Divine Action Research Articles

SCIENTIFIC UNIFORMITY OR “NATURAL” DIVINE ACTION: SHIFTING THE BOUNDARIES OF LAW IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

AbstractIn October 1862, the Duke of Argyll published an article in the Edinburgh Review entitled “The Supernatural.” In it, Argyll argued that contrary to the prevailing assumption, miracles were “natural” rather than “supernatural” acts of God. This reconceptualization was a response to the controversial publication Essays and Reviews (1860), which challenged orthodox Biblical doctrine. Argyll's characterization of a miracle was not novel; a number of early modern Newtonian thinkers had advanced the same argument for similar reasons. New in this nineteenth‐century reconceptualization, however, were (1) the recent geological, physical, and evolutionary developments and (2) the introduction of German higher criticism. Argyll and the neo‐Newtonians thus attempted to construct a philosophico‐theological alternative, which would constitute a middle‐position between the traditional acceptance and liberal rejection of miracles. I argue finally that 21st‐century debates on divine action in fact exist as part of a longer historical tradition that dates back to Augustine.

Empirically testable causal mechanism for divine action

A form of special divine action often considered central to the everyday experience of Christianity is that of a personal interaction with God. For example, in The Second Person Perspective in Aquinas’s Ethics, Andrew Pinsent characterises this interaction in terms of mutually empathic relations that serve to “infuse” virtues and other attributes into a person. Such interaction requires that causal relations exist between a necessary being and the contingent universe. This paper addresses a central problem of special divine action: that the empirically identifiable causes of physical events are modally ill-suited for (and epistemically distinct from) the action of an eternal, non-composite, necessary being. Accounts of what brings about physical events are standardly empirical accounts, grounded upon experience of the world.

William J. Abraham, Divine Agency and Divine Action, Volume III: Systematic Theology

William J. Abraham, Divine Agency and Divine Action, Volume III: Systematic Theology

DIVINE ACTION, PROVIDENCE, AND THE THREE MAIN ARTICLES OF THE CREED

DIVINE ACTION, PROVIDENCE, AND THE THREE MAIN ARTICLES OF THE CREED

Divine Action, Determinism, and the Laws of Nature

Divine Action, Determinism, and the Laws of Nature, by Jeffrey Koperski. Routledge, 2020. Pp. 160. $124.00 (hardcover).

Why a Panpsychist Should Adopt Theism: God, Galileo, and Goff

This paper argues that there is a deep level of agreement between panpsychism and theism. Goff's Galileo's Error would have been even more compelling than it already is if Goff had portrayed a panpsychist cosmos as the world created by God, not as a spiritual alternative to theism. First, I critique Goff's assumption of incompatibilism, with regards the relationship between science and religion, and argue that panpsychism provides unique resources for articulating divine action. Second, I argue that most panpsychists endorse either the 'principle of sufficient reason' or a 'causal principle' in their rejection of emergence theory, and that if either of these principles are applied to the universe as a whole this would imply a further endorsement of the cosmological argument for the existence of God.

Interpreting Descartes Algebraically

Descartes’s description of his method for discovering truth provides a helpful tool for interpreting his writings. In this article I offer a sample of how to interpret Descartes by understanding his algebraic method. My test case is the Cartesian teaching on divine freedom, which is well known to be inconsistent and often considered unfounded. I reconstruct the equations that led to these doctrines, arguing that Descartes held that the divine act of creation was both necessary and arbitrary because of the equations that resulted when he applied his method to the natural world.

Discourse of the father with his son about the water of life in the masnavi “Ilahi-Nameh” by (Farid ad-Din)

This is the line-by-line commented translation into Russian of the chapter (maqaleh) 14 from the masnavi “Ilāhī-nāme” by Abū Ḥamīd bin Abū Bakr Ibrāhīm (Farīd ad- Dīn, ʿAṭṭār), the Persian Sufi poet (1145–1220 AD). The chapters in the Ilahi-name are in fact answers given by the King to his six sons. Chapter 14 deals with the water of life, which, according to the legend, Alexander the Great once unsuccessfully tried to find. The answer to the King’s son includes 24 stories about historical and legendary characters, such as Iskandar (Alexander the Great), Namrud (the Biblical Nimrod), the righteous caliph ‘Umar, Majnun (in love with Layli), Sultan Mahmud and his beloved slave Ayaz, as well as nameless ones, including a collector of the poll tax from the Jews, a beautiful youth and an old man in love with him, a fox caught in a trap, a rogue salesman and a thief at the foot of the gallows. These stories are used to discuss and illustrate the key issues of Sufism. Among them: the desires of the nafs (“lower self” or “animal soul”), material and spiritual immortality, independence of divine actions from material causes, love, which requires the renunciation of one’s “self”, and knowledge as the true water of life. The stories are not related to each other, however, the set of Sufi ideas illustrated forms a conceptual unity.

