The influence of Christianity in the Western world has determined a new direction for philosophy. (?) Christian philosophy was born from the Christian religion. Nicola Abbagnano (1901-1990). [one]
A characteristic affirmation of Judeo-Christian thought is the understanding that God is a transcendent and personal being, and this being that precedes every known reality, the creation of nothing, without relying on a pre-existing material. Nothing is mentioned before. God’s creative act.
- The doctrine of creation tells us about the power of All Enough of God and our total dependence on the one who created and preserved us.
- Only God.
- By his power.
- Can create everything out of nothing.
- [2] At the outs and forth.
- We face an antithesis in relation to Greek thought that has never contemplated a doctrine of creation from an absolute and eternal Being that precedes any creation.
The Bible assumes the existence of God. ” Before the birth of the mountains and the formation of the earth and the world, from eternity to eternity, you are God,” Moses wrote (Psalm 90:2). Moses, by direct revelation of God, records in an inspired manner (2P 1:20-21), recounting God’s creative acts, without worrying about speaking in more detail of those who, through his Word, do not give life. The Lord creates the universe, establishes its own laws, and evaluates its creation as very good (Genesis 1:31).
Moses presents the Almighty God by exercising his power creatively, according to his eternal purpose. God exists. This is the assumption made throughout the history of creation. God believes according to His Word and this fills us with respectful admiration and fear: the Word of God is the creative word that manifests God’s determination and power (Gen 1:26, 27; Ps 33: 6. 9; John 1,1-3; He 11,3), [3] who created things wisely (Pr 3:19). [4]
In the pages of Scripture, God presents Himself as the great and incomparable Lord; their thoughts are inaccessible and unspeakable. [5] He is the king of glory. [6]
One of the foundations of Christian doctrine is the certainty that we believe in an autonomous [7] and almighty God [8] who loves his people and makes himself known.
Without God’s revelation, it would be impossible to believe or speak of God. However, you can know true and personally 😕 Known ([d; y?) (Yada?) [9] He is God in Judah; super (lAdG?) (gadol) [10] Your name in Israel?(Salt 76,1).
The Judeo-Christian conception of creation finds its foundation and foundation in the Word of God, so it is essential for our reflection, what the Holy Spirit has inscribed in the Book of Hebrews:?God, so that the visible is born of things that don’t appear?(Heb 11. 3).
In this Bible passage, certain truths that should be emphasized are emphasized:
Some of these truths are also evident in the creative narratives recorded in Genesis 1-1-2. 25 [22] and other biblical texts, such as:
Nehemiah 9. 6: Only you are Lord, thou did heaven, heaven of heaven, and all his army, the earth, and all that is in it, the seas, and all that is there; and you keep them all alive, and the army of heaven worships you.
Job 26. 7: Spreads north over the void and causes the earth to loom over nothing.
Psalm 90. 2: Before the birth of the mountains and the formation of the earth and the world, from eternity to eternity, you are God.
Psalm 102. 25: In ancient times, you laid the foundations of the earth; and the heavens are the work of your hands.
Psalm 148: 1-5: Hallelujah! Praise the Lord from above, praise him from above. Praise him all his angels; praise him, all his heavenly legions; 3 praise him, sun and moon; congratulate him, all the bright stars; praise him, the sky of heaven and the waters upon the firmament; 5 Praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded and were created.
Matthew 19:4-5:4 Then he said, Have ye not read that the Creator, from the beginning, made them man and woman 5 and that said, Where is why man shall leave his father and mother, and unite with his wife, becoming if the two were flesh?
Luke 3:38—Caynan, son of Enos, Enos, son of Seven, and he, son of Adam, son of God.
John 1,1-5: In the beginning it was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was initially with God. 3 Everything was done by Him, and without Him, nothing that was done was done. it was in it, and life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in darkness, and darkness did not prevail against it.
Romans 1: 20,25:20 For the invisible attributes of God, as well as his eternal power, as well as his own divinity, are clearly recognized, from the beginning of the world, being perceived through the things that have been created. such men are unforgivable (?). 25 For they have made the truth of God a lie, worshipping and serving the creature in the place of the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen!
Colossses: 1: 16-17: 16 for all things were created in it, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, sovereignty, principalities, or powers; everything was created by him and for him. everything in it, it’s all there. [23]
Hebrews 1. 1-2: When God once spoke to his parents, through prophets, many times, and in many ways, 2 in these latter days he spoke to us through the Son, whom He made heir to all things, for whom He also made the universe.
