Abstract
Volker Kessler (‘God becomes beautiful … in mathematics’ – HTS 2018) argues two points to Rudolf Bohren’s list of four areas where (1) God becomes beautiful should be extended with a fifth one: mathematics and (2) mathematics can be argued as a place where God becomes beautiful. In this response, we would like to argue that (1) the extension of Bohren’s list that Kessler argues in favour of is superfluous and (2) that Kessler makes a number of questionable assumptions about (the philosophy of) mathematics. By arguing against Kessler, we intend to make an interdisciplinary contribution to the discussion about the relationship between mathematics and theology by pushing the debate into direction of a more careful consideration of mathematics as an area in which God’s beauty may become apparent. Contribution: Contributing to the interdisciplinary exploration of theology in HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies , this article further develops the consideration of the fundamental theological topic of God, the beautiful and mathematics as it was proposed in this journal by Volker Kessler, by discussing it from a systematic theological and mathematical perspective.
Highlights
In his contribution ‘God becomes beautiful ... in mathematics’, Kessler (2018) argues that relation Rudolf Bohren’s list of four areas where God’s beauty (or rather: God’s becoming beautiful in the creation through work of the Spirit) can be found should be extended with a fifth one: mathematics, in addition to creation, culture and arts, history and the church mathematics can be seen as a place where God becomes beautiful, a proposal, which rests on an aesthetic interpretation of mathematics
In his contribution ‘God becomes beautiful ... in mathematics’, Kessler (2018) argues that relation Rudolf Bohren’s list of four areas where God’s beauty can be found should be extended with a fifth one: mathematics, in addition to creation, culture and arts, history and the church mathematics can be seen as a place where God becomes beautiful, a proposal, which rests on an aesthetic interpretation of mathematics
The result of our consideration of Kessler’s argument is an interdisciplinary contribution to the discussion about the relationship between mathematics and theology, which seeks to push the debate into direction of a more careful consideration of mathematics as an area in which God’s beauty may become apparent in relation to other such areas, as far as theology is concerned, and a more precise treatments of mathematics, its philosophical underpinning and disciplinary self-understanding as such, which is a precondition for the crafting of any meaningful connection between it and other disciplines, such as theology
Summary
In his contribution ‘God becomes beautiful ... in mathematics’, Kessler (2018) argues that relation Rudolf Bohren’s list of four areas where God’s beauty (or rather: God’s becoming beautiful in the creation through work of the Spirit) can be found should be extended with a fifth one: mathematics, in addition to creation, culture and arts, history and the church mathematics can be seen as a place where God becomes beautiful, a proposal, which rests on an aesthetic interpretation of mathematics. As what has been argued finds additional support in Kessler’s (2018) own conclusions, where he states: the mathematician contributes to the visibility of God’s beauty in his creation.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
