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What can grow from the divine seed? The divinity of human beings according to Aristotle

Publication date: 20.01.2013

Studia Religiologica, 2012, Volume 45, Issue 3, pp. 173 - 182

https://doi.org/10.4467/20844077SR.12.014.0967

Authors

Sonia Kamińska
Institute of Philosophy, University of Szczecin, ul. Krakowska 71-79 71-004 Szczecin, Poland
Institute for the Study of Religions, Jagiellonian University, Grodzka 52 31-044 Kraków
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Titles

What can grow from the divine seed? The divinity of human beings according to Aristotle

Abstract

This text aims to show that the core of human divinity according to Aristotle is exercising the divine mind for its own sake. Being happy and thus divine is auto-teleological, and must not be reduced to any sort of instrumental value. This reading of Aristotle excludes the theist interpretations of Prime Mover as well as the attempts at identifying the human mind with God, mainly because both these (different) interpretations seem to make auto-teleological bios theoretikos impossible. The first do this by introducing the divine provision which makes people act for God’s sake and not for their own sake. The others reduce the special status of humans by taking away the divine part, in my opinion being the sine qua non condition of the concept of human divinity. All the interpretations of human divinity which I have presented above can be useful nowadays in the ethical, (bio)ethical, social or even political discourse. This shows that the history of philosophy is not only about the past, but also about the future.

References


Information

Information: Studia Religiologica, 2012, Volume 45, Issue 3, pp. 173 - 182

Article type: Original article

Titles:

Polish:

What can grow from the divine seed? The divinity of human beings according to Aristotle

English:

What can grow from the divine seed? The divinity of human beings according to Aristotle

Authors

Institute of Philosophy, University of Szczecin, ul. Krakowska 71-79 71-004 Szczecin, Poland

Institute for the Study of Religions, Jagiellonian University, Grodzka 52 31-044 Kraków

Published at: 20.01.2013

Article status: Open

Licence: None

Percentage share of authors:

Sonia Kamińska (Author) - 100%

Article corrections:

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Publication languages:

English