Nature Of God: Eternity & Freewill Flashcards
Define Atemporal
Being outside of the time process
Define immutable
Immune to change (fixed,eternal) - the act of creation is a change, therefore how can a perfect being create?
Define the doctrine of divine simplicity
God is wholly simple, cannot be complex as it’s contradictory to his nature - Aquinas
Define conditional neccesity
When the necessity follows from a choice - e.g choosing to walk (consequence of free will)
How does Boethius get round the problem of free will in relation to gods omniscence
The charioteer analogy - Difference between KNOWING what someone will do, and CAUSING it to happen
How did boethius view god
Eternal being - outside of time and unaffected by it - for him, everything is now
2 Criticisms of Boethius
- If god is omniscient how are we free - god cant judge our actions if we aren’t responsible for them (no justice)
- how can god be omnibonevolant if he knows what will happen and doesn’t intervene
Define simultaneous glance
Viewing all of time at once
Explain the charioteer analogy
Simply by observing, we have no influence on what is happening (god’s omniscience doesn’t remove our freewill)
Define temporal
In this world instead of spiritual
Anselm on god
God is both eternal and simple - no laws of space or time
Anselm on freedom
Freedom is tied to rectitude (doing good)
- choosing wrongly isnt choosing at all (links to Augustine)
- free will is the ability to choose the right thing because one wants to
whatdoes ‘eternal’ look like for Anselm
Eternity is a non- temporal concept
(Like a 4th demention)
- when we speek of god, we have no words to explain his existence as we aren’t from said place
2 Criticisms of Anselm
- brings in questions to do with the trinity existing (problem of interaction)
- Anselm (and boethius) try to reconcile our freewill with the eternal nature of god + his knowledge
What was the revelation of st john
“I am the first and the last, the beginning and the end”
Define immanent
In relation to time
Swinburne - issue of god interaction + book name
“The god of the Hebrew bible is pictured as interacting with humans” - the coherance of theism
Swinburne on god
Rejects gods timeless nature - argues it is unbiblical
Tillich on God + it’s counter argument
Argues an a-temporal god would be lifeless - yet believers speak of a ‘living god’
(Counter argument is that its an analogy)
Barth on Gods interaction
Argues the incarnation of christ is an example of god acting within human history
Humes analogy of the scales
(Over estimation of god for no reason)
Issue of timelessness + omnibonevolance (religion)
To assume god is unmoved by faith/prayers undermines religion
What are the 2 results of assuming god is not timeless
1) resolves difficulties related to free will
2) raises questions to do with Gods attributes
—> if the future is the future to god, and beyond his present action, can he still be considered omnipotent
Cahn’s solution to a timely god being omniscient
Statements about future choices are neither true nor false, but indeterminate
—> choice is down to individual, not god
Being omniscient isnt about know the outcome, but knowing that it is indeterminate
What would be the issue if god could not create creatures capable of free will ~ Cahn
He would not be omnipotent
What does Plantiga argue in regard to moral action
We can only preform a genuine moral action when truly free