OUTSTANDING ISSUES WITH ROBERT RUSSELL'S NIODA CONCERNING QUANTUM BIOLOGY AND THEISTIC EVOLUTION

AbstractNon‐Interventionist Objective Divine Action (NIODA), introduced by Robert John Russell, is a model of divine action drawing upon insights from quantum mechanics. It presents an intriguing and significant challenge to classical conceptions of divine action with far‐reaching consequences. When applying NIODA to theistic evolution, however, significant questions emerge that require attention. We identify and assess two sets of concerns. The first relates to quantum physics, particularly whether and how quantum occurrences influence mutations and evolution. We argue that the current empirical evidence is ambiguous in its support of the kinds of quantum action that Russell proposes, though emerging data from quantum biology look promising. The second set of concerns is metaphysical, especially concerning the problem of evil. NIODA gives Godextensive agency over evolution and genetics, which has adverse consequences for theodicy. We propose potential solutions to the problems highlighted in our article, both metaphysical and physical, to improve the viability of NIODA's application to theistic evolution.

Amazing Grace of Quantum Physics

Amazing Grace of Quantum Physics

Wonderen in de Bijbel

Miracles in the Bible are not unnatural. Rather, they are singular events or stories about singular events which make people wonder or evoke reactions. Some of these events are historical such as the exodus of Israel from Egypt. Others, such as Gods descent on Mount Sinai remain beyond normal history, or they relate a divine act which initiates history, or put it into a new perspective, such as the narrative about creation and the birth and resurrection of Jesus. These do not represent normal historical discourse. Still others, the parables and Jonah, correct human thoughts and attitudes. When reflecting on miracles in the Bible, therefore, it is important to take into account the literary genre and the character of events which are told. It is not sufficient or often not even possible to answer the question: ‘Did it really happen or not?’ The biblical miracle stories tell us about God and Jesus in whom He manifested himself, both of which are beyond human comprehension and rationality, as is the Resurrection.

Overcoming Reconciliation as a Wicked Problem

Abstract This contribution provides clues as to why (the quest for) reconciliation in South Africa fits the broad definition of a wicked problem. Popularized by Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber (1973), wicked problem refers to something that is either too difficult or nearly impossible to resolve. It is abundantly clear from the available literature that reconciliation is understood in very different ways. Not only is there a lack of conceptual clarity, but strategies aimed at working towards this ideal reveal or produce new problems as an unintended consequence. Some strategies approach the discourse for the purpose of political expediency, while others are more interested in its theological (or existential) properties. This tension is referenced as the dominant split between heaven and earth. Notwithstanding the complexity of the problem, this contribution alludes to the limitations of such approaches if those who propagate them insist that such views remain mutually exclusive. Building on the theology of Allan Aubrey Boesak and Curtiss Paul DeYoung (2012), this contribution is an attempt to avoid the polarization of such views and highlight the fundamental asymmetry between divine and human action. This is underscored by the work of Christ through which God reconciled the world to himself (2 Cor. 5:19) and the ministry of reconciliation in society. In taking this approach, one avoids the tendency to provide superficial answers to a complex (wicked) problem.

Ethical Ambiguity in the Hebrew Bible: Philosophical Analysis of Scriptural Narrative

Ethical Ambiguity in the Hebrew Bible: Philosophical Analysis of Scriptural Narrative

Divine Action and the Laws of Nature: A Reply to Łukasiewicz

Działanie Boga a prawa przyrody: odpowiedź Łukasiewiczowi
 W odpowiedzi Łukasiewiczowi na Opatrzność Boża a przypadek w świecie bronię trzech wniosków. Po pierwsze, stanowisko nazwane przez niego „deizmem epistemicznym” staje przed wyzwaniami ze strony fizyki, których często się nie zauważa. Po drugie, jeśli teiści opowiadający się za argumentem celowościowym opartym na tzw. delikatnym dostrojeniu nie mają racji, to nie ma jej również większość fizyków, która uważa, że delikatne dostrojenie wymaga wyjaśnienia. Po trzecie, nie wszystkie prawa przyrody są warunkowe w takim sensie, jaki przyjmuje Łukasiewicz. Na szczęście rozróżnienie między prawami a nienomologiczną informacją pozwala na rozszerzenie jego modelu działania Boga.

