The analogous unity between God and creature, which Eckhart assumes in his doctrine of the analogy of the communissima 'Being', 'One', 'True', 'Good' does not consist in a causal relation ('analogous causality'), as understood in recent studies, but in a sign relation: The creature functions as a medium, which indicates and manifests the being, one, true, good, which is God. This relation, however, is based on a causal relation which Eckhart interprets as participation. His understanding of participation differs fundamentally from (...) that of Aquinas. Eckhart unfolds the practical consequences of his doctrine of analogy in his reflections on the ethos of seclusion. Keywords: doctrine of analogy, analogous unity (of God and creature), analogy of the transcendentals, participation (Eckart versus Thomas Aquinas), creature as sign, ethos of seclusion. (shrink)

This study shows in detail how Suarez' metaphysics synthesize in an original way elements from different traditions of the doctrine of the transcendentals (being, unity, truth, goodness) and thus develops a new fascinating view of a ...

Die Wissenschaft vom Seienden im Allgemeinen und seinen kategorienübergreifenden Bestimmungen wie Einheit, Wahrheit, Gutheit beginnt in ihrer historischen Entwicklung nicht als Ontologie, sondern als Lehre vom Guten. Seit der Summa de bono Philipps des Kanzlers bewegt sich der transzendentaltheoretische Diskurs von der Analyse des Gutseins zu einem neuen, von der herkömmlichen christlich-neuplatonischen Sicht fundamental verschiedenen Seinsverständnis. Diesem zufolge ist das geschaffene Seiende nicht nur in einem abgeleiteten, uneigentlichen Sinne mit Blick auf das Kausalverhältnis zum ungeschaffenen Guten, sondern im Hinblick auf (...) das ihm eigene innere Sein einfachhin und im eigentlichen Sinne „seiend" und „gut" zu nennen. Der Wechsel zum transzendentalen Denkmodell erfolgt angesichts der Herausforderung durch die offensiv vordringende Religion der Katharer. Er ermöglicht eine philosophische Antwort auf die katharische Weltverachtung, die in der Sicht der zeitgenössischen Autoren dem christlichen Schöpfungsverständnis besser entspricht als die frühere christlich-neuplatonische Antwort auf den Manichäismus. Seen in its historical development the doctrine of being and its general attributes such as unity, truth, goodness originally starts as a theory of the good. Beginning with Philipps Summa de bono transcendental reflection proceeds from an analysis of goodness to a new understanding of being, which breaks with the christian-neoplatonic tradition. According to this new understanding created being is called „being" and „good" not further improperly in a derived sense with regard to its causal relation to the uncreated Good, but directly and in the proper sense in respect of its own inner being and goodness. The change to a transcendental mode of thinking is due to the challenge of the propagating religion of the Cathars. It enables a philosophical answer to the Cathar contempt for the world which in the eyes of the contemporary authors more closely corresponds to the christian perspective on creation than the former christian-neoplatonic answer to Manichaeism. (shrink)

