Eternity, relative realities, and ontological idealism about time
Abstract
This paper argues that idealism can offer a new solution to the problem of relating the “static” presence of things to eternity and the “dynamic” passage of reality in the temporal realm. I first offer a presentation of this problem using the dispute between Aquinas and Scotus, then describe “ontological idealism about time,” as a smaller–scale idealism, and show how it resolves the original problem. I conclude by demonstrating that this view is consonant with the recent emphasis on the ontological dependence of things on God and that it offers a way of bringing together non–eternalist ontologies and the ontological conclusions posited by the special theory of relativity.
Citation
Moravec , M 2021 , ' Eternity, relative realities, and ontological idealism about time ' , TheoLogica , vol. 5 , no. 1 , pp. 175–196 . https://doi.org/10.14428/thl.v5i1.31723
Publication
TheoLogica
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
2593-0265Type
Journal article
Description
The writing of this paper was supported by funding from a studentship hosted by the Cambridge Arts and Humanities Research Council Doctoral Training Partnership and Pembroke College, Cambridge (Grant Number: AH/L503897/1, Grant Recipient: Matyáš Moravec).Collections
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