Skip to content

Like this? Share it!

  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Email
Closer To Truth
  • Watch
    • Seasons & EpisodesWatch complete episodes as aired on public television
    • Curated PlaylistsExplore collections of videos curated by our team
    • ProjectsDiscover collaborations with leading institutions
    • ContributorsMeet the greatest thinkers exploring the deepest questions
    • CTT ChatsWatch candid conversations with the brightest minds on the boldest ideas
    • Roundtable ArchivesView roundtable discussions from our early years
  • Topics
    • Cosmos, Life, Consciousness, Meaning: Explore the fundamental questions of existence.Topic Guide
    • All Topics
      • CosmosExplore cosmology, physics, and the fundamentals of existence
        • Back
        • All Cosmos
        • Deep Laws of Nature
          • Back
          • All Deep Laws of Nature
          • Cosmic Fundamentals
          • Time and Space-Time
          • Quantum Theory
          • Philosophy of Science
          • Complexity and Emergence
          • Mathematics as Fundamental?
          • Information as Fundamental?
          • Universe as Simulation?
          • Deep Discoveries in Science
        • Vast Cosmos
          • Back
          • All Vast Cosmos
          • Cosmic Immensity
          • Cosmic Beginnings
          • Cosmic Structure
          • Multiple Universes (Multiverse)
          • Black Holes, Dark Energy, Dark Matter
        • Our Special Universe
          • Back
          • All Our Special Universe
          • Fine-Tuning of the Universe?
          • Fine-Tuning the Universe for Life & Mind?
          • Breathtaking Universe
          • Alien Intelligences?
          • Far Future of the Universe
        • Breakthroughs
          • Back
          • All Breakthroughs
          • Breakthroughs in Science
          • Breakthroughs in Mathematics
        • Science and Religion
          • Back
          • All Science and Religion
          • Science vs. Religion?
          • Science and God
          • How Science and Religion Think
          • The New Atheism
          • Limits of Science
        • Mystery of Existence
          • Back
          • All Mystery of Existence
          • The Mystery of Existence
          • The Mystery of Laws & Cosmos
          • Metaphysics of Cosmos
          • Why Anything at All?
      • LifeJoin our in-depth exploration of life on planet earth and beyond.
        • Back
        • All Life
        • Philosophy of Biology
          • Back
          • All Philosophy of Biology
          • Why Philosophy of Biology?
          • Philosophy of Evolutionary Biology
          • Philosophy of Genes and Information
          • Philosophy of Evolution and Religion
        • What is Life?
          • Back
          • All What is Life?
          • What is Life?
          • What is Death?
        • Human Biology
          • Back
          • All Human Biology
          • Human Nature & Uniqueness
          • Evolutionary Culture and Ethics
          • Sex and Gender
          • Biology of Race
          • Medicine and Healthcare
          • Biological Futures
        • Life in the Cosmos
          • Back
          • All Life in the Cosmos
          • Life in the Cosmos
        • Biological Concepts
          • Back
          • All Biological Concepts
          • Mathematics and Biology
          • Deception
          • Plant Sentience
      • MindSearch mysteries of mind and individual awareness
        • Back
        • All Mind
        • Mind-Body Problems
          • Back
          • All Mind-Body Problems
          • The Mind-Body Problem
          • Brain Structure and Function
          • Brain Explains Mind?
          • Elements of Mind
        • Consciousness
          • Back
          • All Consciousness
          • Mystery of Consciousness
          • Landscape of Consciousness
          • Consciousness as Emergent
          • Consciousness as All Physical?
          • States of Consciousness
          • Sleep and Dreams
          • Purpose of Consciousness?
          • Metaphysics of Consciousness
        • Persons
          • Back
          • All Persons
          • Persons and Selves
          • Personal Identity
          • Life After Death?
          • Souls?
          • Human Uniqueness
          • Creativity
          • Music
          • Epistemology
          • Belief Systems
          • Mind and Society
          • People and Society