Revelation 4. 11: Worthy are you, Lord and our God, to receive glory, honor, and power, for all the things you have created, yes, by your will, have come to exist and been created.
In this way, our biblical understanding is determined by the same revelation of God contained in the Bible. The scriptures should not simply be interpreted in the light of history, or its political, social, economic, and cultural conditions, but we look at history. from the point of view of divine promises [24].
When we study any type of intellectual construction, we cannot ignore the values and thoughts that prevail or seek to acquire the supremacy of its time The intellectual climate, which obviously involves social, political, economic and theological issues, among others, has the power, almost always not perceptible by its contemporaries, to influence our questions, research and answers, which, in part, are already conditioned by our hypotheses. No theory, however simple, goes unscathed to a hypothesis that has a religious belief in its heart. [25] As we have written elsewhere: [26]
The intellectual climate of an era still strongly influences our structure of thought and, therefore, our priorities and values. The strength of this climate?perhaps it is based on its obvious and normative configuration with which it is presented to our minds.
Is it almost impossible to have a perception of something that brings us and our sympathetic partners so gently. So the simple one, even if it’s not that simple? The fact that we can think clearly, without these conditions, is an invaluable blessing from God.
No human contribution is made in an aseptic conceptual vacuum, be it religious, philosophical or cultural. [27] Our perception and action are based on our assumptions, which largely determine our prior understanding.
This brings us to an important link between Greek thought and Christian theology, as Allen wrote (1932-2013):
There would be no Christian theology without the Bible and without a community of believers, but in the same way we would not have theology without the Helenic attitude of Christians, which leads them to insist on questions about the Bible and its relations with other knowledge. Thus, when people appeal to the purge of the Greek philosophy of Christian theology, unless they refer to specific ideas or concepts, they really appeal to the end of theological discipline itself, even if they do not realize it[28].
The question always depends on how well my basis for moving ideas and actions is. For us Christians, the starting point is not intrinsic or immanent, but extrinsic or transcendent: the transcendent and personal God who reveals himself and relates to us.
The definitions presented throughout history on the meaning of philosophy have been contradictory and often passionate, which adds another problematic fact to the definition, it is not for us here to apologize for philosophy, but to demonstrate that different concepts, even antagonistic ones, contribute to increasing the degree of difficulty in defining philosophy safely. [29] Let’s look at some concepts.
Plato (427-347 BC)?disciple of Socrates (469-399 BC) and teacher of Aristotle ?, in turn, pointed out that philosophy was a science that leads us to do and know how to use what we do. turn stones into gold if we didn’t know how to use it?[30]
By Aristotle (384-322 BC)? Father of the history of philosophy ?, Sofi / a and Filosofi / has had the same meaning. [31] He claimed to be Philosophy, “the science of truth”. [32]
In the period after Aristotle, has philosophy acquired exclusivity?Practice? And instrumental for life. [33] For epicureans, for example, philosophy was to seek happiness through reason.
As we have noted elsewhere, Epicurus (341-270 a. C. ) he was not interested in creating a logical system of thought, with principles that would lead to truth. Before, your concern (if we can use that term) was more pragmatic. I wanted to achieve peace, tranquility and happiness; all this, however, without ostentation. In this way, philosophy had a purely practical meaning and if we can use the term, say, existential. In this perspective, he writes: “Just as medicine does not really benefit anything, if it is not freed from the evils of the body, so does philosophy, if it does not release the passions of the soul. “
The relationship between philosophy and the Christian faith has been the subject of heated discussions among the Fathers of the Church.
Designation? Parents applied to the bishops of the Church in the 2nd century. The anonymous work, The Martyrdom of Policarpo, written by an eyewitness of what happened around 155 d. C. , report what? The pagan and Jewish crowd who wished to kill Policarpo, to be a Christian, shouted: did the father of Christians, the destroyer of the gods, who, with his teaching, take men away from sacrifice and worship?[35] (Highlight mine).
This indicates that it was common at the time to refer to Christian bishops as “parents”. (in the sense described above, it had a pejorative connotation, such as “father of heresy” or “father of heretics”). The use of this expression was so widespread that in the 4th century, all pastors and teachers who had participated in the Council of Nicea (325) were called “Fathers of the Church”. [36]
Among Christians, the expression applied to bishops acquires a loving connotation, also indicating their responsibility.
