The Concept of Substance and Life Presupposed by Christianity

Abstract

Plato and Aristotle are of the greatest interest to the Christian philosopher since they are dualist thinkers and Christianity appears to presuppose a dualist world view. But Plato's matter is unreal and Aristotle's form and matter appear to be unreal principles except as found in God and the soul. If the term substance is to be reserved for a reality, and if a substance is a composition of two ultimate real principles, then only living beings are substances. This intuition appears latent in Aristotle's philosophy of nature. It appears important, as it emphasizes that life is fundamentally different from the inanimate.

status: published