God is Simple? A Conversation About Classical Theism With Dr. Brian Huffling—The Alisa Childers Podcast #26

7/19/2018

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What do we mean when we say that God is simple? Why do we say God is immutable, impassible, and timeless? Dr. Brian Huffling joins me on today's podcast to discuss Classical Theism, and why he believes it's so important for Christians to understand.

4 Comments

Ben link

7/21/2018 12:45:02 pm

I don't think Huffling is being entirely forthcoming about what the doctrine of divine simplicity involves. When advocates of this view say that God is simple, they don't mean just that God has no physical parts. Rather, divine simplicity teaches that God is identical to each of his properties. What follows is that there is only one big property that is God.

This view is quite obviously ridiculous. For instance, if God has the property of being merciful, and also he has the property of being omniscient, then those properties are each identical to God and hence identical to each other. In particular, *being merciful* is the same as *being omniscient*.

Dr. Brian Huffling link

7/21/2018 04:44:48 pm

Thanks for the comment, Ben.

I never said that simplicity just means God has no physical parts. In fact, I explicitly said that it means God has no metaphysical parts, such as act/potency.

Some contemporary critics of divine simplicity, such as Alvin Plantinga and William Lane Craig, discuss the doctrine in terms of divine properties. However, such has not been the case historically as properties are synonymous with accidents, which would by definition mean God is composed since in the Aristotelian understanding of accidents define accidents as something that inheres in a substance. Instead of talking about 'properties', defenders of DS use the term 'attribute'. An attribute is a characteristic, not a property/accident that inheres in a substance.

Regarding God being identical with such attributes, that is true. However, it is false that attributes such as 'mercy' and 'omniscience' are identical with each other in the definitional sense. When we pick out such attributes we mean different things. However, we are merely using our composed knowledge to describe a simple being. In God's essence he is one undifferentiated unity. 'Mercy' and 'omniscience' are different words to describe his essence. However, there is no logical problem with describing the simple essence of God with different attributes/characteristics.

What you critique as "ridiculous" was the most important and revered doctrine for at least 1500 years. Such should give pause to people who want to argue that it is prima facie "ridiculous." What is more likely, in fact what is the case, is that critics of DS often do not do their homework in discussing this doctrine when such critiques are this shallow.

Such can be demonstrated when we point out that the objection you brought out regarding "properties" being identical with each other was explicitly anticipated and refuted by Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century. (See his Summa Theologiae I. 14 . 4 and Summa Contra Gentiles Book 1 chapter 31.) One may not agree with Aquinas; however, before one labels the most important doctrine as "ridiculous" he may want to read the philosopher/theologian who is most associated with the doctrine and who argued for it most explicitly.

For a more complete list of objections with responses see my blog article below on William Lane Craig's discussion of DS at the Claremont-McKenna College symposium that was held in January. I will be on a panel discussion with Craig at the EPS session of the AAR/SBL this November on the subject of simplicity. My paper will be on defending against objections to DS.

http://brianhuffling.com/2018/02/17/a-response-to-william-lane-craigs-symposium-comments-on-divine-simplicity/

Dr. Huffling

Mike D'Virgilio link

7/26/2018 05:46:38 pm

Wondering why this episode is not downloadable? Oversight? Thanks.

Alisa Childers

7/28/2018 12:13:14 am

Hi Mike, it should be fixed now. Thanks for letting me know!

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God is Simple? A Conversation About Classical Theism With Dr. Brian Huffling—The Alisa Childers Podcast #26

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