Omnipotence and Necessary Moral Perfection: Are They Compatible?
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Normative Perfectionism and the Kantian Tradition
volume 19, no. 45 erfectionist ethical theories ground moral demands in the per- october 2019 fection or full realization of one’s essential nature.1 Perfection- P ism has a rich history. Perfectionist ideas can be found in Aristo- tle, the Stoics, Maimonides, Aquinas, Malebranche, Spinoza, Leibniz, von Humboldt, J. S. Mill, F. H. Bradley, T. H. Green, Nietzsche, and Marx, among others. Though individual perfectionist figures have received significant attention, their perfectionism has not always enjoyed the Normative Perfectionism same focus. Perfectionism has not been studied thoroughly as a dis- tinctive tradition, and it remains a neglected option in contemporary moral and political philosophy.2 This neglect may reflect doubts about the justification, content, and implications of perfectionist ideals. and the Kantian Tradition Different conceptions of perfectionism result from different con- ceptions of human nature. Some perfectionists and their critics un- derstand human nature as a biological kind. However, that conception of perfectionism gives rise to legitimate foundational doubts about whether there is anything substantive that is essential to human na- ture and whether, if there is, it would be normatively compelling. A different strand in the perfectionist tradition grounds perfectionist ide- als in a normative conception of human nature as involving personal- ity or agency. Normative perfectionism is a distinctive conception within 1. An earlier version of this material was presented at Sheffield University as part of a 2014 conference on Post-Kantian Perfectionism; a 2015 University of Pennsylvania conference on Ancient and Modern Conceptions of Happiness; David O. Brink Ohio and St. Louis Universities; a 2016 UCSD conference, Perfectionism: Ancient and Modern; the Chinese University of Hong Kong; and the 2019 University of California San Diego Pacific Division Meetings of the APA. -
Life with Augustine
Life with Augustine ...a course in his spirit and guidance for daily living By Edmond A. Maher ii Life with Augustine © 2002 Augustinian Press Australia Sydney, Australia. Acknowledgements: The author wishes to acknowledge and thank the following people: ► the Augustinian Province of Our Mother of Good Counsel, Australia, for support- ing this project, with special mention of Pat Fahey osa, Kevin Burman osa, Pat Codd osa and Peter Jones osa ► Laurence Mooney osa for assistance in editing ► Michael Morahan osa for formatting this 2nd Edition ► John Coles, Peter Gagan, Dr. Frank McGrath fms (Brisbane CEO), Benet Fonck ofm, Peter Keogh sfo for sharing their vast experience in adult education ► John Rotelle osa, for granting us permission to use his English translation of Tarcisius van Bavel’s work Augustine (full bibliography within) and for his scholarly advice Megan Atkins for her formatting suggestions in the 1st Edition, that have carried over into this the 2nd ► those generous people who have completed the 1st Edition and suggested valuable improvements, especially Kath Neehouse and friends at Villanova College, Brisbane Foreword 1 Dear Participant Saint Augustine of Hippo is a figure in our history who has appealed to the curiosity and imagination of many generations. He is well known for being both sinner and saint, for being a bishop yet also a fellow pilgrim on the journey to God. One of the most popular and attractive persons across many centuries, his influence on the church has continued to our current day. He is also renowned for his influ- ence in philosophy and psychology and even (in an indirect way) art, music and architecture. -
'The Supreme Principle of Morality'? in the Preface to His Best
The Supreme Principle of Morality Allen W. Wood 1. What is ‘The Supreme Principle of Morality’? In the Preface to his best known work on moral philosophy, Kant states his purpose very clearly and succinctly: “The present groundwork is, however, nothing more than the search for and establishment of the supreme principle of morality, which already constitutes an enterprise whole in its aim and to be separated from every other moral investigation” (Groundwork 4:392). This paper will deal with the outcome of the first part of this task, namely, Kant’s attempt to formulate the supreme principle of morality, which is the intended outcome of the search. It will consider this formulation in light of Kant’s conception of the historical antecedents of his attempt. Our first task, however, must be to say a little about the meaning of the term ‘supreme principle of morality’. For it is not nearly as evident to many as it was to Kant that there is such a thing at all. And it is extremely common for people, whatever position they may take on this issue, to misunderstand what a ‘supreme principle of morality’ is, what it is for, and what role it is supposed to play in moral theorizing and moral reasoning. Kant never directly presents any argument that there must be such a principle, but he does articulate several considerations that would seem to justify supposing that there is. Kant holds that moral questions are to be decided by reason. Reason, according to Kant, always seeks unity under principles, and ultimately, systematic unity under the fewest possible number of principles (Pure Reason A298-302/B355-359, A645- 650/B673-678). -
