In his Tractatus de Consequentiis, the 14th century logician John Buridan states a theorem, which reads like a refutation of Aristotelian Syllogistics. Syllogistics in its usual form, indeed, faces problems when propositions about the divine persons are involved, and, in some cases, when past- or future-tense propositions occur. Buridan offers different ways of overcoming some of these obstacles. The first aim of this paper is to analyse these ways, the second aim is to draw some conclusions concerning Buridan’s understanding of (...) logic and its relation to theology. (shrink)

Some versions of the doctrine of divine simplicity imply that God lacks really differentiated parts. I present a new argument against these views based on divine beauty. The argument proceeds as follows: God is beautiful. If God is beautiful, then this beauty arises from some structure. If God’s beauty arises from a structure, then God possesses really differentiated parts. If these premises are true, then divine simplicity is false. I argue for each of the argument’s premises and defend it against (...) objections, including an objection based on analogical predication, and an objection that supposes that God is simple while appearing complex. (shrink)