The conception of “prospective potency” was defined by its author H.Driesch as “the sum of the possible modes of development of a given part of the embryo”. However, in the language of science the word “potency” usually means “power”, not “possibility”. Therefore this conception from the beginning possessed a certain ambiguity, that it retained up to the present. The distinction of “active” and “passive” potency, introduced by Roux, has found no general acceptance. It appeared necessary to submit the conception of (...) “potency” to a profound analysis. In the first place it is shown, that the ambiguity of this conception vanishes, if we understand by the word “potency” those fundamental properties of the embryonic material, that are responsible for its various developmental possibilities. We can distinguish among these properties the “reactive powers”, by which the embryonic material reacts to inductive stimulations, and its own “developmental tendencies”. These faculties only differ by their strength; a “reactive power” may change into a “tendency”, when its intensity increases during development; conversely, a “tendency” may change into a mere “reactive power” by a decrease of its strength. The determination of the material results from the conflict of its tendencies. The inductive actions interfere by strengthening or weakening different tendencies, and by activating new tendencies by reinforcement of the “reactive powers” of the embryonic material. (shrink)

In biology, the “field” concept is used in different ways. Therefore, its meaning in biology as compared to that in physics, and the relation between the conceptions of “gradient” and “field” are studied.In physics, scalar fields, vector fields and tensor fields are distinguished. In a scalar field, the variation of the scalar in space is expressed in form of a gradient. For the whole of a scalar field with its derived gradients the term “gradient-field” may be used.In biology, especially in (...) experimental embryology, the field concept is used both in a purely descriptive sense and as a means of causal analysis. To the first group belong the kinematic fields and growth fields. The kinematic field is a vector field; the growth field is generally a tensor field, but may be treated as a gradient-field in the most simple cases. In the causal analysis of development the gradient-field plays an important part, in the form of axial, superficial and spatial gradient-fields. In such a field by the combined action of the scalar and the gradients a great diversity of relations may occur. Probably, both the induction field and the organisation field belong to the class of gradient-fields. (shrink)

L’article propose une relecture « à rebours » de la Constitution Dei Verbum sur la Révélation divine à partir de son dernier chapitre sur « la Sainte Écriture dans la vie de l’Église», en tenant compte des transformations intervenues depuis Vatican II, tant dans la culture européenne que dans l’exégèse critique. Le rapport de nos sociétés aux traces culturelles du christianisme, surtout à la Bible dont est montrée la fonction « inspirante » ou « révélatrice », et une « foi (...) » élémentaire, essentielle à toute existence humaine, fournissent le point de départ d’une démarche inductive qui désigne les « seuils » que cette « foi » peut passer quand elle est mise en relation avec le Nazaréen, à travers ses disciples, et accède à l’expérience de Révélation en jeu dans ces rencontres. (shrink)

This book raises in a new way a central question of Christology: what is the divine motive for the incarnation? Throughout Christian history a majority of Western theologians have agreed that God's decision to become incarnate in the person of Jesus Christ was made necessary by "the Fall": if humans had not sinned, the incarnation would not have happened. This position is known as "infralapsarian." A minority of theologians however, including some major 19th- and 20th-century theological figures, championed a "supralapsarian" (...) Christology, arguing that God has always intended the incarnation, independent of "the Fall." Edwin Chr. van Driel offers the first scholarly monograph to map and analyze the full range of supralapsarian arguments. He gives a thick description of each argument and its theological consequences, and evaluates the theological gains and losses inherent in each approach. Van Driel shows that each of the three ways in which God is thought to relate to all that is not God -- in creation, in redemption, and in eschatological consummation -- can serve as the basis for a supralapsarian argument. He illustrates this thesis with detailed case studies of the Christologies of Schleiermacher, Dorner, and Barth. He concludes that the most fruitful supralapsarian strategy is rooted in the notion of eschatological consummation, taking interpersonal interaction with God to be the goal of the incarnation. He goes on to develop his own argument along these lines, concluding in an eschatological vision in which God is visually, audibly, and tangibly present in the midst of God's people. (shrink)