The contemplative home of Skylar D. McManus
In the prior two books of Against Eunomius, Basil addresses what Eunomius claims about the Father (Book 1) and the Son (Book 2). The major claim that Eunomius has made is that "unbegotten" and "begotten" refer to the substance of the Father and the Son, respectively. Basil disagrees with this central tenet and offers his own… Continue reading A Summary of Basil’s Against Eunomius, Book 3
This entire series is going to discuss how to find and evaluate certain kinds of arguments. But nothing that I said in the introduction to this series indicated exactly what I mean by an “argument” in the first place. I'll explain that in this post. What Arguments Are Not Let’s start by clearing away some… Continue reading Logic 101: What’s an Argument?
In Book 1 of Against Eunomius, Basil addresses the term "unbegotten." Ultimately, the term means the same as "Father" (1.5), and hence refers to one who always, in eternity, has a Son (1.20; cf. 2:12). Against Eunomius, he says that "unbegotten" does not refer to God's substance (1.15). Book 1 addresses the "God of the universe,"… Continue reading A Summary of Basil’s Against Eunomius, Book 2
The last several months have been quite busy for me, and there's no signs of slowing down for a while! I haven't been able to commit as much time to writing here as I would like, but that should hopefully change soon. In May my family and I moved twice within three weeks. This all… Continue reading Some Personal Updates
There are many reasons to find the exchange between Eunomius, Basil of Caesarea, and Gregory of Nyssa fascinating. I can think of three. First, it gives us historical insight into how prominent pro-Nicene thinkers defended their view. Second, it provides a way to think about the Trinity that many fail to consider. And third, some… Continue reading A Summary of Basil’s Against Eunomius, Book 1
Let’s start this series with a scenario that you may, or may not, ever encounter. You are walking through an antique store when you accidentally bump into a fragile item on a shelf. The next two seconds seem like slow motion as you watch the item fall to the floor and shatter. You attempt to… Continue reading Series Introduction: Logic 101
Translated by Giulio Silano. His additions are in square brackets [e.g., lorem ipsum], and mine are in curved brackets {e.g., lorem ipsum}. DISTINCTION 1 1. Why the Son took on flesh, and not the Father or the Holy Spirit. 2. Whether the Father or the Holy Spirit could have become incarnate. 3. Whether the Son, who alone took on flesh,… Continue reading Peter Lombard’s Sentences, Book 3: On the Incarnation of the Word (Table of Contents)
Following Dr. Dale Tuggy's debate with Mr. Chris Date on "Jesus is human and not divine," I joined the Trinities Podcast Facebook group and asked for clarification on one of his thought experiments. I recall that he used a similar line of reasoning in his "Case Against Preexistence" episode on the podcast, and the fact… Continue reading Tuggy’s Demon-Puppet Thought Experiment: My Thoughts and His Reply
