Philosophie et théologie dans le cartésianisme : la théorie cartésienne de la création des vérités éternelles et sa postérité

2020 ◽  
pp. 237-258
Author(s):  
Aurélien Chukurian
Keyword(s):  
Modern Philosophy ◽  
Natural Theology ◽  
Eternal Truths ◽  
The Way

This article examines Descartes’ theory of the free creation of eternal truths, showing the theological implications of its underlying philosophical principles. The author ponders the way in which Descartes treats certain topics that pertain to natural theology (God’s dignity and power, the equivocity between the finite and the infinite), as well as the Christological tension that runs through his theory. The theological echoes of this theory are then assessed, looking at thinkers after Descartes as well as the minores, with a focus on two theological themes: the recovery of univocity, and some of the contours of the kind of Christology Descartes’ theory authorizes. The aim of the article, by showing the fruitfulness of an approach that places modern philosophy and theology in conversation, is to ask how a theological reading of Descartes and Cartesian thought may help renew its study.

John Ray, physico-theology and afterwards

2011 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 328-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. J. Berry
Keyword(s):  
Eighteenth Century ◽  
Intelligent Design ◽  
Trinity College ◽  
Natural Theology ◽  
Biblical Interpretation ◽  
John Ray ◽  
The Way

Ray's most widely read book was his Wisdom of God manifested in the works of creation (1691), probably based on addresses given in the chapel of Trinity College Cambridge 20 years previously. In it he forswore the use of allegory in biblical interpretation, just as he had done in his (and Francis Willughby's) Ornithology (1678). His discipline seeped into theology, complementing the influence of the Reformers and weakening Enlightenment assumptions about teleology, thus softening the hammer-blows of Darwinism on Deism. The physico-theology of the eighteenth century and the popularity of Gilbert White and the like survived the squeezing of natural theology by Paley and the Bridgewater Treatises a century after Wisdom … , and contributed to a peculiarly British understanding of natural theology. This undergirded the subsequent impact of the results of the voyagers and geologists and prepared the way for a modern reading of God's “Book of Works” (“Darwinism … under the disguise of a foe, did the work of a friend”). Natural theology is often assumed to have been completely discredited by Darwin (as well as condemned by Barth and ridiculed by Dawkins). Notwithstanding, and despite the vapours of vitalism (ironically urged – among others – by Ray's biographer, Charles Raven) and the current fashion for “intelligent design”, the attitudes encouraged by Wisdom … still seem to be robust, albeit needing constant re-tuning (as in all understandings influenced by science).

Historical Origins

2021 ◽  
pp. 11-45
Author(s):  
J. Arvid Ågren
Keyword(s):  
Population Genetics ◽  
Group Selection ◽  
Evolutionary Biology ◽  
Natural Theology ◽  
Living World ◽  
Selfish Gene ◽  
Theory Of Evolution ◽  
The Third ◽  
Historical Origins ◽  
The Way

This chapter traces the origins of the gene’s-eye view through three sections of evolutionary biology. The first is adaptationism, the tradition that takes the appearance of design in living world to be the cardinal problem a theory of evolution needs to explain. The chapter shows how this view has been especially prominent in British biology, owing the strong standing of natural theology and the writings of William Paley. The second is the emergence of population genetics during the modern synthesis. Here, the work of R.A. Fisher was particularly important. The third and final section was the levels selection debate and the rejection of group selection. G.C. Williams led the way the way and the origin of the gene’s-eye view culminated with the publication of The Selfish Gene.

Een wandelgids bij het leven: Een analytische evaluatie van de Christelijke Dogmatiek

2015 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-37
Author(s):  
Rik Peels
Keyword(s):  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Natural Theology ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Systematic Theology ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Analysis And Evaluation ◽  
The Core ◽  
General Perspective ◽  
The Way

This article provides a critical analysis and evaluation of Gijsbert van den Brink and Kees van der Kooi’s Christian Dogmatics, a lucid and welcome presentation of the core ideas that can be found in the Christian faith. First, the book is characterized, both from a more general perspective and from a specifically theological point of view. Next, it is argued that there is a discrepancy between the way the authors characterize systematic theology and the way they practice systematic theology themselves. After that, their assessment of natural theology is criticized and several problems in the Christian Dogmatics are highlighted, such as the fact that the authors’ anthropology fails to take holistic dualism seriously. Finally, it is argued that in some places, the authors ask important questions, but then provide answers to different questions without addressing the original issues.

Logic: A Very Short Introduction

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham Priest
Keyword(s):  
Decision Theory ◽  
Modern Philosophy ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Formal Logic ◽  
Short Introduction ◽  
Existence Of God ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Technical Terms ◽  
The Way

Logic is often perceived as having little to do with the rest of philosophy, and even less to do with real life. Logic: A Very Short Introduction shows how wrong this conception is. It explores the philosophical roots of the subject, explaining how modern formal logic deals with issues ranging from the existence of God and the reality of time to paradoxes of probability and decision theory. Along the way, the basics of formal logic are explained in simple, non-technical terms, showing that logic is a powerful and exciting part of modern philosophy. It also covers the subjects of algorithms and axioms, and proofs in mathematics.