É a metafísica uma ciência a priori ou a posteriori’? Suárez e a fundamentação da metafísica Resumo: Contra a interpretação de François Courtine, Rolf Darge afirma que para Francisco Suárez a metafísica é uma ciência que trata do ente entendido não como aquilo que pode ser objeto para a mente humana, mas como aquilo que é apto a existir de fato. A metafísica seria uma ciência real, entre outras razões, porque ela é uma ciência a posteriori. Este artigo (...) pretende verificar melhor a afirmação de que a metafísica de Suárez é uma ciência a posteriori. Pois, se de fato for assim, a interpretação realista que Rolf Darge oferece da metafísica de Suárez adquire maior plausibilidade. Palavras-chave: objeto da metafísica; empirismo; realismo. Is metaphysics an a priori or an a posteriori Science? Suárez and the foundation of metaphysics. Abstract: Against the interpretation of François Courtine, Rolf Darge affirms that for Francisco Suárez metaphysics is a science that deals not with being as that which can be an object for the human mind, but with being as that which is apt to actually exist. Metaphysics would be a real science, among other reasons, because it is a posteriori science. This article aims to verify the claim that Suárez's metaphysics is a posteriori science. If this is so, the realistic interpretation that Rolf Darge offers of Suárez's metaphysics acquires greater plausibility. Key-words: object of metaphysics; empiricism; realism. La métaphysique est-elle une science a priori ou a posteriori? Suárez et le fondement de la métaphysique. Résumé: Contre l'interprétation de François Courtine, Rolf Darge affirme que pour Francisco Suárez la métaphysique est une science qui traite de l'étant compris non comme ce qui peut être un objet pour l'esprit humain, mais comme ce qui est susceptible d'exister réellement. La métaphysique serait une vraie science, entre autres raisons, car c'est une science a posteriori. Cet article vise à mieux vérifier l'affirmation selon laquelle la métaphysique de Suárez est une science a posteriori. S'il en est ainsi, l'interprétation réaliste que propose Rolf Darge de la métaphysique de Suárez acquiert une plus grande plausibilité. Mots-clés: objet de la métaphysique; empirisme; réalisme. Data de registro: 16/09/2021 Data de aceite: 20/10/2021. (shrink)

In seinem Werk "Philosophie als Lebensform" vertritt Pierre Hadot (1922-2010) die These, dass die Philosophie bis zu Beginn der hochmittelalterlichen Scholastik nicht primar Wissenschaft mit Anspruch auf systematische Stimmigkeit und Objektivitat sei, sondern auf einen psychologisch-padagogischen Effekt fur die Lebenspraxis abziele: Die Philosophie der hellenistischen und romischen Epoche stellt sich als eine Lebensweise, eine Lebenskunst und eine Seinsweise dar. Es geht darum, das Sein des Menschen zu verwandeln und ihm zum Gluck zu verhelfen. Das fruhe Christentum sowie das mittelalterliche Monchtum (...) knupften daran an und verstanden das spirituelle Leben als philosophia, die durch die Praxis geistiger Ubungen in Christus den alten Menschen ablegt und den neuen anzieht (vgl. Eph 4,22-24). In der Mystik, die seit Dionysius Areopagita (ca. 500 n. Chr.) zu einem expliziten Inhalt des Denkens wird, spitzt sich dieses Spannungsverhaltnis zwischen Theorie und Praxis zu. Per definitionem ist Mystik eine uberwaltigende Erfahrung, die alle Affekte involviert. Aber genau diese Erfahrung wird schon in der vorchristlichen griechischen Philosophie zum Inhalt einer rationalen Reflexion. Dementsprechend oszilliert der Begriff einer theologia mystica zwischen unmittelbarem Erleben und systematischer Theorie. Mit Beitragen von Rolf Darge, Lioba Fau OSB, Paul D. Hellmeier OP, Johannes Herzgsell SJ, William J. Hoye, Johann Kreuzer, Isabelle Mandrella, Johannes Schaber OSB, Christian Schafer, Peter Sloterdijk, Wolfgang Speyer und Martin Thurner. (shrink)

Zeki and co-workers recently proposed that perception can best be described as locally distributed, asynchronous processes that each create a kind of microconsciousness, which condense into an experienced percept. The present article is aimed at extending this theory to metacognitive feelings. We present evidence that perceptual fluency—the subjective feeling of ease during perceptual processing—is based on speed of processing at different stages of the perceptual process. Specifically, detection of briefly presented stimuli was influenced by figure-ground contrast, but not by symmetry (...) or the font of the stimuli. Conversely, discrimination of these stimuli was influenced by whether they were symmetric and by the font they were presented in , but not by figure-ground contrast. Both tasks however were related with the subjective experience of fluency . We conclude that subjective fluency is the conscious phenomenal correlate of different processing stages in visual perception. (shrink)