Does the concept of the Father of the Church highlight an aspect of the figure of the rich father: the bishop as a true transmitter and guarantor (sic) of true faith, who watches over the uninterrupted succession of the apostles’ faith and continuity. and unity of faith in communion with the Church. He is the faithful master of faith, who can be used in the doubts of faith. Doesn’t this authority really make the Father of the Church individually inert in every detail?to the Holy Scriptures and the universal trusting establishment of the Church?But according to them, it is a true testimony of the faith and doctrine of the Church.
Etienne Gilson (1884-1978), following a classical understanding, says that a?Father? It should have four characteristics: “doctrinal orthodoxy, holiness of life, approval of the Church, relative antiquity (until the end of the 3rd century approximately). “[38]
The Christian assimilation of “pagan culture”, which involves “Philosophy” and “Rhetoric” was not without resistance as not everyone agreed to pay a price deemed too high. Whatever perspective we take, we must admit that it would be impossible for Christianity to come out unscathed from the German tradition – in fact, it would be desirable – with its near omnipresence over the past 300 years, in Roman-dominated territories.
[1] Nicola Abbagnano, History of Philosophy, 3rd ed. Lisbon: Editorial Presenca, (1984), v. 2, 128, p. 97. 98.
[2] The doctrine of creation from scratch teaches the absolute sovereignty of God and absolute human dependence. If a particle hadn’t been created out of nowhere, wouldn’t it be God?(Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatic: God and Creation, Sao Paulo: Christian Cultura, 2012, v. 2, p. 427).
[3] “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. (?) 26 God also saith, Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, to dominate the fish of the sea, the birds of heaven, upon the domestic animals, upon all the earth, and upon all the reptiles that crawl through the earth. 27 Then God created man in his image, in the image of God, he created him; Did the man and the woman create them?(Genesis 1, 1, 26-27). ? 6 The heavens were done by his word, and by the breath of his mouths his army. (?) 9 For he spake, and it was done; he ordered, and everything was born?(Exit 36,6. 9).
[4] Did the Lord wisely melt the earth, set the heavens intelligently?(Pv 3. 19).
[5] The Lord’s counsel is forever; designs (hb?v?x] m;) (majashabah) of your heart, for all generations?(Salt 33,11). ? What is greatness (ld; G?) (Gadal), SEIGNOR, are your works!Your thoughts (hb? â…¤? X] m;) (machashabah) (Oh drawings, intentions) to what depth!?(Salt 92. 5).
[6]?7 Raise your head, doors! Rise, eternal gates, may the king of glory enter. 8 Who is the king of glory (dAbK?) (Kabod)? The Lord, strong and powerful, the Lord, mighty in battle. 9 Raise up your head, open thy doors, O eternal gates, that the King of Glory should enter into (dAbK?) (Kabod) . 10 Who is this king of glory (dAbK?) (Kabod)?Is the Lord of armies the king of glory (dAbK?) (Kabod)?(Ps 24:7-10).
[7]?33 O depth of wealth, both wisdom and knowledge of God!How unsinkable are your judgments and impenetrable your ways!34 Who knew the lord’s thought, or who was thy counselor?35 Or who gave it the first to be restored?36 For it is his, for him, and for him, that all things are; so for him, eternal glory. Amen!? (Romans 11: 33-36).
[8]?Is our God and all he wants in heaven?(Salt 115:3). Did you do all that pleased the Lord, in heaven and on earth, in the sea, and in all depths?(Sal 135,6). ?? Will my advice still be valid, will I do all my will?(Is 46,10). All the inhabitants of the country have a reputation for him; and, according to his will, works with the army of heaven and the inhabitants of the earth; there’s no one who can stop his hand or say, what are you doing?(Dan 4. 35). In him (Jesus Christ), I say, in which we have also been made an inheritance, predestined according to the plan of the one who does all things according to the counsel of his will (Ephesians 1:11).
[9] ([d; y?) (Yada?). This knowledge implies the ability to discern (Ps 4:4), to experiment (Ps 9. 11; 20. 7; 25. 4. 14; 119. 75; 139. 1,2,4; 139. 14), see (Ps 16. 11); think/perceive (Salt 35. 8); Perfect knowledge (Salt 37. 18; 44. 21; 50. 11; 69. 5; 94. 11; 103. 14; 139. 23; 142. 3); intimate and personal knowledge (Psalm 51. 3); privacy/proximity ($55. 13; 88. 18); Understand (Salt 73:16); Learn (Salt 78:3); teach (Salt 90:12); (98. 2; 103. 7; 145,12).