Leibniz on Whether the World Increases in Perfection
LEIBNIZ ON WHETHER THE WORLD INCREASES IN PERFECTION Lloyd Strickland In a letter to Bourguet written on 5 August 1715, a little over a year before his death, Leibniz suggests that, on the question of the world’s perfection, ‘Two hypotheses can be formed – one that nature is equally perfect, the other that it always increases in perfection.’ (L664)1 He then proceeds to split the second option into two further 1 The abbreviations I use throughout when citing Leibniz are as follows: A = Sämtliche schriften und briefe, ed by Akademie der Wissenschaften, multiple volumes in 6 series, cited by series (reihe) and volume (band) (Berlin, 1923-). AG = Philosophical essays, trans & ed by Roger Ariew & Daniel Garber (Indianapolis, 1989). D = De summa rerum, trans by G. H. R. Parkinson (New Haven, 1992). DM = Discourse on metaphysics, cited by section number, various translations in AG, L, P, W etc. Dn = The philosophical works of Leibnitz, trans & ed George Martin Duncan (New Haven, 1908). E = Opera Philosophica, ed by J. E. Erdmann (Berlin, 1840). G = Die philosophiscen Schriften von Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, ed by C. I. Gerhardt, 7 vols (Berlin, 1875-1890). GM = G. W. Leibniz: Mathematische Schriften, ed by C. I. Gerhardt, 7 vols (Berlin, 1962). Gr = Textes inédits, ed by Gaston Grua, 2 vols with successive pagination (Paris, 1948). H = Theodicy, trans by E. M. Huggard (Chicago, 1990). L = Philosophical papers and letters, trans & ed Leroy E. Loemker (Dordrecht, 2ed 1969). Mon = Monadology, cited by section number, various translations in AG, L, P, W etc. NE = New essays concerning human understanding, trans & ed by Peter Remnant & Jonathan Bennett (Cambridge, 1996). -
In Defense of the Development of Augustine's Doctrine of Grace By
In Defense of the Development of Augustine’s Doctrine of Grace by Laban Omondi Agisa Submitted to the faculty of the School of Theology of the University of the South in Partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Sacred Theology January 2020 Sewanee, Tennessee Approved ____________________________ _______________ Adviser Date ____________________________ _______________ Second Adviser Date 2 DECLARATION I declare that this is my original work and has not been presented in any other institution for consideration of any certification. This work has been complemented by sources duly acknowledged and cited using Chicago Manual Style. Signature Date 3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT My study of theology was initiated in 2009 by the then Provost of St. Stephens Cathedral, Nairobi, the late Ven. Canon John Ndung’u who was a great encouragement to me. This was further made possible through my bishop the Rt. Rev. Joel Waweru and the Rev. Geoffrey Okapisi who were sources of inspiration. My studies at Carlile College (Church Army Africa) and St. Paul’s University laid a strong theological foundation and I appreciate among others the influence of the Rev. Dr. John Kiboi who introduced me to Philosophy, Systematic Theology, Ethics, and African Christian Theology that eventually became the foundation for my studies at the University of the South. I also appreciate the encouragement of my lecturers Mrs. Tabitha Waweru and Dr. Scholarstica Githinji during my Study of Education at Kenya Technical Trainers College and at Daystar University respectively. My interest in this topic came as a result of many sittings with two professors at the University of the South, Dr. -
Picture Day Perfection Discussion Guide
A Common Core State Standards Aligned Discussion & Activity Guide for PICTURE DAY PERFECTION Grades: K-2 ISBN: 978-1-4197-0844-9 Written by Deborah Diesen Illustrated by Dan Santat Published by Abrams Books for Young Readers It’s picture day, and the boy at the center of this charming picture book wants to make sure his picture is perfect. It seems as though everything’s going wrong for him—he has bedhead, a stained shirt, and a big scowl on his face. But when he goes up for his picture, he thinks about his terrible appearance, and he smiles—because he secretly wants his picture to be the worst ever taken! But just as he smiles, the photo is snapped and his plan is ruined—the photo looks great. Guide Created by Debbie Gonzales 2 Table of Contents Pre-Reading Discussion Questions ......................................................................................................................... 3 Post Reading Discussion Questions ........................................................................................................................ 4 Adjective Search Game ....................................................................................................................................... 7 Adjective Game Sheet..................................................................................................................................... 8 The Months of the Year - A Sequencing Activity ...................................................................................................... 9 The Months of the Year -