Freedom Made Manifest: Rahner's Fundamental Option and Theological Aesthetics, Peter JosephFritz, The Catholic University of America Press, 2019 (ISBN 978‐0‐8132‐3119‐8), xx + 278 pp., hb $65

Freedom Made Manifest: Rahner's Fundamental Option and Theological Aesthetics, Peter JosephFritz, The Catholic University of America Press, 2019 (ISBN 978‐0‐8132‐3119‐8), xx + 278 pp., hb $65

Polkinghorne on Metaphysics of Divine Action: Presuppositions and Implications

This article is an effort to evaluate the epistemological and ontological presuppositions of John Polkinghorne's interpretation of the mechanism of God’s special action. Briefly, it can be said that in his view, God forms and models the world's processes with His act of injecting pure active information, but neither determines nor devolves them to energetic causality. His formulation is based on some presuppositions, such as a personal account of God, seeing the world as a chaotic system, ontological monism, and a critical realist approach in epistemology. The article has tried to answer four main questions: Is Polkinghorne's formulation of divine action based on a mere iteration of the god of deism? Is his formulation of divine action a mere pointless rework of a causal system which rules the world? Does this interpretation of divine activity mean divine intervention? And is his formulation an iteration of natural theology?

THE IDEALIST VIEW OF DIVINE ACTION IN NATURE

AbstractTheologies of divine action in nature have sought to maximize traction with the sciences to secure their credibility. While varying in significant ways, all extant proposals share a commitment to physical realism, the claim that (at least some) physical entities and facts are both mind‐independent and ontologically basic within creation. However, I will argue that this metaphysical commitment undermines the body of scientific knowledge to which theologians wish to be responsive. Is there an alternative? Building on the work of Howard Robinson, I will show that there is a coherent account of mind's place in nature that denies physical realism. Such an account would enable a theological description of God's sustaining and governing action in nature through the ontological mediation of minds and laws causally constraining their sensations. Furthermore, this proposal yields a positive research program that makes essential use of the contributions of the natural sciences to understand the nature of embodiment.

Book Review: Ritchie, Sarah Lane: Divine Action and the Human Mind

Book Review: Ritchie, Sarah Lane: Divine Action and the Human Mind

I WALK THE LINE: COMMENT ON MIKAEL LEIDENHAG ON THEISTIC EVOLUTION AND INTELLIGENT DESIGN

AbstractIs theistic evolution (TE) a philosophically tenable position? Leidenhag argues in his article “The Blurred Line between Theistic Evolution and Intelligent Design” that it is not, since it, Leidenhag claims, espouses a view of divine action that he labels “natural divine causation” (NDC), which makes God explanatory redundant. That is, in so far as TE does not invoke God as an additional cause alongside natural causes, it is untenable. Theistic evolutionists should therefore “reject NDC and affirm a more robust notion of divine agency.” However, this will, Leidenhag claims, have the effect that theistic evolutionists “will move their position significantly closer to Intelligent Design,” and so the line between TE and intelligent design is (or ought to be?) blurred. If successful, the criticism by Leidenhag would be bad news for theists who want to take science seriously and good news for those scientistic atheists according to whom there simply is no scientifically respectable way of combining theism and modern natural science in an overarching worldview. So, is TE stuck between a rock (of redundancy) and a hard place (of pseudo‐science)? No, at least not due to the criticism offered by Leidenhag—but maybe religious naturalism is?

Doing all things for God's glory, acting so that it is God who acts: Kierkegaard, Edwards, and the problem of total devotion

AbstractThis article accomplishes two things. First, it explores and defends Kierkegaard's distinctive solution to the Problem of Total Devotion, a problem which has been helpfully identified by Robert Adams. Second, it extends that solution by advancing an interpretation of the command to do all things to the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31) according to which we are being commanded to intentionally make every one of our actions such that it simultaneously counts as a divine action: in other words, to act intentionally in all things such that it is God who acts through us.