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    The Quakers' divine light is a creature, not God. — Carmelics
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    The Quakers' divine light is a creature, not God.

    Against an aspect of GodProof of definition segments
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    2 reasons for
    1 reason against

    Reasons For

    2 perspectives
    Reason for 1 of 2
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    • 1.Malebranche's occasionalism distinguishes God's essence from the intelligible extension He uses as medium, showing divine instruments can be creaturely.
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    • 2.The Quaker 'Inner Light' functions as an intermediary cause of illumination, and intermediary causes in Christian metaphysics are necessarily finite creatures.
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    • 3.John Norris, following Augustine, holds that only uncreated light is identical with God; any participated or communicated light is ontologically subordinate.
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    Reason for 2 of 2
    ?
    • 1.Aquinas establishes that whatever is received into a subject is received according to the mode of the receiver, so divine light received by finite minds becomes creaturely.
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    • 2.The Quaker doctrine attributes this light to individual conscience and experience, anchoring it in subjective human faculties, which are paradigmatically creaturely.
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    Reasons Against

    1 perspective
    Reason against
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    • 1.God and creatures are the only two possibilities for existing things.
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    • 2.The divine light, on the Quakers' view, cannot be God.
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    • 3.Therefore, the divine light must be a creature.
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    Topics

    Proof of definition segmentsAgainst an aspect of God

    Connections

    3 topics

    Against an attribute of God1 linkedModality & Possibility1 linked

    Related

    Aquinas establishes that whatever is received into a subject is received accordi...God and creatures are the only two possibilities for existing things.John Norris, following Augustine, holds that only uncreated light is identical w...Malebranche's occasionalism distinguishes God's essence from the intelligible ex...
    +4 moreShow less
    The Quaker 'Inner Light' functions as an intermediary cause of illumination, and...The Quaker doctrine attributes this light to individual conscience and experienc...

    Similar

    Therefore, the divine light must be a creature.93%The Quakers' divine light is a creature and therefore contingent.92%The Quakers' divine light is material, not spiritual.88%The divine light, on the Quakers' view, cannot be God.84%

    Source

    AI-extracted1/3 agreementValid
    SEP: john-norris
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    Norris was familiar with Roger Barclay and George Keith's expositions of Quakerism, and argued against the view in Reflections upon the Conduct of Human Life. The Quakers had an affinity for the ideal philosophy because they believed the divine light that enlightens the human mind supported their view. Norris delineates the many differences between Quaker thought and his own, but perhaps the main difference is: “The Quakers represent this light within as a sort of Extraordinary Inspiration (when
    Extraction notes

    Validity: Extracted via Max plan + API grounding/validity checks

    Details

    The divine light, on the Quakers' view, cannot be God.
    Therefore, the divine light must be a creature.
    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    3 (2 for, 1 against)
    Edits
    1 edit