AUC THEOLOGICA
AUC THEOLOGICA

AUC Theologica is a peer-reviewed journal for theology published twice a year. As we publish original papers in English, German, French, and Italian, our mission is to serve as a platform both for Czech researchers, who can present their research results in these languages, and for international contributors, who are invited to enter the academic theological discussion in the heart of Europe.

The journal focuses on a wide range of theological disciplines, such as systematic theology, biblical studies, patristic studies, pastoral and spiritual theology, religious education, church history, etc. Within these fields, the journal seeks to reflect the current theological questions and problems, which often requires interdisciplinary approaches. Supporting the intersection of various theological disciplines, we thus also welcome theological papers touching other academic fields including philosophy, sociology, literary studies, and science.

Each issue consists of two sections. The thematic section presents papers of the same focus. The section called ‘Varia’ invites papers dealing with various theological themes from the perspective of all Christian traditions. Our current and past issues are approachable for free on this website in the form of Open Access.

AUC THEOLOGICA, Vol 11 No 2 (2021), 33–57

The Gift of Life: The Non-Subsistence of Thomist Esse Commune in its Trinitarian Context

Martin Bieler

DOI: https://doi.org/10.14712/23363398.2022.3
published online: 03. 06. 2022

abstract

This paper investigates in what way the Christian Trinity is the ‘causa et ratio’ of creation, as Thomas Aquinas states it in the prologue of his Commentary to the Sentences of Peter Lombard. Of particular importance for this project is a better understanding of the Thomist esse commune as a completum et simplex, sed non subsistens (De Potentia 1.1 c). In dialogue with the Neoplatonic tradition is shown how Aquinas absorbs all Neoplatonic intermediary principles into the esse commune and opens up the understanding of creation as a structured act of love: Creation is the giving of being (esse), by which the Creator makes himself present to his creatures, in order to grant them their subsistence. It is shown how the non-subsisting esse commune is an analogue to the divine essence which only subsists in the divine persons, starting with the Father. This explains the thoroughly personal character of metaphysics.

keywords: Trinity; Father; Being; Creation; Gift; Subsistence

Creative Commons License
The Gift of Life: The Non-Subsistence of Thomist Esse Commune in its Trinitarian Context is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

148 x 210 mm
periodicity: 2 x per year
print price: 100 czk
ISSN: 1804-5588
E-ISSN: 2336-3398

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