37. Eternity, Time, and the Divine Nature

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Lecture Notes

Main Topics #

The Nature of Eternity #

• Definition: Boethius’s formulation: “totesimo et perfecta possessio vitae interminabilis” — the all-at-once and perfect possession of unending life
• Eternity follows upon unchangeableness (immutability), just as time follows upon motion
• Essential characteristic: no before and after (non ante nec post)
• Proper to God alone, though creatures participate in it by receiving unchangeableness from God

Eternity is Proper to God Alone (Article 10) #

Key principle: Eternity properly speaking is found in God alone because only God is altogether unchangeable.

Creatures participate in eternity in different ways:

1. Some things receive unchangeableness in their being (will never cease to be) — e.g., the earth, called eternal in scripture
2. Some things are called eternal metaphorically due to long duration — e.g., eternal mountains (though corruptible)
3. Some things participate more fully in eternity: the angels and the blessed in the beatific vision, who have unchangeability in both being and operation

The blessed have eternal life: Those who see God face-to-face have no before and after in their vision; they partake of God’s unchangeableness. Augustine says there is no change in the thoughts of the saints when seeing God (15th book of the Trinity).

Eternity vs. Time (Article 4) #

The fundamental distinction is NOT beginning/end but presence/absence of before and after:

• Eternity: All-at-once (tota simul); no before and after; no succession
• Time: Has before and after; successive; numbered by the flowing now
• Even if time existed eternally (as some philosophers held regarding the heavens’ motion), this difference would remain

The now (nunc) in each measure:

• In time: The indivisible point between past and future; always flowing; always in a different position. Aristotle: the now in time cannot be corrupted when it is; it is corrupted in a later now, yet in the intermediary now it continues to be.
• In eternity: The now stands still; immobile; same in both subject and position
• Boethius’s principle: “The now that flows along makes time; the now that stands still makes eternity”

Comparison: The flowing now is like a body in motion—the same body throughout the whole descent, but always in a different position. The standing now is like the immobile center of a circle with all points on the circumference related to it.

Equivocal Uses of “Eternal” #

Berquist demonstrates that the word “eternal” is used in multiple senses, not purely equivocally:

1. Properly eternal (full sense): God’s life; the beatific vision of the blessed (all-at-once, unchangeable, no before/after)
2. Improperly eternal: Hell’s fire (unending but with change—transit from cold to heat per Job 24); no true eternity because it lacks “all-at-once”
3. Metaphorically eternal: Mountains called eternal due to great duration (not about unchangeableness)

Key principle on equivocation: When we define something in the fullest sense and then realize lesser senses exist by dropping one or more meanings, this is not purely equivocal. Example: A property in the strict sense (per Porphyry) requires: (1) belonging to only one species, (2) to every member, (3) always. If we drop “only” but keep the others, we have a weaker sense. The word is used analogously.

The Partition of Being (Necessary Things) #

Thomas addresses the objection that necessary things (like mathematical truths) are eternal. Response: Necessary signifies a mode of truth. Truth exists in the understanding. Necessary and true things are eternal because they are in the eternal mind alone (the divine mind). Therefore it does not follow that something outside God is eternal.

Divine Knowledge and Temporal Things #

God sees all times (past, present, future) as present to his eternal now. The comparison: points on a circle’s circumference are all related to the immobile center. Humans see history sequentially; God sees it all-at-once. Scripture uses verbs in various tenses regarding God not because God changes but because eternity includes all times.

Key Arguments #

Objections That Eternity Is Not Proper to God #

1. From Scripture: Daniel 12 speaks of “perpetual eternities” (many); Matthew 25 speaks of “eternal fire”; therefore not only God is eternal

   • Response: Many eternities exist according to those who partake of eternity (via contemplation of God). The fire of hell is called eternal only on account of being unending, not in the full sense

2. From Necessary Things: All necessary truths are eternal (mathematical principles, demonstrative propositions per Aristotle’s Posterior Analytics)

   • Response: These are eternal because they exist in the eternal divine mind, not because they have their own eternity

3. From Definition: Eternity was defined as having no beginning and no end; but God is said to be “before” and “beyond” eternity

   • Response: God is said to be before eternity insofar as immaterial substances (angels) participate in eternity. In Exodus, “eternum” should be understood as “age” or secular duration. God reigns beyond eternity insofar as his reign is all-at-once, whereas ages have succession

Objections That Eternity Differs From Time #

1. From Measures: Two measures of duration cannot coexist unless one is part of the other (as hour is part of day)

   • Response: Eternity is not a part of time; rather, eternity exceeds and includes time. This seems inverted from ordinary measures

2. From the Now: The now of time remains the same throughout all time; this seems to constitute eternity, that which remains the same indivisibly

   • Response: The now of time remains the same in substance but differs in position (always moving forward). The now of eternity remains the same in both

