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    The doctrine of divine immutability (DDI), as understood ... — Carmelics
    Home/Divine Attributes
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    The doctrine of divine immutability (DDI), as understood by classical and medieval authors, permits God to undergo extrinsic changes while ruling out only real and intrinsic changes.

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    • 1.Anselm argues both that God is immutable and that His relations with other things can change.
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    • 2.Aquinas similarly holds that God is immutable yet His relations with other things can change.
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    • 3.If Quine begins to worship God at time t, God comes to have a new relational property, being-worshipped-by-Quine, which is an extrinsic change since it implies the existence of someone outside God.
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    Key Terms

    Classical and medieval authors(identifies which thinkers developed this idea about God)
    Philosophers and theologians who wrote during ancient Greece/Rome and the Middle Ages (roughly 500-1500 CE), before the modern period.
    Divine immutability(Classical theism)
    The attribute of God according to which God does not undergo any change
    Doctrine(refers to the teachings being passed down)
    A set of beliefs or principles that a philosopher or group teaches and believes to be true.
    Extrinsic changes(as opposed to intrinsic changes)
    Changes in how something relates to or is positioned relative to other things, rather than changes to the thing itself—like moving to a different location.
    Intrinsic changes(the type of change the doctrine forbids for God)
    Changes that affect the basic nature or inner qualities of something itself—like wood turning into ash, or a person changing their mind.
    Real changes(grouped with intrinsic changes as something God cannot undergo according to this doctrine)
    Genuine, actual changes that make something different from what it was before in a substantial way.

    Related

    Anselm argues both that God is immutable and that His relations with other thing...Aquinas similarly holds that God is immutable yet His relations with other thing...God does not do anything to cause this extrinsic change; it is a matter of Quine...If Quine begins to worship God at time t, God comes to have a new relational pro...
    +3 moreShow less
    It is not possible that becoming worshipped by Quine be the only change in a uni...Quine doesn't do anything to God by worshiping Him.

    Source

    AI-extracted3/3 agreementValid
    SEP: immutability
    Discussion of DDI referencing Anselm (Monologion 25) and Aquinas (ST Ia 9 and 13, 7)
    View source passageHide passage
    The classical and medieval authors who developed DDI did not operate with an explicit classification of changes. But Anselm, for instance, argues both that God is immutable and that His relations with other things can change (Monologion 25) and Aquinas does the same (ST Ia 9 and 13, 7). So as they understand DDI, it lets God change extrinsically. Suppose that at t, Quine begins to worship God. Then at t, God comes to have a new relational property, being-worshipped-by-Quine. This is clearly an extrinsic change, since its occurring in God implies the existence of someone “outside” God, namely ...
    Extraction notes
    The change in God of becoming worshipped by Quine is a logical parasite of the r...

    Similar

    Aquinas similarly holds that God is immutable yet His relations with o...78%Steadfast unchangeability can be found only in the divine mind.78%Knowing different things at different times requires changing, which i...78%What has being from God is fixed by an immutable divine will77%

    Validity: The premises faithfully reflect the passage's reasoning: premises 1–2 establish the historical theological basis, premises 3–7 elaborate the Quine worship example to show the extrinsic nature of such changes, and together they directly support the conclusion that DDI permits extrinsic changes while ruling out only real and intrinsic ones.

    Confidence: High confidence. The argument is explicitly laid out in the passage with clear premises and conclusion.

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