Jesus, Mary, and Moral Responsibility
Let’s turn now to the third challenge to free will and responsibility: the cases of Jesus and Mary,. First, I need to say something about supererogation. A human action can be morally significant two distinct and non-overlapping ways: by fulfilling or failing to fulfill our all-things-considered moral duties (that is, by being sinful or not…
Aristotle and Ultimate Responsibility
This is the second in a series of posts on the relevance of neo-Aristotelian philosophy of nature and the problem of free will. As I mentioned in the first post, disposing of the threat of determinism is not sufficient to resolve all the problems arising from the idea of free will. Free will seems problematic,…
Aristotle, Time, and Free Will
Free will and moral responsibility are important for many reasons —legal, as well as theological. Thanks to advances in both science and philosophy, the specter of determinism is no longer a serious threat to belief in free will, but that doesn’t mean that we are out of the woods yet. I consider three additional challenges…
Introducing The Post-Liberal Patriot
I’ve started a Substack blog, The Post-Liberal Patriot, where I will be posting my thoughts on politics, culture, and social philosophy. An update on the new Koons-Bonevac book on the Five Ways (with Word on Fire Academic). They are now planning to publish in February 2027.
Just War and Group Intentions, II
Here is a hypothetical case of group intention, formulated by Ben Koons: Imagine the following case: the country Freedonia consists of three ethnic groups: Blue, Violet, and Green, which are each perfectly represented by an ephor, while a king presents the resolutions to be voted on for any judgment. Its founders framed the Freedonian constitution…
Just War and Group Intentions, I
Much of the theory of just war assumes that the warmaker is a single individual, the prince. It is doubtful whether this has ever been true: even in so-called ‘absolute monarchies,’ the prince relies on councilors, advisors, and even some relatively independent collaborators (including bishops and parliaments). In modern times, it is undeniable that it…
Two New Books on the Five Ways
My colleague, Dan Bonevac, and I are putting the final touches on two manuscripts about Thomas Aquinas’s Five Ways. One is designed for an academic press, and the other for a more popular or “trade” press. We think that the first will probably be appearing in late 2026, and the other a few months later.…
God’s (Finite) Mercy
That God is merciful signifies that God gives to His creatures benefits that go beyond the requirements of justice. If we assume, as Thomas does, that existence itself is a good, then God’s mercy is in evidence in His creating us, since none of us had (prior to existing) a right to exist based on…
God is Just, and Life Still Isn’t Fair
What is required for God to be distributively just? Not very much, according to Thomas Aquinas. It is sufficient that God create a world that makes sense, that obeys reasonable laws, containing things that are well-designed, although never perfectly designed: “Hence Dionysius says (Div. Nom. viii, 4): ‘We must needs see that God is truly…
“Body, blood, soul, and divinity”
This is the second in a series on the doctrine of transubstantiation. Here I want to focus on further theological reasons for preferring Aristotelian hylomorphism to any kind of substance dualism (like Cartesianism). Here is what the Council of Trent taught about the Eucharist: “In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist ‘the body and…
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