham, was one of the three most talented and influential of the medieval schoolmen, and a highly original and creative thinker. Natural philosophy, or physics, is one of the areas of his system which has not received detailed attention in modern literature. But it is important, both for understanding Scotus's contributions in theology, and in tracing some important developments in the basically Aristotelian world-view which Scotus and his contemporaries espoused. This book contains discussion and analysis of Scotus's accounts of the nature of matter; the structure of material substance; mass; the nature of space, time, and motion; quantitative and qualitative change; and the various sorts of unity which can be exhibited by different kinds of whole. It also includes discussion of Scotus's accounts of chemical composition, organic unity, and nutrition. Scotus's views on these matters are philosophically sophisticated, and often highly original.Less
Duns Scotus, along with Thomas Aquinas and William of Ockham, was one of the three most talented and influential of the medieval schoolmen, and a highly original and creative thinker. Natural philosophy, or physics, is one of the areas of his system which has not received detailed attention in modern literature. But it is important, both for understanding Scotus's contributions in theology, and in tracing some important developments in the basically Aristotelian world-view which Scotus and his contemporaries espoused. This book contains discussion and analysis of Scotus's accounts of the nature of matter; the structure of material substance; mass; the nature of space, time, and motion; quantitative and qualitative change; and the various sorts of unity which can be exhibited by different kinds of whole. It also includes discussion of Scotus's accounts of chemical composition, organic unity, and nutrition. Scotus's views on these matters are philosophically sophisticated, and often highly original.
Rory Fox
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199285754
- eISBN:
- 9780191603563
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199285756.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This book examines 13th century views about time, particularly the views of Thomas Aquinas and his contemporaries in the middle of the century. As medieval thinkers considered time to be just another ...
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This book examines 13th century views about time, particularly the views of Thomas Aquinas and his contemporaries in the middle of the century. As medieval thinkers considered time to be just another duration alongside the durations of aeviternity (the aevum) and eternity, the scope of the study covers all three durations, culminating in an examination of God’s relationship to time. Chapter 1 opens the discussion by examining some of the key language and terminology which 13th century thinkers used. Chapters 2-5 examine the topological properties of time: the properties that determine its shape and structure. Chapter 6 investigates the metrical properties of time: the properties pertaining to time when it is considered as a measure. Chapter 7 looks at the criteria, factors, and language which 13th century thinkers typically took as entailing that a particular would be in time. Chapter 8 explores how 13th century thinkers discussed existence outside of time, particularly as it was applied to aeviternity and aeviternal beings. Chapter 9 examines the content of the medieval concept of eternity, and how these ideas are best rendered in contemporary language. Chapter 10 examines the specific question of how 13th century thinkers viewed God’s relationship to time.Less
This book examines 13th century views about time, particularly the views of Thomas Aquinas and his contemporaries in the middle of the century. As medieval thinkers considered time to be just another duration alongside the durations of aeviternity (the aevum) and eternity, the scope of the study covers all three durations, culminating in an examination of God’s relationship to time. Chapter 1 opens the discussion by examining some of the key language and terminology which 13th century thinkers used. Chapters 2-5 examine the topological properties of time: the properties that determine its shape and structure. Chapter 6 investigates the metrical properties of time: the properties pertaining to time when it is considered as a measure. Chapter 7 looks at the criteria, factors, and language which 13th century thinkers typically took as entailing that a particular would be in time. Chapter 8 explores how 13th century thinkers discussed existence outside of time, particularly as it was applied to aeviternity and aeviternal beings. Chapter 9 examines the content of the medieval concept of eternity, and how these ideas are best rendered in contemporary language. Chapter 10 examines the specific question of how 13th century thinkers viewed God’s relationship to time.
T. A. Cavanaugh
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199272198
- eISBN:
- 9780191604157
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199272190.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter presents the history of DER, considering Aquinas’s originating account and closely tracing the development of double effect through subsequent moralists up to the 19th century Jesuit ...