        • Free Will
          • Back
          • All Free Will
          • Mystery of Free Will
          • Philosophy of Free Will
          • Free Will and Consciousness
          • Science of Free Will
          • Free Will and Morality
          • Theology of Free Will
        • Extrasensory Perception
          • Back
          • All Extrasensory Perception
          • ESP and New Realities?
          • ESP and the Nonphysical?
        • Art Seeking Understanding
          • Back
          • All Art Seeking Understanding
          • Aesthetic Cognitivism
          • Art and Philosophy
          • Neuroscience/Cognitive Science of Art
          • Neuroscience/Cognitive Science of Music
          • Art and God
          • Art and Religion
          • Art and Culture
          • Mind, Art, Transcendence
          • Art Seeking Understanding Projects
      • MeaningSeek whether God exists through diverse perspectives
        • Back
        • All Meaning
        • Philosophy of Religion
          • Back
          • All Philosophy of Religion
          • Concepts of God
          • Alternative Concepts of God
          • Faith and Belief
          • Conflict Among Religions
          • Philosophy and Analytic Theology
          • Contemporary Theological Engagement
          • How Philosophy Informs Religion
          • Religion Without God
          • Eastern Traditions and the Big Questions
          • Global Philosophy of Religion
        • Existence of God
          • Back
          • All Existence of God
          • Arguing God's Existence
          • Philosophical Arguments For God
          • Experiential Arguments For God
          • Arguments Against God
        • Attributes of God
          • Back
          • All Attributes of God
          • God's Nature?
          • God's Essence?
          • God's Powers?
          • God and Time?
        • God as Creator
          • Back
          • All God as Creator
          • God The Creator?
          • God's Interactions?
          • God's World?
        • Ultimate Destinies
          • Back
          • All Ultimate Destinies
          • God's Knowledge and Future Events?
          • Judgment (Heaven, Hell)?
          • Resurrection?
          • Eschatology (End Times)?
          • Eternal Life?
          • Search for Meaning
  • News
    • All NewsStay up-to-date with the latest from Closer To Truth
    • Book ExcerptsExplore recently authored books from our contributors
    • PerspectivesRead essays and articles from our community
  • About
    • About Closer To TruthWe are a digital-media nonprofit and TV series
    • The TV SeriesWhere to watch on PBS stations nationwide
    • DonateDonate now to keep our content free!
    • Meet the TeamMeet the host and team behind Closer To Truth
    • PartnershipsLearn about our partners and collaborators
    • Support Closer To TruthWays to engage with and support our work
    • PodcastListen on your favorite podcast player
    • StoreBuy official Closer To Truth merchandise
    • YouTubeSubscribe to Closer To Truth on YouTube
  • Donate
Search
  • Login
  • Join
  • Watch
    • EpisodesWatch complete episodes as aired on public television
    • Curated PlaylistsExplore collections of videos curated by our team
    • ProjectsDiscover collaborations with leading institutions
    • ContributorsMeet the greatest thinkers exploring the deepest questions
    • CTT ChatsWatch chats with the brightest minds on the boldest ideas
    • RoundtablesView roundtable discussions from our early years
  • Topics
    • Topic GuideCosmos, Consciousness, Meaning: Join us as we explore the fundamental questions of existence.
    • CosmosExplore cosmology, physics, and the fundamentals of existence
    • MindSearch mysteries of mind and individual awareness
    • MeaningSeek whether God exists through diverse perspectives
  • News
    • The Latest
  • About
    • About Closer To TruthWe are a digital-media nonprofit and TV series
    • TV SeriesWhere to watch on PBS stations nationwide
    • Meet the TeamMeet our host and our team
    • DonateDonate now to keep our content free!
    • PartnershipsLearn about CTT’s partners and collaborators
    • Support Closer to TruthWays to engage with and support our work
    • PodcastListen on your favorite podcast player
    • StoreBuy official Closer To Truth merchandise
    • YouTubeSubscribe to Closer To Truth on YouTube
    • FAQLearn about Closer to Truth membership
  • Login
  • Join

