The crisis of causality : Voetius and Descartes on God, nature, and change / / by J.A. van Ruler

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910799293603321
• Autore: Ruler J. A. van
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: Leiden ; ; New York : , : E.J. Brill, , 1995
• ISBN: 90-04-24720-3
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (366 pages)
• Collana: Brill's studies in intellectual history, , 0920-8607 ; ; volume 66
• Disciplina: 122/.092/2
• Soggetti: Causation - History - 17th century; God - History of doctrines - 17th century; Philosophy of nature - History - 17th century; Change - History - 17th century; Vitalism - History - 17th century; Mechanism (Philosophy) - History - 17th century
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Preliminary Material / J. A. van Ruler -- INTRODUCTION / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER ONE: VOETIUS' ESSAY \'ON THE NATURES AND SUBSTANTIAL FORMS OF THINGS\' / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER TWO: SPECIES AND FORMS / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER THREE: FINALIST PHYSICS / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER FOUR: THE MECHANICAL ALTERNATIVE: PERCEPTION AND CAUSALITY / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER FIVE: THE MECHANICAL ALTERNATIVE: FROM ENDS TO IMPULSE / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER SIX: THE COMPOSITE CHARACTER OF SUBSTANTIAL UNITY / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER SEVEN: ULTIMATE CAUSES IN MECHANICAL PHYSICS / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER EIGHT: THE CARTESIAN WORLD / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER NINE: CAUSES, CONSERVATION AND CONCURRENCE / J. A. van Ruler -- CHAPTER TEN: CONCLUSIONS: THEOLOGY BETWEEN VITALISM AND MECHANISM / J. A. van Ruler -- BIBLIOGRAPHY / J. A. van Ruler -- INDEX / J. A. van Ruler.
• Sommario/riassunto: The Crisis of Causality deals with the reaction of the Dutch Calvinist theologian Gisbertus Voetius (1589-1676) to the New Philosophy of René Descartes (1596-1650). Voetius not only criticised the Cartesian idea of a mechanical Universe; he also foresaw that shifting ; conceptions of natural causality would make it impossible for theologians to explain the relationship between God and Creation in philosophical terms. This threatened the status of theology as a scientific discipline. Apart from a detailed analysis of the Scholastic and Cartesian notions of causality, the book offers new perspectives on related subjects, such as seventeenth-century university training and the Cartesian method of science. It will be of great importance to any student of seventeenth-century intellectual history, philosophy, theology and history of science.