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This chapter presents the history of DER, considering Aquinas’s originating account and closely tracing the development of double effect through subsequent moralists up to the 19th century Jesuit J.P. Gury, who proposed the standard modern version. Over the six centuries separating Aquinas and Gury, ethicists expanded the number of cases considered by DER and further articulated its grounds in action theory, arriving at double-effect criteria as generally applicable to relevant cases. These criteria, their import, order, relation to one another, necessity, and sufficiency are analyzed, and revisions are proposed.Less
This chapter presents the history of DER, considering Aquinas’s originating account and closely tracing the development of double effect through subsequent moralists up to the 19th century Jesuit J.P. Gury, who proposed the standard modern version. Over the six centuries separating Aquinas and Gury, ethicists expanded the number of cases considered by DER and further articulated its grounds in action theory, arriving at double-effect criteria as generally applicable to relevant cases. These criteria, their import, order, relation to one another, necessity, and sufficiency are analyzed, and revisions are proposed.
T. A. Cavanaugh
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199272198
- eISBN:
- 9780191604157
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199272190.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter analyzes the intended/foreseen (i/f) distinction: how to name it, how to make it, and how to apply it to the classic cases of euthanasia/terminal sedation, craniotomy/hysterectomy, and ...
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This chapter analyzes the intended/foreseen (i/f) distinction: how to name it, how to make it, and how to apply it to the classic cases of euthanasia/terminal sedation, craniotomy/hysterectomy, and terror bombing/tactical bombing. Addressing the problem of closeness Foot moots, inadequate responses to this problem are considered such as paring one’s intentions, the counter-factual test, and conceptual necessity. The chapter presents an account of the i/f distinction based on the resources found in Aquinas, Anscombe, and Bratman who indicate how intention characteristically differs from foresight insofar as the former is while the latter is not a plan of action formed in deliberation embodying practical knowledge.Less
This chapter analyzes the intended/foreseen (i/f) distinction: how to name it, how to make it, and how to apply it to the classic cases of euthanasia/terminal sedation, craniotomy/hysterectomy, and terror bombing/tactical bombing. Addressing the problem of closeness Foot moots, inadequate responses to this problem are considered such as paring one’s intentions, the counter-factual test, and conceptual necessity. The chapter presents an account of the i/f distinction based on the resources found in Aquinas, Anscombe, and Bratman who indicate how intention characteristically differs from foresight insofar as the former is while the latter is not a plan of action formed in deliberation embodying practical knowledge.
T. A. Cavanaugh
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199272198
- eISBN:
- 9780191604157
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199272190.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter argues the most controverted and important claim of DER: the ethical relevance of the distinction between intent of a harmful means and foresight of a causally necessitated, ...
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This chapter argues the most controverted and important claim of DER: the ethical relevance of the distinction between intent of a harmful means and foresight of a causally necessitated, consequentially comparable harmful concomitant. It considers misunderstandings of the distinction and argues against the consequentialist claim that the i/f distinction lacks relevance in act-evaluation while it may possess import in agent-evaluation. The i/f distinction has ethical import insofar as it articulates the full significance of the most basic ethical difference, namely, the difference between the voluntary and the not voluntary that establishes the very subject matter of ethics. Moreover, the distinction has ethical significance insofar as it reflects the unique status of persons as ends-in-themselves, a status that refers to and makes demands upon the intentions constituting acts. The chapter establishes the ethical relevance of this distinction, grounding its import both in widely acknowledged features of action as voluntary (in a broadly Aristotelian-Thomistic sense) and in a Kantian focus on the victim as an end in himself.Less
This chapter argues the most controverted and important claim of DER: the ethical relevance of the distinction between intent of a harmful means and foresight of a causally necessitated, consequentially comparable harmful concomitant. It considers misunderstandings of the distinction and argues against the consequentialist claim that the i/f distinction lacks relevance in act-evaluation while it may possess import in agent-evaluation. The i/f distinction has ethical import insofar as it articulates the full significance of the most basic ethical difference, namely, the difference between the voluntary and the not voluntary that establishes the very subject matter of ethics. Moreover, the distinction has ethical significance insofar as it reflects the unique status of persons as ends-in-themselves, a status that refers to and makes demands upon the intentions constituting acts. The chapter establishes the ethical relevance of this distinction, grounding its import both in widely acknowledged features of action as voluntary (in a broadly Aristotelian-Thomistic sense) and in a Kantian focus on the victim as an end in himself.
