RE: Thomism: Then & Now
October 12, 2021 at 12:12 pm
(This post was last modified: October 12, 2021 at 12:18 pm by The Grand Nudger.)
Well, sure, and thats exactly the problem. The arguments dont go to the conclusion.....in addition to the conclusion being false on it's own merits.
A non sequitur in every case, and no theist actually considers any one of those things or all five of them together god. Theism is defined by personal and intervening gods. Not prime movers, first causes, necessary beings, perfect beings, or final causes. Aquinas himself didn't believe that any of these arguments could prove a god, let alone his god. That, he reckoned, took special revelation.
All of it fascinating, as a study of a historical character. We can assume he was a pretty smart cookie, and it's fun to see why he believed the things he did (not about gods, but about these arguments). It was important to him, he was a student of classical thought and very much wanted the new god to fit the old mold. It seemed meaningful, at the time, for that to be so.
A non sequitur in every case, and no theist actually considers any one of those things or all five of them together god. Theism is defined by personal and intervening gods. Not prime movers, first causes, necessary beings, perfect beings, or final causes. Aquinas himself didn't believe that any of these arguments could prove a god, let alone his god. That, he reckoned, took special revelation.
All of it fascinating, as a study of a historical character. We can assume he was a pretty smart cookie, and it's fun to see why he believed the things he did (not about gods, but about these arguments). It was important to him, he was a student of classical thought and very much wanted the new god to fit the old mold. It seemed meaningful, at the time, for that to be so.
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