Omnipotence As a Perfection of God
Yulia Gorbatova OMNIPOTENCE AS A PERFECTION OF GOD BASIC RESEARCH PROGRAM WORKING PAPERS SERIES: HUMANITIES WP BRP 09/HUM/2012 This Working Paper is an output of a research project implemented at the National Research University Higher School of Economics (HSE). Any opinions or claims contained in this Working Paper do not necessarily reflect the views of HSE. SERIES: HUMANITIES Yulia V. Gorbatova1 2 OMNIPOTENCE AS A PERFECTION OF GOD This article deals with the concept of omnipotence, which is very important for contemporary analytic philosophy of religion. Within the analytic tradition it is usual to show an apparent tension between God’s omnipotence and other divine attributes. In response, some authors have proposed their own ideas on how the classical problems of omnipotence can be solved in terms of possible worlds theory. In this paper we consider the approaches developed by Geach, Adams and Plantinga. While admitting that each of them has made a significant contribution to the refinement of the concept of omnipotence, we point out a number of important challenges that these authors were not able to overcome. JEL Classification: Z Keywords: God, omnipotence, Adams worlds, possible worlds, semantics, Leibniz, Plantinga. 1 National Research University Higher School of Economics. Faculty of Philosophy, Department of Ontology, Logics and Theory of Knowledge: Senior Lecturer; E-mail: [email protected] 2 This study comprises research findings from the “Logical and Ontological Foundations of Modern Analytic Theology”, research grant No 11-01-0172, carried out within The National Research University Higher School of Economics’ Academic Fund Program in 2012/2013. A number of analytic philosophers (including Plantinga) believe that the exclusive nature of God is determined by His specific attributes of omnipotence, omnibenevolence and omniscience. -
Phil. 126 Leibniz Passages
Phil. 126 Leibniz Passages (A) Imagine two clocks or watches which are in perfect agreement. Now this can happen in three ways. The first is that of natural influence. This is the way with which Mr. Huygens experimented, with results that greatly surprised him. He suspended two pendulums from the same piece of wood. The continued strokes of the pendulums transmitted similar vibrations to the particles of wood, but these vibrations could not continue in their own frequency without interfering with each other, at least when the two pendulums did not beat together. The result, by a kind of miracle, was that even when their strokes had been intentionally disturbed, they came to beat together again, somewhat like two strings tuned to each other. The second way of making two clocks, even poor ones, agree always is to assign a skilled craftsman to them who adjusts them and constantly sets them in agreement. The third way is to construct these two timepieces at the beginning with such skill and accuracy that one can be assured of their subsequent agreement. Now put the soul and the body in the place of these two timepieces. Then their agreement or sympathy will also come about in one of these three ways. The way of influence is that of the common philosophy. But since it is impossible to conceive of material particles or of species or immaterial qualities which can pass from one of these substances into the other, this view must be rejected. The way of assistance is that of the system of occasional causes. -
ABSTRACT on Science and Atheism: Whether Atheistic Belief Is
ABSTRACT On Science and Atheism: Whether Atheistic Belief is Scientifically Motivated Charles L. Jester Director: Gerald Cleaver, Ph.D. The intent of this paper is to explore the motivation behind the rejection of theistic religious faiths by modern atheist scientists, and whether it is justified to claim that this rejection is scientifically motivated. First, a brief background of the development of the contemporary schism between faith and science is given, noting in particular changes in belief amongst the scientific community. Next, an exposition on the motivations for scientists’ convictions concerning God is laid out, followed by an address to the question of whether atheistic scientists reject all properties of God, or only certain of them. Based on analyses of personal statements, statistical data on beliefs, and developments in twentieth-century physics and mathematics, it is concluded that modern scientists who reject theism are not overwhelmingly motivated by science, and that they in fact do not reject all ideas of God. APPROVED BY DIRECTOR OF HONORS THESIS: _____________________________________________________ Dr. Gerald B. Cleaver, Department of Physics APPROVED BY THE HONORS PROGRAM: _____________________________________________________ Dr. Andrew Wisely, Director DATE: ___________________________ ON SCIENCE AND ATHEISM: WHETHER ATHEISTIC BELIEF IS SCIENTIFICALLY MOTIVATED A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Baylor University In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Honors Program By Charles L. Jester Waco, Texas -