3. From First Motion: As the first motion measures all motion, the measure of first being (eternity) measures all being. But temporal things are measured by time. Therefore time is eternity or part of eternity

   • Response: Eternity is all-at-once; time has before and after. Therefore they are not the same

Important Definitions #

Eternity (Aeternum) #

• Full definition: All-at-once (tota simul), perfect possession of unending life
• Follows upon: Unchangeableness/immutability (immutabilitas)
• Characteristics: No beginning, no end, no before and after, no succession, no change
• Measure of: God’s permanent being; creatures that participate in unchangeableness

Time (Tempus) #

• Aristotelian definition: The number of motion according to before and after
• Follows upon: Motion (motus)
• Characteristics: Succession, before and after, divisible into past/present/future
• Measure of: Corruptible things and all motion

The Now (Nunc) #

• In time (nunc fluens): Indivisible point; always flowing; always in different position
• In eternity (nunc stans): Stands still; immobile; same position throughout

Ratio/Notion (Ratio) #

• The formal character or defining feature of something
• Example: The ratio of time follows upon motion; the ratio of eternity follows upon unchangeableness

Examples & Illustrations #

The Boethius Comparison #

“The now that flows along makes time; the now that stands still makes eternity.”

• The flowing now: like water constantly moving, always new but never stopping
• The standing now: like a frozen moment, permanent and unchanging

The Body in Motion #

Aristotle’s comparison (Physics IV): A falling stone is the same body throughout its descent, but always in a different position. Similarly, the now of time is the same in subject but always in a different position.

The Circle and Center #

God’s eternal vision is like the immobile center of a circle; all points on the circumference (moments in time) are related to and visible from that center all at once. Past and future are present to God as they are present to the center.

Marriage as Definition #

Berquist uses marriage to illustrate full vs. lesser senses of a term. The full definition: stable union of man and woman by mutual choice for sake of children. But: (1) some unions are unstable (drop “stable”), (2) some marriages of elderly people cannot produce children (drop “for sake of children”). These are still called marriages but lack the full meaning.

Property as Definition #

Porphyry defines property strictly as: (1) belonging to only one species, (2) to every member, (3) always. Two is half of four satisfies all three. But “two is less than ten” satisfies (2) and (3) but not (1). This is a property in lesser sense by dropping one meaning.

Hell’s Punishment #

Hell’s fire is called eternal but not in the true sense. Scripture says the damned transit “from waters of snow to exceeding heat” (Job 24), showing change. Since eternity is all-at-once with no before and after, hell’s succession of pains is only “eternal” in the sense of unending, not in the full sense.

The Beatific Vision #

Those who see God face-to-face have no before and after in their vision. “This is eternal life, that they might know you and him whom you have sent” (John 17:3). They partake of God’s eternity through unchangeable operation (the vision).

Questions Addressed #

Is Eternity Proper to God Alone? #

Question: Scripture speaks of many eternities and eternal things. Don’t the blessed, angels, and even hell’s fire have eternity?

Response: Eternity properly speaking belongs to God alone. But insofar as creatures receive unchangeableness from God, they participate in eternity:

• The blessed in the beatific vision partake of eternity (see God all-at-once, no before/after)
• Angels have unchangeable being but changeable operations
• Hell’s fire is eternal only in the sense of being unending, not in the full sense (all-at-once)

What Is the Essential Difference Between Eternity and Time? #

Question: If time always existed (as some held about the heavens’ motion), wouldn’t the difference vanish?

Response: No. The essential difference is NOT having/lacking beginning and end, but having/lacking before and after. Eternity is all-at-once (tota simul); time is successive. This difference would remain even if time were eternal.

How Can the Now Remain the Same Through Time? #

Question: Aristotle says the now remains the same throughout time. Doesn’t this make it eternal like the now of eternity?

Response: The now of time remains the same in substance but differs in position—it is always moving forward. The now of eternity remains the same in both subject and position. The flowing now and the standing now are essentially different.

How Are Words Used When Meanings Vary? #

Question: Can we use the word “eternal” for both God and hell’s fire if they lack the same properties?

Response: Yes, by analogy, not by univocation or pure equivocation. When we define a term in its fullest sense, we can use it in lesser senses by dropping one or more meanings. This is not a confusion but proper use of language, as we see in Aristotle with properties, in marriage, and in other examples.

Notable Quotes #

“The now that flows along makes time; the now that stands still makes eternity.” — Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy

“This is eternal life, that they might know you and him whom you have sent.” — John 17:3

“If a man understands the words he uses, then he is wise. If a man does not understand the words he uses, then he is not wise.” — Duane Berquist (Aristotelian principle)

“God is the measure of all things.” — Plato (contrasted with Protagoras’s “man is the measure”)