Lesson 6: Nature's First Unmoved Mover
Assignments:
Readings
Modeling -- pp. 359-363, 406-409 on Newton on the nature and cause of gravity.
Elements -- sec. 20 on the First Unmoved Mover; sec. 41 on natural theology; sec. 43 on proofs of God's existence; sec. 47 on divine causality.
Questions
1. What is the basic structure of Aquinas's proofs of God's existence?
2. Outline the elements of Aquinas's "first proof," the prima via.
3. What is the motor causality principle?
4. In his commentary on the Physics, Aquinas offers a demonstration of this principle. Is it based on efficient or material causality? Explain your answer.
5. Give three examples of how the principle can be verified when applied to movers in local motion.
6. What is Aquinas's objection from nature to his proofs of God's existence, and what is his final resolution of the difficulty?
Lesson 6 Figures:
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