Considering that Husserl identifies passivity as the general principle of genetic dynamics and as given prior to any intentional activity, the original condition of possibility of such passivity must be clarified. Phenomenological analysis can successfully attest the presence of a drive-habituality operating prior to the level of the I, an instinct-character, thus, that raises the question about life as auto-affective capability. In the framework of a universal monadology the latter’s teleological orientation must be questioned in order to avoid that both (...) the limes constituted by the unconscious as well as affective being remain indeterminate and anonymous, which would not do justice to the transcendental rootedness of drive and instinct through the form of ipseity. (shrink)

Silence in organizations refers to a state in which employees refrain from calling attention to issues at work such as illegal or immoral practices or developments that violate personal, moral, or legal standards. While Morrison and Milliken (Acad Manag Rev 25:706–725, 2000) discussed how organizational silence as a top-down organizational level phenomenon can cause employees to remain silent, a bottom-up perspective—that is, how employee motives contribute to the occurrence and maintenance of silence in organizations—has not yet been given much research (...) attention. In this paper, we argue that this perspective is a meaningful complementation of the existing literature and that it is sensible to conceptualize distinct forms of employee silence (Pinder and Harlos, Research in personnel and human resources management. JAI Press, Greenwich, 2001; van Dyne et al., J Manag Stud 40:1359–1392, 2003). Drawing on past research and theory we conceptualize four forms of employee silence, namely quiescent, acquiescent, prosocial, and opportunistic silence. We present scales to assess the four forms and provide empirical tests for their distinctiveness and patterns of relationships to various correlates and potential antecedents and consequences. (shrink)

Silence in organizations refers to a state in which employees refrain from calling attention to issues at work such as illegal or immoral practices or developments that violate personal, moral, or legal standards. While Morrison and Milliken (Acad Manag Rev 25:706–725, 2000) discussed how organizational silence as a top-down organizational level phenomenon can cause employees to remain silent, a bottom-up perspective—that is, how employee motives contribute to the occurrence and maintenance of silence in organizations—has not yet been given much research (...) attention. In this paper, we argue that this perspective is a meaningful complementation of the existing literature and that it is sensible to conceptualize distinct forms of employee silence (Pinder and Harlos, Research in personnel and human resources management. JAI Press, Greenwich, 2001; van Dyne et al., J Manag Stud 40:1359–1392, 2003). Drawing on past research and theory we conceptualize four forms of employee silence, namely quiescent, acquiescent, prosocial, and opportunistic silence. We present scales to assess the four forms and provide empirical tests for their distinctiveness and patterns of relationships to various correlates and potential antecedents and consequences. (shrink)

Population counts and longitude and latitude coordinates were estimated for the 50 largest cities in the United States by computational linguistic techniques and by human participants. The mathematical technique Latent Semantic Analysis applied to newspaper texts produced similarity ratings between the 50 cities that allowed for a multidimensional scaling (MDS) of these cities. MDS coordinates correlated with the actual longitude and latitude of these cities, showing that cities that are located together share similar semantic contexts. This finding was replicated using (...) a first‐order co‐occurrence algorithm. The computational estimates of geographical location as well as population were akin to human estimates. These findings show that language encodes geographical information that language users in turn may use in their understanding of language and the world. (shrink)

Based on the premise that what is relevant, consistent, or true may change from context to context, a formal framework of relevance and context is proposed in which • contexts are mathematical entities • each context has its own language with relevant implication • the languages of distinct contexts are connected by embeddings • inter-context deduction is supported by bridge rules • databases are sets of formulae tagged with deductive histories and the contexts they belong to • abduction and revision (...) are supported by a notion of consistency of formulae and sets of formulae which are relative to a context, and which can, in turn, be seen as constituents of agendas. (shrink)

A phenomenological reading of Pierre Maine de Brian offers a valuable understanding of one's own body in relation to the ego's apperceptive effort. As an organic mass, the body follows the double movement of this effort, manifested by an inner and an outer resistance. This movement allows the „constitution” of the world as correlative to the deployment of a force, identified with the apperception of the ego itself. This practical radicalization of the cogito can be viewed as the first outstanding (...) achievement of phenomenology itself, even prior to its historical foundation by Husserl. (shrink)