Richard Swinburne
- Published in print:
- 1993
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198240709
- eISBN:
- 9780191598586
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198240708.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
Investigates whether the claim that there is a God can be spelt out in a coherent way. Part 1 analyses how we can show some claim to be coherent or incoherent. God is supposed to be a personal being, ...
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Investigates whether the claim that there is a God can be spelt out in a coherent way. Part 1 analyses how we can show some claim to be coherent or incoherent. God is supposed to be a personal being, omnipresent, perfectly free and creator of the universe, omnipotent, omniscient, perfectly good, a source of moral obligation, and eternal. Part 2 analyses how these divine properties can be understood in a coherent and mutually consistent way. Part 3 considers divine necessity and claims that God's existence necessarily must be understood as this being the ultimate brute fact on which all else depends, but his having the divine properties necessarily must be understood as his having these properties being logically necessary for his existence. The final chapter argues that, if a God of the kind analysed in earlier chapters exists, he is worthy of worship.Less
Investigates whether the claim that there is a God can be spelt out in a coherent way. Part 1 analyses how we can show some claim to be coherent or incoherent. God is supposed to be a personal being, omnipresent, perfectly free and creator of the universe, omnipotent, omniscient, perfectly good, a source of moral obligation, and eternal. Part 2 analyses how these divine properties can be understood in a coherent and mutually consistent way. Part 3 considers divine necessity and claims that God's existence necessarily must be understood as this being the ultimate brute fact on which all else depends, but his having the divine properties necessarily must be understood as his having these properties being logically necessary for his existence. The final chapter argues that, if a God of the kind analysed in earlier chapters exists, he is worthy of worship.
Rory Fox
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199285754
- eISBN:
- 9780191603563
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199285756.003.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This introductory chapter begins with an explanation of the author’s motivations for writing this book. It then discusses the scope of the study, and the references and methodology used. A brief ...
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This introductory chapter begins with an explanation of the author’s motivations for writing this book. It then discusses the scope of the study, and the references and methodology used. A brief overview of the chapter included in this volume is presented.Less
This introductory chapter begins with an explanation of the author’s motivations for writing this book. It then discusses the scope of the study, and the references and methodology used. A brief overview of the chapter included in this volume is presented.
Rory Fox
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199285754
- eISBN:
- 9780191603563
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199285756.003.0002
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter examines some of the key language and terminology used by 13th century thinkers. Thirteenth-century thinkers distinguished between logically indivisible boundaries and divisible parts. ...
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This chapter examines some of the key language and terminology used by 13th century thinkers. Thirteenth-century thinkers distinguished between logically indivisible boundaries and divisible parts. As applied to time, this distinction allowed them to identify and refer to two temporal elements: temporal parts and temporal boundaries. Altogether, they seem to have deployed 10 basic terms to refer to temporal elements: instans, praesens, nunc, periodus, momentum, duratio, mora, diurnitas, protensio, and quando. Although each of these words have what appear to be obvious English translations, the medieval Latin terms often contained multiple nuances which were not always reflected in the typical English words used to translate them.Less
This chapter examines some of the key language and terminology used by 13th century thinkers. Thirteenth-century thinkers distinguished between logically indivisible boundaries and divisible parts. As applied to time, this distinction allowed them to identify and refer to two temporal elements: temporal parts and temporal boundaries. Altogether, they seem to have deployed 10 basic terms to refer to temporal elements: instans, praesens, nunc, periodus, momentum, duratio, mora, diurnitas, protensio, and quando. Although each of these words have what appear to be obvious English translations, the medieval Latin terms often contained multiple nuances which were not always reflected in the typical English words used to translate them.
David Albert Jones
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199287154
- eISBN:
- 9780191713231
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287154.003.0002
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
At least two well-developed bodies of literature have emerged on practical questions relating to death, one the concern of psychology, the other the concern of ethics. These flow from two basic ...
