Natural theology

The Causal Argument strategy is an argument from Aquinas that utilizes the Causal Principle. Aquinas’s argument starts from some known effect, as in relation to cause and effect, and then argues that this particular effect must have been caused by God. Aquinas starts off his argument by asserting the existencce of something. He then states the Causal Principle. Later, Aquinas makes a claim about what must be the sufficient cause of the thing he asserts exists in the first claim. Finally,…

Aquinas for Armchair Theologians examines the nature of evil in chapter 3, “Why Is There Evil? Do Humans Have Free Will?”. Aquinas answers the first question by stating, “…that God does not make evil. God only makes good. Evil, in a sense, does not exist at all- at least it is not a substance or a thing” (Renick, p.33). The author also uses the Daisy Theory and Hitler to make the claim “privation of the good” is evil. However, when looking at what the Bible has written about evil it states, “For…

way of proving God’s existence is through the nature of efficient cause. The universe itself is an effect from efficient cause(s), however, though the efficient causal chain is not infinite there must be a first efficient cause. Nothing can be the natural efficient cause of itself that humanity is at least aware of however, there must have been a first cause. So that cause according to Aquinas is…

Reflection on St. Augustine Del Rosario, Gabriel Christian G. “Faith = Healing” Among all the philosophers that we have taken up so far in class, St. Augustine has made the biggest impact on me thus far. What caught my attention to Augustine was the fact that he was a non-believer who indulged himself in what can be considered paganistic teachings, but after converting to Christianity, he became a different person, one that had changed for the better. He taught that true happiness could…

This need to humanize Rizal is brought up by the notions of Rizal being a supreme being with no fault. This close-to-being-a-god notion gave us a reason to understand and know who Rizal is under all the titles and ideologies attached to his name. In fact, a reason why he is thought of as a god is because his life is a mystery. Not a lot of people knew who he was besides his literary works and his heroic deeds so if we knew how he lived, we can understand him and his works. One of the people who…

This essay will outline Cullison’s sacrifice argument against the problems of divine hiddenness. It will then show that this argument does not work, as a world in which true human sacrifice is possible is not a better world than one where God is not hidden. I will refer to the former as a ‘Godless World’ and the latter as a ‘Godly World’. There are three themes which this essay will address: true human sacrifice, two potential worlds and human freedom. I will conclude that a ‘Godly World’ – even…

Can Satan be said to have self-knowledge, as he seems to in Book IV? Is it possible for one to know oneself when one has rejected God and one's own creatureliness? If we are to accept that Satan "has self knowledge," we must define this self- knowledge: what does is mean to know one's self? By knowing one's self, does one better understand one's essence, or does one better understand one's emotions and the causes of one's state? In short, is Satan's self-knowledge of his emotions and responses,…

Kevin Vanhoozer shares some affinity with Barth and Placher as well. His separation of theology and ethics I find most interesting because his premise, that scripture and its subsequent doctrine can best be understood as a script for dramatic performance. And yet somehow Vanhoozer separates the script and its performance, suggesting at various points throughout his book The Drama of Doctrine that both stand on their own. In Vanhoozer’s narrative approach, God the director is also the…

Relative to theology, Xavier’s Mission statement runs parallel to the mission of theology; a mission to “create a more just and humane society”. As theology serves as a medium between society and the church, Xavier also mediates between the institution and society. In order to understand the function of Xavier’s mission, we must first gain insight into the function of theology. By first grasping a clear understanding of theological function, we may compare the utility of critical reflection in…

The argument from evil, supposes that because there is evil in the world, God therefore cannot be omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient. These characteristics are used to describe the essence of the God of Christianity, so according to the argument from evil, God does not exist. Because if He did exist as an all-powerful, loving being, He would not allow such evil to prevail. So, does the fact of evil make it irrational to believe in God? No, the fact of evil does not make it irrational to…