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    The three hypostases of the Trinity are three particular ... — Carmelics
    Home/Trinity
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    The three hypostases of the Trinity are three particular divine substances with distinct properties

    Trinity
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    1 reason for
    2 reasons against

    Reasons For

    1 perspective
    Reason for
    ?
    • 1.Hypostasis is not an accident of divinity
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    • 2.If hypostasis is not an accident, it must be a primary substance in the Aristotelian sense — an individual organic being
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    Reasons Against

    2 perspectives
    Reason against 1 of 2
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    • 1.The Cappadocian Fathers (esp. Basil of Caesarea) distinguish hypostasis from ousia precisely to avoid tritheism, not to affirm three substances.
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    • 2.If three hypostases entail three particular substances, the unity of divine essence collapses into three separate gods, which orthodox Trinitarian theology explicitly rejects.
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    • 3.Philoponus's Aristotelian framework maps onto Trinitarian doctrine only by importing a genus-species structure that makes the divine essence a universal shared by three individuals.
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    Reason against 2 of 2
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    • 1.Aristotle's own doctrine of primary substance requires spatial and temporal individuation, conditions that are categorically inapplicable to immaterial, eternal divine persons.
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    • 2.Applying Aristotelian substance categories to the Trinity commits a category error identified by Augustine: divine simplicity entails that God has no accidents, leaving no principled basis for distinguishing Aristotelian individuals within the Godhead.
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    Trinity

    Related

    Applying Aristotelian substance categories to the Trinity commits a category err...Aristotle's own doctrine of primary substance requires spatial and temporal indi...Hypostasis is not an accident of divinityIf hypostasis is not an accident, it must be a primary substance in the Aristote...
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    If three hypostases entail three particular substances, the unity of divine esse...Philoponus's Aristotelian framework maps onto Trinitarian doctrine only by impor...The Cappadocian Fathers (esp. Basil of Caesarea) distinguish hypostasis from ous...

    Similar

    The three Persons of the Trinity must be three distinct particular div...77%On Swinburne's account, there are three things each of which is divine...77%Valla's three trees classify spiritual substances, corporeal substance...75%The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are hylomorphic compounds each sharin...75%

    Source

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    SEP: philoponus
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    Besides monophysitism, Philoponus’ name is associated with the doctrine of tritheism. However, one needs to be aware of an important difference: Whereas monophysitism was a reputable and powerful theological movement in the Eastern church, tritheism was little more than a hostile label given to certain intellectuals who tried to make the mystery of the Trinity intelligible in philosophical language. Philoponus was one such intellectual who, again, resorted to Aristotelian terminology to clarify
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    Details

    Type
    claim
    Perspectives
    3 (1 for, 2 against)
    Edits
    1 edit