Nature Of God: Attributes Of Eternal Flashcards
What is another word for eternal
Timeless
God exists outside of time with no beginning and no end
Biblical passages hint at Gods eternity:
“who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy.” Isaiah
Wheel did Nicolas wolterstorff argue about this
Nicolas Wolterstorff points out that a timeless God is not just from the influence of Classical Philosophy (e.g Plato’s unchanging WOF) but the view that a timeless God has to be different from human experience of life in the physical world.
What is eternity for boethius
“the whole, simultaneous and perfect possession of unending life.”
What was boethius main argument
God does not experience past, present or future but all time is present to God at same time.
• God does not exist in time
All time is present to God ‘simultaneously.’
E.g. Like watching a film and seeing the opening titles and credits in ‘one glance?
** Augustine and Aquinas support Boethius**
What was Augustines view
Augustine:
• If God made the world at a particular point in time, what was God doing before this?
The Bible indicates a timeless God who chose to create day and night, who is separate from this. There was no ‘before’ for God, as time (as we know it) does not work in the same way for God.
** Augustine and Aquinas support Boethius**
Aquinas’ view
Aquinas:
• When we speak of God we are using analogical language (analogy). God is not like us, we have no words to describe how God experiences ‘time’, so everything we say is just comparing similar things but is not actually the reality for God.
Aquinas agrees with Boethius:
“eternity exists as a simultaneous whole and time does not.”
What was the main idea of anslems four dimensional approach
God is not limited by space and time, like we are. Therefore he can’t be in the past, present and future at once.
• God is not just ‘in every time and space’ but every ‘time and space’ is in God - God is not contained by them but in control of them.
• This means that we do still have freewill, God can see the free choices we made in the past and what we will do in the future.
• Boethius describes God views of our free actions ‘as though from a lofty peak’. Whereas Anselm says there is no ‘although’ about it. G od literally sees our past, our present and our futures as part of his
timelessness = therefore judgement and consequent reward and
punishment are just.
Problems with timeless view
Swinburne argues that the notion of time being simultaneously present to God is incoherent, saying he could not “make much sense of this.
• How can God be personal and act in creation e.g. Red Sea?
• Love involves a two way process and ability to respond
How can a timeless
How can a timeless God respond to people’s prayers?
Defence of the timeless view
Paul Helm: “ God, considered as timeless, cannot have temporal relations with any of his creation.”
• Language that suggests God acting personally in the Bible reflects people of the time encountering God.
Theologian Maurice Wiles argues that God does not literally act in the world eg through miracles as this would present a partisan God (a God who helps some and not others) God loves us all through the gift of creation.
Aquinas: prayers should mean requests
What are some further issues with his view
• A possible problem is that Boethius ends up defining a God that is intrinsically different from the God of Classical Theism
• More of a Deist God because leaves questions about incarnation/ Christ, relevance of prayer (pointless) and no interaction.
Eternal as everlasting
One solution to the problems raised by God’s eternal nature = God is everlasting.
God always exists and will always exist without end but time passes for God
Supports a present and active God answering prayers/ granting miracles
State swinburnes view on this
“God knows the events of AD 1995
unless it means that he exists in 1995 and knows in 1995 what is happening… hence / prefer that understanding of God being eternal as his being everlasting rather than as his being timeless.”-
Swinburne
This an everlasting God fits move satisfactory with God as presented in the bible
What was wolterstorffs understanding of God
Only way to understand some of God’s actions in Bible is to see them as responses to humans’ free choices e.g. 10 plagues to human beings behaviour - time passing
• Wolterstorff also argues that you cannot criticise an everlasting God for not knowing the events of the future because God’s omniscience only includes knowing what has happened.
• the future as it is does not yet exist
Philosophical Problems
Eternal - timeless
Supports God’s:
• Omniscience - has all knowledge
• Omnipotence - has all power to create and remain separate from time
• Perfect: no limits, constraints
• Immutable: not changed by time
But Questions God’s:
• Omni benevolence - not present in time
• Personal - not answering prayers /miracles
Philosophical problems
Eternal- ever lasting
Supports God’s
• Omni benevolence: active in human lives
• Personal: answers prayers/ miracles
But Questions God’s:
• Omniscience: If God does not know future can God be all-knowing?
• Immutable: if time/ humans change God can God still be perfect?
• Perfect: Is God limitec
Philosophical Issue
Deuteronomy 33:27
* * “ The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.” **
What are the three interpretations
This can be interpreted in three ways:
1. God is both timeless and everlasting
2. God is eternal = timeless
3. God is eternal = everlasting - inside of time
The issue is based on interpretation of the scripture
