hosted by John DeRosa
What is an embryo and what happens when identical twins are formed? Does the metaphysics of twinning call into question the view that embryos are human beings? How should we understand the mathematics and metaphysics of twinning? Dr. Richard Playford joins us to tackle these questions and more.
Does the God of classical theism have properties? Does he have attributes? Can we make conceptual distinctions about the simple God? How should we understand the notion of ‘rigid designation’ and its relevance to the modal collapse debate? What is Dr. Ryan Mullins’ latest proposed modal collapse objection? How does Christopher Tomaszewski respond to it? In this Commentary bonus episode, I’m joined by Professor Christopher Tomaszewski to discuss these questions.
What are the differences between philosophical physics and modern physics? What’s the difference between metaphysics and physics? How should we understand St. Thomas’ First Way? Is it a physical or metaphysical demonstration? What are the key premises and how are they defended? How can Aquinas leap to God as the conclusion of his First Way? Dr. Michael Sirilla joins us to discuss these issues and more.
What were the problems with the doctrine of analogy that others raised after Aquinas? How did different Thomistics respond to these problems? How might Thomists respond to professor Thomas Williams’ challenge that analogy reduces to univocity or unintelligibility? Dr. Domenic D’Ettore joins me to discuss these topics and more as we look at his book Analogy After Aquinas.
What is the doctrine of analogy? What are the different kinds of analogy? Why is analogy especially important for theologians? Does analogy reduce to univocity or intelligibility? Dr. Joseph Trabbic joins us to discuss these topics.
hought of Julian of Norwich relevant to the problem of evil? How do you understand “prayer” and “the darkness of God”? If God is a mystery, then how can we pray to him? Dr. Denys Turner joins us to discuss these topics and more as we consider his book God, Mystery, and Mystification.
What is happiness and how can we get it? Would St. Thomas have anything to say about comparing ourselves to other people? What will not make us happy according to St. Thomas Aquinas? How can we be happy when life is difficult? Matt Fradd joins the podcast to discuss these topics and more as we look at his new book How to Be Happy: Saint Thomas’ Secret to a Good Life.
Is Aquinas best described as a philosopher or theologian? What is most notable about his work as a biblical theologian? How does Aquinas understand prophetic revelation and sacra doctrina? What does it mean that, Aquinas holds that the human nature of Christ acts as the instrumental cause of the communication of divine revelation and as the perfection of its reception”? Dr. Dauphinais joins us to discuss these questions and more.
What are the divine ideas? How do they relate to creation? What should Catholics believe about the 6 days of creation? Why is it important to believe in Adam and Eve and how can belief in an original couple be harmonized with the genetic evidence? What do you discuss about the atonement in your book on creation? Dr. Matthew Levering joins us to answer these questions as we discuss his book Engaging the Doctrine of Creation.
If God is causing everything, then how can we be free? Doesn’t God’s universal causality make us puppets and lead to occasionalism? And wouldn’t He be different if He were to cause different things? So, how can He be simple and immutable as classical theists say? Dr. W. Matthews Grant joins us to discuss these issues and more as we look at topics from his book Free Will and God’s Universal Causality: The Dual Sources Account.
