Posted in Aquinas, Soteriology, philosophy, tagged vermigli, aristotle, bonaventure, gospel on June 3, 2008 | No Comments »
Bonaventure said that Aristotle erred by rejecting Exemplarism - that the universals are real. Aquinas said that Aristotle erred in not recognizing the Trinity of Persons in the Godhead. Peter Martyr Vermigli said that Aristotle erred in hiding the truth about God from the uneducated.
Posted in Doctrine of God, Soteriology, philosophy, tagged sanctification, aristotle, metaphysics, ethics on May 27, 2008 | 8 Comments »
Assuming God is Pure Act and evil is privation, human becoming is for the sake of being. In other words if all of life is worship and worship is a return to God through act and if a return assumes a separation (per a corrupted being) then becoming more like God is for the sake [...]
Posted in Aquinas, Christology, Doctrine of God, Pneumatology, Soteriology, philosophy, tagged Trinity, Word, Platonism on May 26, 2008 | No Comments »
When Thomas Aquinas wrote his commentary on Peter Lombard’s Sentences he placed God at the center and everything else in relation to Him, emanating out in creation and returning in final glorification. Jean-Pierre Torrell explains the organizing ratio of this plan:
If we do not remember the biblical affirmation of God as the Alpha and Omega of all [...]
Posted in Aquinas, Eucharist, Soteriology, philosophy, tagged aristotle, becoming, being, metaphysics, union with christ on May 23, 2008 | No Comments »
Parmenides argued that a particular being cannot become another particular being. For example air cannot become fire but must first cease to be air as such. The change of air to fire would be in this case a mere replacement of one being for another. Aristotle answered this problem with his distinction between three factors [...]
Posted in Bible, Soteriology, tagged justification, ordo salutis, Wright on May 12, 2008 | No Comments »
Solomon prays to YHWH in his dedication of the Temple: ”Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.” (1 Kings 8:32)
Sometimes I can see where N.T. Wright is coming from. Only [...]
Posted in Bible, Ecclesiology, Soteriology, calvin, tagged ex opere operato, isaiah, visible church on May 4, 2008 | 2 Comments »
Ronald Wallace notes that the response of the believing individual to the Church is seen by Calvin as identical to responding to Christ. This is affirmed by Calvin in his Commentary on Isaiah 45:14:
When he says that the Israelites shall be victorious over all the nations, this depends on the mutual relation between the [...]
Posted in Ecclesiology, Sacramentology, Soteriology, tagged baptism, faith, liturgy on May 1, 2008 | No Comments »
[In baptism] the infant, a silent preacher of the doctrine of St. Paul, cannot even appear to be performing a work of righteousness, it only “suffers the divine love.” The child of nature’s womb has first of all to be re-formed in the Church’s womb, elevated to the point of being able to have a [...]
Posted in Bible, Soteriology, tagged luke, typology, amos on April 28, 2008 | No Comments »
As was implied by the last post of this title the story of Jesus calling Zacchaeus from a tree symbolizes the fruit of the Kingdom being brought in. The following passage only helps to confirm this symbolism:
And Amaziah said to Amos, “O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, [...]
Posted in Bible, Soteriology, tagged 1 samuel, NPP, Romans, sin on April 22, 2008 | No Comments »
The author of 1 Samuel relays the story of Israel’s desire for a King like the nations:
Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, “Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge [...]
Posted in Bible, Eucharist, Sacramentology, Soteriology, tagged ephesians, sign, Spirit on April 15, 2008 | No Comments »
Commenting on Ephesians 5:26 Calvin declares:
When Paul says that we are washed by baptism, his meaning is, that God employs it for declaring to us that we are washed, and at the same time performs what it represents [...] Others again suppose that too much importance is given to the sign, by saying that baptism [...]
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