video

Topic Series

Thomas Flint

  • Watch Next
Cover image for Can Philosophy Discern Sex and Gender?

Can Philosophy Discern Sex and Gender?

Cover image for What Does Transhumanism Foreshadow?

What Does Transhumanism Foreshadow?

Cover image for Evolution vs. Religion: Anything New?

Evolution vs. Religion: Anything New?

Cover image for How did Cognition and Emotion Evolve?

How did Cognition and Emotion Evolve?

Cover image for Big Questions in Free Will Documentary

Big Questions in Free Will Documentary

Cover image for What is Human Nature?

What is Human Nature?

  • Details
  • Transcripts
  • Formats
    • Share
Featured In

  • Is God a "Person"?
Contributors

Thomas Flint

Tom Flint works on philosophical theology, philosophy/religion, metaphysics (fore/middle...
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
Tom, as I consider the question: is there a God — and if there is a God, is it worthy of worship and changing your life? The concept of God being a person is a critical one that theologians, philosophers of religion talk about as, as, as, absolutely essential to understand what God is about. It's a strange question: is God a person? How do you begin to understand that?
Thomas Flint
It is a strange question and it's one that I think is very difficult to deal with. From a Christian perspective, it's even more difficult to deal with because Christians think of there as being three persons in one God. I think I'd like to sort of ignore all the complications that go with the Trinity and just think that we're talking about one person here. Some of the elements that seem to me to be crucial to thinking of God as a person would be these: I mean, first of all, God has to be — to use a philosophical term — of substance. He has to have the kind of independence and autonomy that we think of ourselves as persons as having. Secondly, God has to know things. He has to have an intellect if he's going to count as a person. I think we would view any, anyone who knows nothing, who has no intellect whatsoever — no knowetic (sic) abilities whatsoever — as being less than a person. So, I think for God to be a person, he would have to have intellect as well. And I think furthermore we'd want to say that God must have will — that he must be able to choose the actions that he's going to perform, and I would say choose them freely as well. So, I think at least these three components are going to be… I don't know if this gives us a definition, but at least there are parts in what's involved in saying that God is a person. He's a substance, he has intellect, he has will; and, of course, Christians would insist as perfect with regard to that intellect and will.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
Let's explore each of them and see if we can dig, dig deeper. Substance, when we think of material substances, we think of things that, that have extension and take up space or moves through time whether changelessly or not, has parts — a lot of things in substance in the physical world. Now which, if any of those, would carry over to God in an immaterial sense?
Thomas Flint
Right. There's clearly going to be no extension. Most Christians traditionally would say that there's nothing akin to parts within God; so those sorts of things aren't going to be there. And I think a standard bold medieval definition would be to say that a substance is an ultimate subject of predication. It's sort of the thing to which the properties apply. You have a red ball. We could argue a lot about the redness and what exactly that is if that's an abstract object or a concrete object; but it's an attribute of something else — something distinct from itself — the ball. The ball we might think of as a substance. That is, it's not itself an attribute of something else — other things are attribute to it; qualities are attributed to it. That at least gives us some idea of I think what the better ocnotion (ph.) of a substance is.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
Without anything else implied because substance is a common term that we normally think of… you know, you could hold in your hand or maybe it oozes or something, you know. But, but that's not what we're talking about. We're talking about defining it as, as, as something that as a predicate which means to which properties can be assigned?
Thomas Flint
I think that's a fair way of viewing it, right? You know, we're talking about an individual, which might be another somewhat less technical way of speaking about what we're saying when we say that God is a substance. He's an individual who's not sort of part of or dependent on some other individual. There's this kind of independence/autonomy to it. That's part of what's involved in the notion of some things being of substance, I think.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
So, if God is a substance, but being immaterial has no extension — there are other beings in the Christian tradition that are immaterial –- angels. They don't commingle, I assume; they are independent substances, right?
Thomas Flint
Right.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
Okay, so we now have independent substances existing each of which can take attributes or predicates. Can we say any more or that's about it that we want to say for substance?
Thomas Flint
I think that's the core of what we would want to be saying there.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
So, let's go on — the second was intellect/knowledge — unlimited knowledge in God's sense or omniscience. And that knowledge is, is, is known intrinsically… I mean, we can't ask where it's stored because there are no parts.
Thomas Flint
Yeah, the issue of where God gets his knowledge from is very hard, I think, for us to say. Clearly, he can't get it from something outside of him; because at least according to the Christian tradition there is nothing outside of him unless and until he decides to create; or at least that would be the dominant sort of view. So, the knowledge has to be all within him, in some sense. And, again, the bulk of the tradition is that even God's knowledge of the physical world is not knowledge that comes from outside of him. His knowledge is so complete and so perfect that it's not the knowledge of the perceiver — it's the knowledge of your Creator. God knows things because he knows that he's creating them and what situations he's creating them in and what they will do in those situations; so, his knowledge is never going to be observational. Even once we have creation on the scene, the created world on the scene, it's still going to be knowledge that comes not from without but is always from within — from his knowledge of himself and his own decisions as to what he's going to do. In that sense, we were talking about these three elements of being a person, being a substance, having knowledge, having, having intellect. I think…
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
Having will.
Thomas Flint
Right, having will — sorry. I think there's a sense in which we have to see at least part of God's knowledge flowing from his will. God knows what the physical world is like, for example, not because the world had to be that way but because God freely decided to make it that way. It's his will that's bringing about the truths that his intellect knows. But it still has to be all completely internal within God — none of it is coming from without.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
What can we say about God's will, then — its intentionality. What are some terms that we can enrich that concept?
Thomas Flint
Well, intentionality is one term; choice is another term we could use. We could speak of God's having a plan for the creation that he makes. I think all of those would be part of God's having a will. If we think of God's will as being primarily the will of the Creator — deciding with whom is he going to share existence, what kind of existency (sic) are these beings going to have, what situations are they going to be in — we're thinking of God as providential when we're thinking in that way. That's the way in which his will is being… is operative in the sense that he's deciding, choosing, intending to bring about a certain kind of world. I think at the broadest level that's the way we have to think of God's will as operating.
Robert Lawrence Kuhn
And so, integrating it all together — when you think that God is a person, what does it make you feel?
Thomas Flint
I mean, it's always dangerous to ask that question of a philosopher because we tend to so intellectualize all of these sorts of things. I mean, when I think of God as, as a person, I do think of him as a substance who has intellect and will; but I think when I don't have my philosopher's hat on, I think of him as a being who not just has will to create this world but loves this world that he has created. Who is involved in some way with what's going on; who's responsive to what his creatures do; and in that sense an individual with whom we can have genuine personal relationships. If we thought of God as a person and it was very abstract; but we couldn't think of ourselves as have, having anything like a personal relationship with him. Well, that might do philosophically but I don't think it would do religiously. So, I think when I think of God, there's part of me as a philosopher who's thinking of him in that very abstract way, but part of me also is a believing Christian, who's thinking of him as a person to whom I'd like to be closer than I am.
  • Short Video
  • Long Video