[10] For a more complete study of the use of the word and its variants, see: MGAbegg, Jr. , Gdl: In: Willem A. VanGemeren, org. , New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis, Sao Paulo : Christian Culture, 2011, v. 1, 798-801; Jan Bergman and others, Godhal: In: G. J. Botterweck, Helmer Ringgren, eds. , Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, Grand Rapids, MI . : Eerdamans, 1977 (revised edition), v. 2, 390-416. (For our needs, in particular pages 406-412).
[11] In Anne’s hymn, there is the statement of God’s government on “the ends of the earth”: “Those who argue with the Lord are broken; from heaven, he thunders against them. Judge SEIGNOR (! YD) (diyn) the ends of the earth, does he give strength to his king and exalt the power of his anointed?(1Sm 2. 10). The Word emphasizes God’s domination over all peoples; all the nations on Earth. ?He judges (! YD ) (diyn) between nations; fill them with corpses; Will it crush heads all over the country?(Exit 110. 6). This must be proclaimed among nations: Our God is not of a culture or of a people, but is the King; and as such, judge of all nations: “Say among the nations: The Lord reigns. Did he set the world not to be moved and not to judge (!YD) (diyn) peoples fairly? (Salt 96,10).
[12] The word justice means, among other things: sincerity (1Cr 29:17); Equity ($17. 2; 96. 10; 98. 9; 99. 4; Pv 1. 3; 2,9); All right (Salt 75. 2); Straight things (Pv 8. 6; 23. 16); Smoothness (Pv 23. 31; Ct 7. 9); Plain path (metaphorically) (Is 26. 7); Rect (is 33. 15); Law (No. 45. 19); Concordia (Dan 11. 6).
[13] See: W. Gary Crampton; Richard E. Bacon, Towards a Christian Worldview, Brasilia, DF. : Monergism, 2010, p. 93-106; Cosmovision: In: Norman Geisler, Encyclopedia of Apologetics, Sao Paulo: Editora Vida, 2002, (2nd impression), p. 188-189.
[14] Joel Calvino, Exhibition of the Hebrews, Sao Paulo: Paracletes, 1997, (He 11. 3), p. 298. “Human spirits are blind in this light of nature, which shines in all created things, until they are enlightened by the Spirit of God and begin to understand by faith, who will never understand otherwise?(John Calvin, Exhibition of the Hebrews, (Heb 11. 3), p. 299).
[15] See: J. Moltmann, Ecological Doctrine of Creation, Petrapolis, RJ. : Voices, 1993, p. 119.
[16] See: J. Moltmann, Ecological Doctrine of Creation, p. 126ss
[17] J. Gresham Machen, The Man: Biblical Ense-anza on Man, Lima: The Banner of Truth, 1969, p. 82.
[18] Bavinck’s commentary on late Latin expression not found in the scriptures (2 Mk 7:28) is excellent, but it does justice to the biblical meaning of creation as the wise and powerful act of God that leads to the existence of things he did not do before. (See: Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics: God and Creation, Sao Paulo: Christian Culture, 2012, v. 2, 425-429).
[19] See: Creation: In: J. I. Packer, Concise Theology, Campinas, SP. : Light for or Caminho, 1999, p. 19.
[20] See: Francois Turretini, Compendium of Apologetic Theology, Sao Paulo: Christian Culture, 2011, v. 1, 548.
[21] Herman Bavinck, Systematic Theology, Santa Barbara d?West, SP. : SOCEP. , 2001, p. 180.
[22] With regard to the distinction of the names used for God in the early accounts of Genesis, see, among others: Gleason L. Archer Jr. , The Old Testament, Sao Paulo: Vida Nova, 1974, p. 130-135, in particular p. 132-133 For a more detailed study of the biblical names used for God, among a wide bibliography available, see: Herman Bavinck, Reformed Dogmatics: God and Creation, Sao Paulo: Cultura Crist, 2012, v. 2 , 97-150; Emil Brunner, Dogmatic, Sao Paulo: Novo Século, 2004, Vol. 1, p. 155ss. ; P. 159ss. ; H. Bietenhard, or (noma, etc. : In: G. Kittel; G. Friedrich, ed. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1981 (reprinted), v. 5, 242-283.
[23] Contrary to the presocratic vision of the four elements as pre-existing (air, water, fire, earth), Paul presents Christ as the foundation of all creation and preservation of all that exists.
