The Paradoxical Structure of Existence the Paradoxical Structure Existence

New Brunswick, (U.S.A.): Routledge (1970)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

For metaphysicians who have imbibed the sober and inebriating teachings of Thomas Aquinas, existence is an act, the act which makes all things actually to be. As the act of existence makes things to be, essence makes them to be what they are. Essence and the act of existence, in other words, are really distinct yet together they compose each of the things that are. Such an understanding involves a number of paradoxes, and Frederick D. Wilhelmsen's articulation of them reveals his philosophical genius. These paradoxes include the fact that the act of existence does not exist, that it can be thought but not conceived by the mind, and that truths about God can be known while He himself remains absolutely unknown. Wilhelmsen argues the notion that the Christian faith and philosophical reason harmonize while remaining completely distinct from each other. Writing in a captivating style, Wilhelmsen begins with a discussion of the development, strengths, and limitations of the ancient Greek philosophical accounts of being. Following that, he develops such key topics as the problem of existence, St. Thomas Aquinas' understanding of being, critical analyses of Hegel's and Heidegger's doctrines of being, existence as "towards God," and a metaphysical approach to the human person. The final two chapters develop the sense in which metaphysical thinking is and is not shaped by historical and social factors.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,616

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Liberties and Servitudes of Art, or About the Temptation of Existence.Florea Lucaci - 2003 - Journal for the Study of Religions and Ideologies 2 (5):103-118.
What makes unique hues unique?Valtteri Arstila - 2018 - Synthese 195 (5):1849-1872.
Possibility and Radical Understanding.Gaetano Chiurazzi - 2017 - Meta: Research in Hermeneutics, Phenomenology, and Practical Philosophy 9 (2):700-715.
Aspectos paradójicos del tiempo.Julián Serna Arango - 2004 - Revista de Filosofía 22 (47):15-27.
Paradoxical hypodoxes.Alexandre Billon - 2019 - Synthese 196 (12):5205-5229.
Subjective Rights. The Paradox of Form.Christoph Menke - 2008 - Zeitschrift Für Rechtssoziologie 29 (1):81–108.

Analytics

Added to PP
2022-04-20

Downloads
6 (#1,269,502)

6 months
2 (#668,348)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Citations of this work

No citations found.

Add more citations

References found in this work

No references found.

Add more references