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At least two well-developed bodies of literature have emerged on practical questions relating to death, one the concern of psychology, the other the concern of ethics. These flow from two basic questions: how can we live well in the face of death? and when, if ever, is it legitimate deliberately to bring human life to an end? The perspective of faith can help to assess and evaluate the many, sometimes conflicting, responses to these questions of different schools of psychology and of philosophy. The method adopted by this book is to consider the distinct theological approaches to death shown by four outstanding Christian thinkers: Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, Thomas Aquinas, and Karl Rahner.Less
At least two well-developed bodies of literature have emerged on practical questions relating to death, one the concern of psychology, the other the concern of ethics. These flow from two basic questions: how can we live well in the face of death? and when, if ever, is it legitimate deliberately to bring human life to an end? The perspective of faith can help to assess and evaluate the many, sometimes conflicting, responses to these questions of different schools of psychology and of philosophy. The method adopted by this book is to consider the distinct theological approaches to death shown by four outstanding Christian thinkers: Ambrose of Milan, Augustine of Hippo, Thomas Aquinas, and Karl Rahner.
David Albert Jones
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199287154
- eISBN:
- 9780191713231
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199287154.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
An examination of the thought of Ambrose, Augustine, Thomas, and Rahner shows them to constitute a single extended argument on the theology of death. This can be set out in relation to the realities ...
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An examination of the thought of Ambrose, Augustine, Thomas, and Rahner shows them to constitute a single extended argument on the theology of death. This can be set out in relation to the realities of grief, fear, and hope in the face of death; in relation to the practices of suicide and euthanasia; and in relation to the more complex issue of withdrawal of treatment. Christian hope affirms both the need and the difficulty of acknowledging one's own approaching death. Rahner is at his most profound in describing how the need to surrender oneself to God in death, the need to die like a martyr, is anticipated throughout life. If, by the grace of God, death can be freely endured — and this is no easy task — then the final surrender in death will be the end of death and the preamble to our true end: eternal happiness in which death will be no more.Less
An examination of the thought of Ambrose, Augustine, Thomas, and Rahner shows them to constitute a single extended argument on the theology of death. This can be set out in relation to the realities of grief, fear, and hope in the face of death; in relation to the practices of suicide and euthanasia; and in relation to the more complex issue of withdrawal of treatment. Christian hope affirms both the need and the difficulty of acknowledging one's own approaching death. Rahner is at his most profound in describing how the need to surrender oneself to God in death, the need to die like a martyr, is anticipated throughout life. If, by the grace of God, death can be freely endured — and this is no easy task — then the final surrender in death will be the end of death and the preamble to our true end: eternal happiness in which death will be no more.
Francesca Aran Murphy
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199219285
- eISBN:
- 9780191711664
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199219285.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Theology
This chapter is about arguments for the existence of God. It shows how grammatical Thomists like Herbert McCabe and Denys Turner make proving that God exists into a matter of proving that it is ...
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This chapter is about arguments for the existence of God. It shows how grammatical Thomists like Herbert McCabe and Denys Turner make proving that God exists into a matter of proving that it is rational to question whether God exists. Their leading question, ‘why is there something rather than nothing?’ assumes rather than proves that the world is contingent: it takes us around the ‘story’ of God's existence from the inside of faith, and does not refer to any specific creative action of God. Circulating thus within human psychological acts, the grammatical Thomist argument is focussed on the act of questioning rather as a movie holds our attention by repeatedly posing new questions, causing us to suspend disbelief but not to credit it with real agency. The way in which story Barthians use the ‘ontological argument’ makes the Biblical stories about God into an evidential basis of God's existence. Robert Jenson's ‘story Thomism’ takes Thomistic and Barthian narrative theology to a logical conclusion by making ‘God’ a character within a wider story, whose plot requires ‘contingent’ and ‘Creator’ characters.Less
This chapter is about arguments for the existence of God. It shows how grammatical Thomists like Herbert McCabe and Denys Turner make proving that God exists into a matter of proving that it is rational to question whether God exists. Their leading question, ‘why is there something rather than nothing?’ assumes rather than proves that the world is contingent: it takes us around the ‘story’ of God's existence from the inside of faith, and does not refer to any specific creative action of God. Circulating thus within human psychological acts, the grammatical Thomist argument is focussed on the act of questioning rather as a movie holds our attention by repeatedly posing new questions, causing us to suspend disbelief but not to credit it with real agency. The way in which story Barthians use the ‘ontological argument’ makes the Biblical stories about God into an evidential basis of God's existence. Robert Jenson's ‘story Thomism’ takes Thomistic and Barthian narrative theology to a logical conclusion by making ‘God’ a character within a wider story, whose plot requires ‘contingent’ and ‘Creator’ characters.
