The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain
Thomistic metaphysics has been challenged on the grounds that its principles are inconsistent with our experiences of divine action and of our own subjectivity. Challenges of this sort have been raised by Eastern Christian thinkers in the school of Gregory Palamas and by contemporary Personalists; t...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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International Étienne Gilson Society
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Studia Gilsoniana |
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| Online Access: | http://gilsonsociety.com/files/04_Spencer_445-470.pdf |
| _version_ | 1811314985367764992 |
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| author | Mark K. Spencer |
| author_facet | Mark K. Spencer |
| author_sort | Mark K. Spencer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Thomistic metaphysics has been challenged on the grounds that its principles are inconsistent with our experiences of divine action and of our own subjectivity. Challenges of this sort have been raised by Eastern Christian thinkers in the school of Gregory Palamas and by contemporary Personalists; they propose alternative metaphysics to explain these experiences. Against these objections and against those Thomists who hold that Thomas Aquinas’ claims exclude Byzantine and Personalist metaphysics, I argue that Thomas’ metaphysical principles already have “flexibility” built into them, such that they can accommodate ways that reality is given in experience, which Thomas did not consider. I argue for this claim using the work of Byzantine and Personalist Thomists, and especially of Jacques Maritain, who outlines several ways in which Thomistic metaphysical principles can be expanded to explain experiences that he did not consider. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T11:22:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7ae559fd875747838f3cdcf684448716 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2300-0066 2577-0314 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T11:22:17Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | International Étienne Gilson Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Studia Gilsoniana |
| spelling | doaj.art-7ae559fd875747838f3cdcf6844487162022-12-22T02:48:47ZengInternational Étienne Gilson SocietyStudia Gilsoniana2300-00662577-03142022-09-0111344547010.26385/SG.110317The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques MaritainMark K. SpencerThomistic metaphysics has been challenged on the grounds that its principles are inconsistent with our experiences of divine action and of our own subjectivity. Challenges of this sort have been raised by Eastern Christian thinkers in the school of Gregory Palamas and by contemporary Personalists; they propose alternative metaphysics to explain these experiences. Against these objections and against those Thomists who hold that Thomas Aquinas’ claims exclude Byzantine and Personalist metaphysics, I argue that Thomas’ metaphysical principles already have “flexibility” built into them, such that they can accommodate ways that reality is given in experience, which Thomas did not consider. I argue for this claim using the work of Byzantine and Personalist Thomists, and especially of Jacques Maritain, who outlines several ways in which Thomistic metaphysical principles can be expanded to explain experiences that he did not consider.http://gilsonsociety.com/files/04_Spencer_445-470.pdfthomismthomas aquinasgregory palamaskarol wojtyłajacques maritaindivine actiondivine simplicityessence-energies distinctionsubjectivitypersonalismmetaphysicsreal and rational distinctions |
| spellingShingle | Mark K. Spencer The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain Studia Gilsoniana thomism thomas aquinas gregory palamas karol wojtyła jacques maritain divine action divine simplicity essence-energies distinction subjectivity personalism metaphysics real and rational distinctions |
| title | The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain |
| title_full | The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain |
| title_fullStr | The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain |
| title_short | The Flexibility of Thomistic Metaphysical Principles: Byzantine Thomists, Personalist Thomists, and Jacques Maritain |
| title_sort | flexibility of thomistic metaphysical principles byzantine thomists personalist thomists and jacques maritain |
| topic | thomism thomas aquinas gregory palamas karol wojtyła jacques maritain divine action divine simplicity essence-energies distinction subjectivity personalism metaphysics real and rational distinctions |
| url | http://gilsonsociety.com/files/04_Spencer_445-470.pdf |
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