The Metaphysics of Theism: Aquinas's Natural Theology in Summa Contra Gentiles I (Vol 1)

The Metaphysics of Theism is the definitive study of the natural theology of Thomas Aquinas, the greatest of medieval philosophers, written by one of the world's most eminent scholars of medieval thought. Natural theology is the investigation by analysis and rational argument of fundamental questions about reality, considered in relation to God. Professor Kretzmann shows the continuing value of Aquinas's doctrines to the philosophical enterprise today; he argues that natural theology offers the only route by which philosophers can, as philosophers, approach theological propositions, and that the one presented in this book is the best available natural theology. Contents......Page 10 Abbreviations......Page 13 1. Aims of this book......Page 14 2. Attitudes toward natural theology......Page 16 3. Alston on natural theology......Page 18 4. ‘The Reformed Objection to Natural Theology’......Page 22 5. Conclusion......Page 33 1. Theology and philosophy......Page 36 2. Theology in philosophy......Page 38 3. Aquinas's work......Page 40 4. ST and catholica veritas......Page 42 5. ST and sacra doctrina......Page 45 6. Sacra doctrina and natural theology......Page 52 7. The purpose of SCG......Page 56 8. The pedagogical motivation for SCG......Page 60 9. Summa philosophica......Page 64 1. The place of existence arguments in natural theology......Page 67 2. How Aquinas sets the stage for natural theology in SCG......Page 68 3. The arguments for God's existence in SCG I.13......Page 73 4. The structure of G2......Page 77 5. The stages of G2......Page 78 1. Orientation......Page 97 2. How to proceed......Page 99 3. How Aquinas proceeds in SCG......Page 101 4. Two presuppositions of Aquinas's procedure......Page 103 5. A third presupposition: the eliminative method......Page 104 6. The existence of Alpha......Page 108 1. Reorientation......Page 126 2. The eliminative method and argument G6......Page 129 3. Applying the results of the eliminative method to Alpha generally......Page 130 4. Eliminating the distinction between Alpha's nature and being......Page 134 5. The metaphysics of Exodus......Page 141 6. Alpha's separateness, God's transcendence......Page 142 7. Perfection......Page 144 8. Concluding observations......Page 151 1. Methodology......Page 152 2. The extensive aspect of absolute perfection......Page 153 3. The introduction of terminological sameness......Page 155 4. Likeness and agent causation generally......Page 157 5. Univocal and equivocal causation......Page 160 6. The sun as an equivocal cause......Page 163 7. God as partly univocal, partly equivocal cause......Page 167 8. Goodness, uniqueness, and infinity......Page 171 9. God's uniqueness......Page 173 10. God's infinity......Page 178 1. Simplicity and other attributes......Page 182 2. Intellect's place in the extensive aspect of universal perfection......Page 186 3. Intellectivity, reason, and wisdom......Page 188 4. The argument from perfection......Page 194 5. The intellectivity argument......Page 197 6. Behind the scenes of the intellectivity argument......Page 207 1. Will and personhood......Page 210 2. The universal appetite for good......Page 212 3. Will as intellective appetite for what is good......Page 214 4. Arguments from intellect......Page 216 5. Will, goodness, and freedom......Page 221 6. Determinate, static, choiceless volition in God......Page 226 7. God's willing of other things......Page 230 8. Freedom of choice and motives for choosing......Page 233 9. The Dionysian principle and the necessitarian explanation of creation......Page 236 1. Passions and attitudes......Page 239 2. Intellective attitudes......Page 244 3. God's pleasure and joy......Page 245 4. God's love......Page 251 5. God's liberality......Page 263 Appendix I: A Chronology of Aquinas's Life and Works......Page 268 Appendix II: A Table Indicating the Correspondence between Sections of Chapters of SCG I in the Pera (Marietti) Edition and the Pegis Translation......Page 271 References......Page 284 Index locorum......Page 290 A......Page 298 B......Page 299 C......Page 300 E......Page 302 F......Page 303 G......Page 304 I......Page 306 K......Page 307 M......Page 308 N......Page 309 P......Page 310 S......Page 312 T......Page 313 W......Page 314 About Aquinas: St Thomas Aquinas lived from 1224/5 to 1274, mostly in his native Italy but for a time in France. He was the greatest of the medieval philosopher/theologians, and one of the most important of all Western thinkers. His most famous books are the two summaries of his teachings, the Summa contra gentiles and the Summa theologiae. About the book: The Metaphysics of Theism presents an explanation and evaluation of Aquinas's natural theology, the paradigm of which is the first book of the Summa contra gentiles. But in addition to considering this as a monumental achievement of medieval philosophy, Norman Kretzmann approaches it as a continuing enterprise which can be developed with considerable benefit in contemporary philosophy. Professor Kretzmann follows Aquinas in seeing natural theology as the means of integrating philosophy and theology. What makes this enterprise natural theology is its forgoing of appeals to revelation as evidence for the truth of propositions. What makes it natural theology is its agenda: to investigate, by means of analysis and argument, not only the existence and nature of God but also the relation of everything else--especially human nature and behaviour--to God considered as reality's first principle. Professor Kretzmann argues that natural theology offers the only route by which philosophers can, as philosophers, approach theological propositions, and that the one presented in this book is the best available natural theology. The Metaphysics of Theism presents an explanation and evaluation of Aquinas's natural theology, the paradigm of which is the first book of the Summa contra gentiles. But in addition to considering this as a monumental achievement of medieval philosophy, Norman Kretzmann approaches it as a continuing enterprise that can be developed with considerable benefit in contemporary philosophy. Professor Kretzmann argues that natural theology offers the most appropriate route by which philosophers can, as philosophers, approach theological propositions, and that the one presented in this book is the best available natural theology. The book's subtitle-'Aquinas's Natural Theology in Summa contra gentiles I'-may suggest that I'm undertaking a project in philosophical scholarship, developing my critical exposition of a thirteenth-century enterprise.