Watch Next

Cover image for Can Philosophy Discern Sex and Gender?

Sexual questions abound. What is “normal” sexual behavior in light of diverse sexual variations? LGBTQ+ issues? Is sex in animal models relevant for human sexuality? A...

video

Can Philosophy Discern Sex and Gender?

Episode 7

Season 27

26:47

Watch

Cover image for What Does Transhumanism Foreshadow?

Humanity’s future is now framed by artificial intelligence (AI) and increasing interventions in the body to enhance features and functions. This is transhumanism....

video

What Does Transhumanism Foreshadow?

Episode 8

Season 25

26:47

Watch

Cover image for Evolution vs. Religion: Anything New?

Two kinds of questions probe evolution vs. religion. The first explores discrepancies, even contradictions, between the science of evolution and the beliefs of religion. The...

video

Evolution vs. Religion: Anything New?

Episode 6

Season 27

26:47

Watch

Cover image for How did Cognition and Emotion Evolve?

What can evolution reveal about the developmental history of thinking and feeling? How did cognition and emotion (affect) co-develop over evolutionary time? Can evolution...

video

How did Cognition and Emotion Evolve?

Episode 5

Season 27

26:47

Watch

Cover image for Big Questions in Free Will Documentary

Do we have free will? After so many centuries of debate by so many great thinkers, can we still make progress in answering this question? That’s the goal of the Big...

video

Big Questions in Free Will Documentary

1:37:06

Watch

Cover image for What is Human Nature?

What is “human” nature? While human beings are animals, we believe we are special, radically different from other animals. Why? What traits are unique to humans? Are we...

video

What is Human Nature?

Episode 4

Season 27

26:47

Watch


Become a Member

Get free access to exclusive content and more.

  • facebook
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • Watch on YouTube
  • Find us on PBS
  • Donate
  • Contact Us

Policies Terms © Closer To Truth. All rights reserved Website by Visceral