The creation–conservation dilemma and presentist four-dimensionalism
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20310299 |
|---|---|
| Authors | William F Vallicella (Archaeology Southwest, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2002 |
| Volume | 38 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 187-200 |
| Publication date | 2002-06-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religious Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0034-4125 • E-ISSN: 1469-901X |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0034412502005991 |
| OpenAlex | W2097427373 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 1 |
On traditional theism, God is not only a creator but also a conserver. The doctrine of conservation, however, appears to face a dilemma. Either conservation is continuous re-creation with consequences inimical to diachronic identity, or conservation is an operation upon a pre-existent entity, which, because it is pre-existent, is in no clear need of conservation. This article first makes a case for the dilemma, and then proposes a way between its horns. Safe passage is possible if we adopt presentist four-dimensionalism, i.e. the conjunction of presentism, according to which temporally present items alone exist, and four-dimensionalism, the doctrine that individuals are not continuants but wholes of temporal parts
Aesthetics · Dilemma · Doctrine · Epistemology · Face (sociological concept) · Identity (music) · Linguistics · Presentism · Theology · Philosophy · Religion, Ecology, and Ethics · Religious Tourism and Spaces · Theology and Philosophy of Evil
| Citations per year | 0.18 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2009 - 2020 (12) |
| Highly cited | No |