[24] See: David M. Lloyd-Jones, From Fear to Faith, Miami, Florida: Life, 1985, passim.
[25] See: Roy A. Clouser, The Myth of Religious Neutrality: An Essay on Religious Beliefs and Their Hidden Role in Theoretical Thinking, Brasilia, DF. : Monergism, 2020, Kindle Edition.
[26] Hermisten M. P. Costa, Introduction to reformed worldview, Goiania, GO. : Cruz, 2017.
[27] See: Nancy R. Pearcey; Charles B. Thaxton, The Soul of Science, Sao Paulo: Christian Culture, 2005, p. 9-12; 294. Obviously, this also applies to exegesis and theology. ?Does theological reflection (?) Never occur in a social or cultural vacuum?(Alister E. MacGrath, Luther and the Theology of the Cross, Sao Paulo: Cultura Cristo, 2014, p. 22). Silva argues precisely and frankly: “Whether we intend to do it or not, whether we like it or not, we all read the text interpreted by our theological assumptions. Indeed, the most serious argument against the idea that exegesis should be independent of systematic theology is that such a view is hopelessly naive. The mere possibility of understanding anything depends on our previous interpretative structures. If we look at a fact that makes sense to us, is it simply because we have managed to integrate it into a complex set of ideas that we have previously assimilated?(Moses Silva, In favor of Calvin’s hermeneutics: In: Walter C. Kaiser Jr. ; Moisés Silva, Introduction to Biblical Hermeneutics, Sao Paulo: Editora Cultura Cristo, 2002, p. 255).
[28] Allen Diogenes; Eric Springsted, Philosophy for Understanding Theology, 3. Ed. Santo Andre, SP. ; Sao Paulo: Christian Academy; Paulus, 2010, page 18.
[29] On this subject, he noted W. Dilthey (1833–1911), in 1907
The name philosophy or philosophy has, according to time and place, different meanings and spiritual creations that have received this name by its authors are so diverse that it seems that the different epochs would have been associated with the beautiful word philosophy, created by the Greeks, spiritual images always different (?) Does each determine as philosophy a particular circle of phenomena and deduce from it the other phenomena called philosophy?(Wilhelm Dilthey, Esséncia da Filosofia, 3rd ed. Lisbon: Editorial Presenca, ( 1984), p. 8 and 54 See also: Johannes Hessen, Treaty of Philosophy, Buenos Aires: Editorial Sudamericana, 1957, v. 1 p. 18.
[30] Plato, Eutidemo, 288 and 290b.
[31] Aristotle, Metaphysics, Sao Paulo, Cultural April, (Os Pensadores, v. 4), 1973, I. 1.
[32] Aristotle, Metaphysics, Iia. 1
[33] Johannes Hessen, Treaty of Philosophy, v. 1, p. 15.
[34] Epicure, Anthology of the Texts of Epicure, Sao Paulo: Cultural April, (Os Pensadores, v. 5), 1973, I, p. 21.
[35] The Martyrdom of Policarpo, XII. 2. En: H. Bettenson, Christian Church Documents, Sao Paulo: ASTE. , 1967, p. 39. For a critical study of this document, even with regard to the date of martyrdom, see : JBLightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, 2. ed. Peabody, Massachusetts: Publishers Hendrickson. © 1989, Vol. 1, 646-722. For an abbreviated view of this discussion, see: J. B. Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, 10. ed. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker, 1978, p. 103-106.
[36] Agostinho (354-430) appears to have been the first to expand the concept, including Sao Jerome, an old man, among the parents (cf. B. Altaner; A. Stuiber, Patrologia, 2. Ed. Sao Paulo: Paulinas, 1988, p. 19). Like Augustine, Vincent de Lérins in 434 applied the term Pai to several ecclesiastical writers without any hierarchical distinction (see: Vincent of Lérins, Commonitorium, 31 and 33, in: Philip Schaff; Henry Wace, editors, Parents of Nicene Christian Church and Post-Nicene, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, (reprinted) (Second Series), 1978, v. 11, p. 155 and 156).
[37] Hubertus R. Drobner, Patrology Manual, Petr-polis, RJ: Vocals, 2003, p. 11-12.
[38] E. Gilson, Philosophy in the Middle Ages, Sao Paulo: Martins Fontes, 1995, “Introduction”, p. Xxi. Similarly: Hubertus R. Drobner, Patrology Manual, p. 12; B. Altaner; To. Stuiber, Patrologia, 20.