Montaigne, Translator of Raymond Sebond

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mireille Habert
Keyword(s):  
Natural Theology ◽  
Personal Reflection ◽  
Patient Study ◽  
Faith And Reason ◽  
Cutting Out ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The University ◽  
The Way

Published in 1569, eleven years before the Essays came out, Natural Theology is the first printed work signed by the hand of Montaigne. It is not his own creation but a translation into French of a lengthy volume written in Latin around 1430 at the University of Toulouse by theologian Raymond Sebond. This translation was, for a long time, considered to be a simple stylistic exercise. Montaigne himself never professed to have done more than gain the satisfaction of succeeding at “cutting out and setting forth with [his] hand a French costume for the Spanish theologian and philosopher.” However, Montaigne’s patient study of Sebond’s thick volume was more than just an opportunity for his formal enrichment. Through questions regarding the way faith and reason engage with each other, the translator takes the first steps of a personal reflection on the human mind’s capacity to access the truth.

Osservazioni sulle fonti luterane della controversia De notitia Dei naturali insita in infantibus

2009 ◽  
pp. 449-467
Author(s):  
Roberto Bordoli
Keyword(s):  
Modern Philosophy ◽  
Key Words ◽  
18Th Century ◽  
The Enlightenment ◽  
History Of ◽  
Theological Thinking ◽  
Innate Idea ◽  
The Way ◽  
Idea Of God

Starting from a passage of Adam Steuart's refutation of Descartes' Notae in programma quoddam, this essay reconstructs the debate on the innate idea of God in infants (incorrectly attributed to Descartes by Steuart, who was a Calvinist) that took place in Lutheran-oriented philosophy and theology between the end of the 16th and the middle of the 18th century. It is shown that one of the most common questions in modern philosophy is closely connected with theological thinking - in this case Lutheran - from the formulation of the dogmatic systems up until their criticism by the Enlightenment. Also explained is the way in which the reception of Cartesianism was singularly influenced by the various backgrounds and the different and continuously changing polemical goals that inspired each author. In fact, Descartes was even accused of being a Lutheran.Key words: History of modern philosophy, History of Protestant theology, History of Cartesianism, History of Lutheranism, Reception of Cartesianism.

The Theodicy

2020 ◽  
pp. 173-205
Author(s):  
Paul Lodge
Keyword(s):  
Natural Theology ◽  
Problem Of Evil ◽  
The Face ◽  
Pierre Bayle ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Way

This chapter provides an overview of one of Leibniz’s longest and most important works, the Theodicy. It is argued that the Theodicy is best understood against a careful reading of the Preface, where Leibniz outlines the primary aim of the book, i.e. to provide the means by which natural theology and Leibniz’s conception of God as a being deserving of love may be maintained in the face of objections that stem from considering the nature of freedom and the so-called “problem of evil”. Due to space constraints, the chapter presents the main issues by focusing mainly on their presentation in Part1 rather than on the way in which Leibniz contrasts his views with those of with Pierre Bayle in Parts 2 and 3. It also includes a detailed discussion of the Preliminary Dissertation on the Conformity of Faith with Reason, in which Leibniz spells out his conception of the relationship between these notions.

scholarly journals Some Barthian perspectives on the present science-religion debate: What is the place of “natural theology” today?

2007 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cornel W. Du Toit
Keyword(s):  
Natural Theology ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Word Of God ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Creation Story ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Current Science ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Way

As an example of the context-relatedness of Barth’s work, this article compares his crisis theology with Heidegger’s philosophy of Being. Further examples are Barth’s reaction to the modernism of his time, with its accent on rationalism (see his critique of Kant), and the influence of subjective theology. In spite of his condemnation of natural theology, Barth could make a unique contribution to the current science-theology debate. His reading of the creation story and the way he views (transcends) the literal text in order to experience the Word of God as an event through that text, is a case in point. This approach, too, is comparable with certain aspects of Heidegger’s work. Barth’s reaction to the natural theology of his day was equally tied to that context. His particular target was the theology of that era which he interpreted as “natural theology”. To Barth, natural theology is metaphor for self-assertive, autonomous human beings who, via reason, manipulate the church, the Word and tradition.

scholarly journals C H Rautenbach, P S Dreyer en C K Oberholzer: Hulle nalatenskap en die pad vorentoe1

2000 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johann Beukes ◽  
Andries Van Aarde
Keyword(s):  
Modern Philosophy ◽  
Problematic Relationship ◽  
University Of Pretoria ◽  
Church And Society ◽  
Reason And Faith ◽  
The University ◽  
Theology And Philosophy ◽  
The Way

C H Rautenbach, P S Dreyer and C K Oberholzer: Their legacy and the way ahead. This article explores the legacy of three early philosophers at the University of Pretoria (1939-1987), who contributed substantially to the Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk's perspectives on the relation between (modern) theology and (modern) philosophy. The authors consider their legacy to be an essentially Kantian stabilisation of the complex and problematic relationship between reason and faith, church and society, and theology and philosophy. The article then proceeds to interpret the changes in these relationships that were brought about by the postmodern discourse.

One Step Toward God

2011 ◽  
Vol 68 ◽  
pp. 67-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Leftow
Keyword(s):  
Natural Theology ◽  
Causal Explanations ◽  
Eternal Truths ◽  
Necessary Being ◽  
One Step ◽  
Traditional Natural

Much of traditional natural theology offers causal explanations- e.g. for the universe's existence and ability to host our sort of life. But a less-remarked strand offers ontological explanations, claiming that theories involving God are the best answers to ontological questions. Leibniz, for instance, wrote in the Monadology that If there is a reality in essences or possibilities, or… eternal truths, this reality must be founded on something existent… and consequently on the existence of the necessary being in whom essence involves existence… without (God) there would be nothing real in the possibilities – not only nothing existent, but also nothing possible.

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