Mito, conocimiento y acción. Continuidad y cambio en los procesos culturales
Recently the work Myth, knowledge and action has been published. Continuity and change in cultural processes in the Peter Lang publishing house, coordinated by doctors Claudio César Calabrese, Gustavo Esparza and Ethel Junco. As its own title expresses, the eight essays that integrate it trace a masterful journey around myth: this notion is analyzed and evaluated as a system of thought, system of knowledge and system of action. This group of researchers from the Abat Oliba CEU University, the Pan American University of Mexico and the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico share with each other the premise by which the myth is considered a form of knowledge of the world.
Alma de profesor. La mejor profesión del mundo
It should be noted that the authors of this book are people who have a long professional experience in the field of education and that, in addition, have an extensive pedagogical and philosophical bibliography. In fact, it’s not the first time that María Rosa Espot and Jaume Nubiola have prepared a book together. They published Aprender a divertirse (2011) and Cómo tomar decisiones importantes (aimed at young people from 15 to 22 years old) (2016). Now this written work arrives with a conceptual and direct style, without sterile eruditions, which combines experience and reflection, practical knowledge and pedagogical analysis. In fact, its origin lies in different works published previously in prestigious journals and communication, although this origin does not tarnish its systematic character and a coherent internal logic.
La fundación ontológica del acto operativo en el tomismo contemporáneo. Un análisis comparativo y una propuesta de solución
We present the first book by Rubio Hípola, professor at the Francisco de Vitoria University in Madrid. This is the publication of his doctoral thesis in philosophy. The work carries out a comparative analysis of three “figures” of contemporary Thomism, looking at how each one studies the constitution of the operative act. In this way attention is fixed on a central aspect of Thomistic metaphysics: the act of being and the essence, as well as its relationship with the second act.
Fundamentos de física aristotélica: La estructura del cosmos y su ciencia
Ana María C. Minecan won the Extraordinary Doctorate Award for her thesis, presented in 2015, on the Reception of the physics of Aristotle by Tomás de Aquino (Complutense University of Madrid). Since then, in addition to a good number of articles, she has also published the volume From the eternity of the stars to the genesis of the universe: A journey through the cosmology of the late Middle Ages (Murcia: Diego Marín, 2017). Here we present another crystallization of her research in recent years: an introduction to the natural philosophy of Aristotle. She not only intends to initiate us to the book of Physics, but, in general, to the conceptions of the Greek philosopher on the philosophy of nature. Thus, this work comes to replace the lack in Spanish of a general introduction to this capital aspect of Aristotle’s thinking.
The Trinitarian Christology of St Thomas Aquinas
At the end of last century a French Dominican, great exponent of contemporary Thomism published a book entitled Synthèse dogmatique with the subtitle “De la Trinité à la Trinité”. The choice of both was not accidental, because he intentionally wanted to point out a key idea in the thinking of Thomas Aquinas: theology is nothing but thinking about the mystery of God revealed and how all things come from him and tend to him. The book of Dominic Legge that we are commenting on now participates in the same fundamental conviction and tries, successfully, to show how the Christology of Saint Thomas is fully included in this conceptual framework: it is only intelligible if it is viewed from the mystery of the Trinity.
De l’écoute à la parole. La lectura biblique dans la doctrine sacrée selon Thomas d’Aquin
In recent years, interest and studies on the biblical commentaries of Saint Thomas have grown remarkably. With them, a more complete thought of Saint Thomas is accessed and, above all, his own point of view is highlighted: the point of view of a theologian who drinks his wisdom mainly from Sacred Scripture. So Saint Thomas has shown himself in his teaching work especially as a Magister in Sacra Pagina.
Memory of the academic activities of the Instituto Santo of Fundación Balmesiana during the 2018-2019 academic year
The 2018-2019 academic year was the eightieth in the history of Fundación Balmesiana, and the sixteenth of Instituto Santo Tomás, and from its route will be kept in memory significant events that should be remembered.
Hispanic Thomistic Bibliography of the year 2018
Continuing the repertoire started six years ago, in this issue of Espiritu we collect the Hispanic Thomistic bibliography of 2018. With the adjective “Hispanic” we specify that this catalog includes publications in any of the languages born in ancient Hispania: Spanish, Portuguese and Galician, Catalan and Basque.
