70,174 research outputs found
On the Knowledge of God and the Metaphysics of Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas argues in his seminal work, the Summa Theologiae, that one can come to know the existence of God through rational argumentation alone. As a theologian writing a work of theology, he makes his demonstrations concerning Godâs existence from the point of view of his Christian faith. And in this, it will be argued, Aquinas is not necessarily mistaken. For his project is to present a grand scheme of reality and manâs place within it. Philosophers have often tried the same, and, like Aquinas, their attempts have been made from a certain point of view. That, it will be shown, is the difference. This paper will present how Aquinas accounts for manâs ability to know generally and then metaphysically, but also how he reasonably presents his theses within the purview of his Christian faith
A Concurrent Perspective on Smart Contracts
In this paper, we explore remarkable similarities between multi-transactional
behaviors of smart contracts in cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum and classical
problems of shared-memory concurrency. We examine two real-world examples from
the Ethereum blockchain and analyzing how they are vulnerable to bugs that are
closely reminiscent to those that often occur in traditional concurrent
programs. We then elaborate on the relation between observable contract
behaviors and well-studied concurrency topics, such as atomicity, interference,
synchronization, and resource ownership. The described
contracts-as-concurrent-objects analogy provides deeper understanding of
potential threats for smart contracts, indicate better engineering practices,
and enable applications of existing state-of-the-art formal verification
techniques.Comment: 15 page
Wisdom in Aristotle and Aquinas: From Metaphysics to Mysticism
This essay contains an attempt to trace the evolution of the concept of wisdom as found in the thought of Aristotle and Aquinas in terms of how the philosophical concept of wisdom as an intellectual virtue is understood and used to express the theological concept of wisdom as a gift of the Holy Spirit. The main aim is to understand how Aquinas derived the concept of wisdom from Aristotle's metaphysics and developed it in his mysticism. This research is based on a close study of Book Six of Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics, the corresponding sections of Aquinas' Sententia
libri Ethicorum and question forty-five of the second part of the second part of Aquinas' Summa Theologiae. The insights gained from the study are then used to decipher the theoretical meaning of Augustine's famous saying: "love and do
what thou wilt" and to expound on the practical value of wisdom for religious leaders
Contemplating Procession: Thomas Aquinasâ Analogy of the Procession of the Word in the Immanent Divine Life
Thomas Aquinasâ Trinitarian theology has been criticized as proposing an abstract notion of God that is divorced from salvation history and that is supported by tedious and ultimately incomprehensible explication. By showing the goals and limitations of Thomasâ approach and by analyzing one element of his theology, it will be shown that these criticisms are unfounded. Specifically, this article will attempt to analyze Aquinasâ view of the procession of the Word, or act of âgeneration,â in the divine immanent life. It can be seen that Aquinas actually provides a metaphysical analogy for contemplating generation that avoids heresy and that absolutely integrates the economic and immanent lives of the Trinity
New remarks on the Cosmological Argument
We present a formal analysis of the Cosmological Argument in its two main
forms: that due to Aquinas, and the revised version of the Kalam Cosmological
Argument more recently advocated by William Lane Craig. We formulate these two
arguments in such a way that each conclusion follows in first-order logic from
the corresponding assumptions. Our analysis shows that the conclusion which
follows for Aquinas is considerably weaker than what his aims demand. With
formalizations that are logically valid in hand, we reinterpret the natural
language versions of the premises and conclusions in terms of concepts of
causality consistent with (and used in) recent work in cosmology done by
physicists. In brief: the Kalam argument commits the fallacy of equivocation in
a way that seems beyond repair; two of the premises adopted by Aquinas seem
dubious when the terms `cause' and `causality' are interpreted in the context
of contemporary empirical science. Thus, while there are no problems with
whether the conclusions follow logically from their assumptions, the Kalam
argument is not viable, and the Aquinas argument does not imply a caused
origination of the universe. The assumptions of the latter are at best less
than obvious relative to recent work in the sciences. We conclude with mention
of a new argument that makes some positive modifications to an alternative
variation on Aquinas by Le Poidevin, which nonetheless seems rather weak.Comment: 12 pages, accepted for publication in International Journal for
Philosophy of Religio
Molding the Physical World Upon Francis Bacon's Anvil
This examination of the division of the sciences offered by Thomas Aquinas and Francis
Bacon compares the ontological approach to the sciences proposed by Aquinas and the modern pragmatic scientific theory of Bacon. The author weighs a proposed elimination of metaphysics from the thinking of Bacon and its implications for modem scientific thought, concluding finally that metaphysics is extremely important as the governing agent of the sciences
Hans Kelsen and the tradition of natural law: why Kelsenâs objections to the natural-law doctrine does not apply against Aquinasâs theory of natural law
In his works, Hans Kelsen elaborates several objections to the so-called âdoctrine of natural lawâ, especially in his essay The Natural-Law Doctrine Before the Tribunal of Science. Kelsen argues that natural law theorists, searching for an absolute criterion for justice, try to deduce from nature the rules of human behavior. Robert P. George, in the essay Kelsen and Aquinas on the âNatural Law Doctrineâ examines his criticism and concludes that what Kelsen understands as the Natural-law doctrine does not include the natural law theory elaborated by Thomas Aquinas. In this paper, we will try to corroborate Georgeâs theses and try to show how Aquinasâ natural law theory can be vindicated against Kelsens criticisms
Dialectic and narrative in Aquinas; The soul as virgin wife; On evil (3 books)
Reviewed Book: Hibbs, Thomas S. Dialectic and narrative in Aquinas: an interpretation of the Summa contra gentiles. [S.l.]: Univ of Notre Dame Pr, 1995. Hollywood, Amy. The soul as virgin wife: Mechthild of Magdeburg, Marguerite Porete, and Meister Eckhart. Notre Dame: Thomas, Aquinas, Saint. On evil: disputed questions. [S.l.]: Univ of Notre Dame Pr, 1995. Univ of Notre Dame Pr, 1995. Studies in spirituality and theology; 1
Access to Life-Saving Medicines and Intellectual Property Rights: An Ethical Assessment
© 2011 Cambridge University Press. Online edition of the journal is available at http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=CQHDying before oneâs time has been a prominent theme in classic literature and poetry. Catherine Lintonâs youthful death in Wuthering Heights leaves behind a bereft Heathcliff and generations of mourning readers. The author herself, Emily BrontĂ«, died young from tuberculosis. John Keatsâ Ode on Melancholy captures the transitory beauty of 19th century human lives too often ravished by early death. Keats also died of tuberculosis, aged 25. âThe bloom, whose petals nipped before they blew, died on the promise of the fruitâ is how Percy Bysshe Shelley expressed his grief over Keatsâ death. Emily Dickinson wrote So Has a Daisy Vanished, being driven into depression by the early loss of loved ones from typhoid and tuberculosis
The Confucian Puzzle: Justice and Care in Aquinas
Ethical theories of justice and care are often presented in opposition to each other. Eleonore Stump argues that Aquinasâs moral theory has the resources to bring justice and care together. There is, however, a potential worry for her view raised by the âConfucian Puzzleâ. The puzzle poses a moral dilemma between care and justice that serves as a test case for Stumpâs picture. In this paper, I provide a brief overview of the justice and care debate along with the subsequent challenges that both positions face in order to situate Aquinasâs position as Stump defends it. Next, I present the Confucian Puzzle and consider how Aquinas might respond to it. Finally, given his response, I make two claims. First, the unifying virtue of charity enables Aquinas to resolve the tension between justice and care as it appears in the Confucian Puzzle. Second, Stumpâs integration thesis only obtains given what Aquinas says about charity
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