Omnibenevolence, Omnipotence, and Evil
Omnibenevolence, omnipotence, and evil Last time, we discussed Anselm’s conception of God as that being which has every property that it is better to have than not to have; and from this, we argued that God must have, at least, three properties. omniscient omnipotent omnibenevolent Last time we focused on problems which result from omnipotence alone; today we’ll focus on problems which result from the combination of omnipotence with omnibenevolence. (Later in the course we’ll return to problems involving omniscience.) One of the oldest, and most important, arguments against the existence of God tries to show that the idea that God is all-powerful and all-good contradicts a very obvious fact about the world: the fact that it contains evil. The reading for today is a powerful version of that argument, which is due to the Australian 20th century philosopher John Mackie. What we need to understand, first, is why Mackie thinks that these three claims are contradictory. The three claims are: God is omnipotent. God is wholly good. Some evil exists. Now, it is certainly not obvious that these three claims are contradictory. Mackie thinks that we can show them to be contradictory with the help of two further premises: If something is wholly good, it always eliminates as much evil as it can. If something is omnipotent, it can do anything. God is omnipotent. If something is wholly good, it always eliminates as much evil as it can. God is wholly good. If something is omnipotent, it can do anything. Some evil exists. Now our question is: why does Mackie think that these five claims are contradictory? To answer this, we can begin by thinking about the claims that God is omnipotent and that God is wholly good. -
Divine Omnipotence in Descartes' Philosophy
City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 6-2014 Divine Omnipotence In Descartes' Philosophy Alfredo Rodriguez Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/274 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] DIVINE OMNIPOTENCE IN DESCARTES’ PHILOSOPHY BY ALFREDO RODRIGUEZ A master's thesis submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Liberal Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, The City University of New York 2014 © 2014 Alfredo Rodriguez All Rights Reserved ii This manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Liberal Studies in satisfaction of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts. Professor Douglas Lackey Date Thesis Adviser Professor Matthew K. Gold Date Executive Officer THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii Abstract Divine Omnipotence in Descartes’ Philosophy by Alfredo Rodriguez Adviser: Professor Douglas Lackey The present thesis explores various aspects of Rene Descartes’ doctrine of divine omnipotence within the context of his overall philosophy and with reference to his medieval heritage. This thesis shows that, contrary to his multiple and explicit statements that God’s power cannot be limited in any way, Descartes took a more nuanced position on divine omnipotence that incorporated aspects of the widely accepted medieval position that God’s goodness is a constraint on his power. -
Progress According to David Hume and Adam Smith Ecem Okan
Between history and analysis : progress according to David Hume and Adam Smith Ecem Okan To cite this version: Ecem Okan. Between history and analysis : progress according to David Hume and Adam Smith. Eco- nomics and Finance. Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - Paris I, 2018. English. NNT : 2018PA01E050. tel-03041539 HAL Id: tel-03041539 https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-03041539 Submitted on 5 Dec 2020 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Université Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne École d’Économie de la Sorbonne PHARE ENTRE HISTOIRE ET ANALYSE : LE PROGRÈS SELON DAVID HUME ET ADAM SMITH / BETWEEN HISTORY AND ANALYSIS: PROGRESS ACCORDING TO DAVID HUME AND ADAM SMITH Thèse pour l’obtention du titre de Docteure en Sciences Économiques Présentée et soutenue publiquement le 4 décembre 2018 par Ecem Okan Sous la direction d’André Lapidus Professeur à l’Université Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne COMPOSITION DU JURY : Daniel Diatkine, Professeur Émérite à l’Université d’Evry/ ParisSaclay Laurent Jaffro, Professeur à l’Université Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne André Lapidus, Professeur Émérite à l’Université Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne (Directeur de recherche) Spencer Pack, Professeur au Connecticut College, ÉtatsUnis (Rapporteur) Nathalie Sigot, Professeure à l’Université Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne Michel Zouboulakis, Professeur à l’Université de Thessalie, Grèce (Rapporteur) L’Université Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne n’entend donner aucune approbation ni désapprobation aux opinions émises dans cette thèse ; ces opinions doivent être considérées comme propres à leur auteur.