Ever since antiquity, philosophy has continuously striven to grasp the phenomenon of humor and laughter, while, in modern times, Bergson certainly holds a special place,\ with his interpretation of laughter, and particularly “humor”, as a form of social sanction. However, such an analysis neglects the fact that the ability to laugh is actually grounded in a primordial sphere of life-affection as such, so that, starting from here, we could understand laughter, in connection with the radical-phenomenological essence of life itself, as (...) being essentially joy. (shrink)

A phenomenological reading of Pierre Maine de Brian (1766-1824) offers a valuable understanding of one's own body in relation to the ego's apperceptive effort. As an organic mass, the body follows the double movement of this effort, manifested by an inner and an outer resistance. This movement allows the „constitution” of the world as correlative to the deployment of a force, identified with the apperception of the ego itself. This practical radicalization of the cogito can be viewed as the first (...) outstanding achievement of phenomenology itself, even prior to its historical foundation by Husserl. (shrink)

According to Henry, in Husserl’s analysis of time the retentional intentionality of the “now” implies that you cannot have the sensation of its pure reality. This inner-phenomenological criticism can be generally transferred to the relationship between time and life, since temporality, as the most inner structure of the world of becoming-outsideitself, does not allow any affective self-appearance of life. Finally, this aspect has critical consequences for the existential structure of care, which must be suspended as “transcendental illusion” of the ego, (...) in order to do justice to the immediacy of an immemorial birth in life. (shrink)

According to general relativity, we live in a four-dimensional curved universe. Since the human mind cannot visualize those four dimensions, a popular analogy compares the universe to a two-dimensional rubber sheet distorted by massive objects. This analogy is often used when teaching GR to upper secondary and undergraduate physics students. However, physicists and physics educators criticize the analogy for being inaccurate and for introducing conceptual conflicts. Addressing these criticisms, we analyze the rubber sheet analogy through systematic metaphor analysis of textbooks (...) and research literature, and present an empirical analysis of upper secondary school students’ use and understanding of the analogy. Taking a theoretical perspective of embodied cognition allows us to account for the relationship between the experiential and sensory aspects of the metaphor in relation to the abstract nature of spacetime. We employ methods of metaphor and thematic analysis to study written accounts of small groups of 97 students who worked with a collaborative online learning environment as part of their regular physics lessons in five classes in Norway. Students generated conceptual metaphors found in the literature as well as novel ones that led to different conceptions of gravity than those held by experts in the field. Even though most students showed awareness of some limitations of the analogy, we observed a conflict between students’ embodied understanding of gravity and the abstract description of GR. This conflict might add to the common perception of GR being counterintuitive. In making explicit strengths and weaknesses of the rubber sheet analogy and learners’ conceptual difficulties, our results offer guidance for teaching GR. More generally, these findings contribute to the epistemological implications of employing specific scientific metaphors in classrooms. (shrink)

La Philosophie de la religion demande une délimitation par rapport à des philosophies religieuses et la science religieuse. L'étude de quelques auteurs représentatifs montre ensuite une certaine convergence théorique autour du problème de la « contingence » dont la « maîtrise » socio-pratique implique aujourd'hui souvent tout le sens du « réel ». La tâche critique d'une philosophie de la religion consiste alors à plaider pour une ouverture des valeurs humaines vers l'« inconditionnel », et cela dans l'intérêt même d'une (...) « libertégénérosité » à sauvegarder. The Philosophy of religion requires demarcation comparatively to any religious philosophical thought and the science of religion. The study of several representative scholars points out that the problem of « contingency » is able at present to permit some conformity concerning theoretical positions. Frequently, the social and material « control » of this contingency of our world of life is forming the exhaustive sense of that what means « Reality » Therefore, it is a critical necessity of the philosophy of religion to demonstrate that human values are including orientation to an « inconditional ». (shrink)