Origin and object of pedagogical science in Romano Guardini
Romano Guardini is known for his philosophical and theological writings. However, his thought covers other areas of knowledge, such as literary interpretation or the theory of education. In this paper I present his pedagogical thinking. By considering his essay Grundlegung der Bildungleshre the origin and object of pedagogical science is determined. In this study the importance of the concept of contrast (Gegensatz) and figure (Bild) in R. Guardini’s science of education will be examined.
The functions of attention in Saint Basil’s homily on the words “give heed to yourself”
On 378 Basil of Caesarea preached a homily known as “On the Words Give heed to Thyself, where he proposes a pastoral and moral reflection on the words of Deuteronomy 9, 15 Πρόσεχε σεαυτῶ, and he focused on the importance of attention to progress in virtue and avoid sin.
In this paper, after examine the central issues of the homily, I intend to prove that St. Basil, in his reflection on the precept “Give heed to yourself”, does not only discuss the moral sphere in order to the practice of the Christian virtues, but also refers to the psychological dominion, since he endows the attention with a therapeutic nature and, consequently, it must be useful and necessary not only for the spiritual health of the person but also for their health and psychological well-being.
What is living? Aristotle and the metaphysical problem of biological processes
Aristotle distinguishes in Book IX of Metaphysics two kinds of acts: on the one hand the processes, that take place in time and are not perfect; on the other hand the perfect activities, in which the end is the activity itself and therefore do not require a temporary process for its realization. In this way Aristotle says that living is a perfect activity. Now, it is clear that life is composed of biological processes that require time. In this article I try to clarify how the processes can be part of a perfect activity and for this reason I try to clarify the role of the soul as a form that gives order to matter, which is developed in processes.
The Metaphysical Foundations of Freedom of the Spirit according to Karl Rahner
Karl Rahner, in his famous work Geist in Welt (1939), tries to establish, from his Metaphysics of Knowledge (Erkenntnismetaphysik), the metaphysical foundations of the Freedom of the Spirit (Freiheit des Geistes). According to Rahner, appealing to Saint Thomas Aquinas, the metaphysical root of freedom lies in the independence of the spirit (consciousness) from sensitive matter, because of its anticipated orientation (Vorgriff) towards being in general (Sein überhaupt).
Knowledge in the first truth according to Thomas Aquinas’ ultimate foundation of the possibility of science
In this article we try to clarify St. Thomas’ assertion that we know in first truth and show that this reference to first truth is necessary for the ultimate foundation of science.
An attentive analysis of the question of truth will allow us to go back to first truth as the foundation of all truth and, from there, show in what sense the truth of our understanding depends on it. Thus, it will be justified that, in order to account for our science, this reference to first truth is necessary.
The definition of the notion of humanism and the analysis of its development from Classical Antiquity to the Renaissance in the thought of Cornelio Fabro
This article aims to analyze the notion of “humanism” according to the definition of Cornelio Fabro, especially in his work L’Anima. Along with this analysis, we also study the general situation of the terms of the debate that arise from the definition, as well as the method used by Fabro to explain the development of the concept in question throughout history. In a second moment the three first models presented by the author of reference are approached: that of Classical Antiquity, that of the Middle Ages and that of the Renaissance.
On intellectual desire according to Thomas Aquinas
The aim of this article is to offer a metaphysical analysis of the notion of intellectual desire in Thomas Aquinas. Intellectual desire is studied from its origin in the esse of the personal subject to its full development in the “love of friendship”. It is shown that the intellectual appetite consists of a singular faculty, that is, distinct from the intellect. In addition, the intellective desire is rooted, like the intellect, in the esse of the subject, of which it can be considered as an “expansion” or “distension”; it also examines the “relative” superiority of love in the interpersonal relationship; it is considered the radical ordering of intellectual desire to “happiness”, which is also, ultimately, an ordination to God; and finally, it is exposed that, from Aquinas’ point of view, man’s “happiness” is impossible without the “coming out of oneself” implied in the “love of friendship”.
The Alexandrian and the Cappadocian Fathers of the Church in the writings of Thomas Aquinas
St. Thomas considers the writings of the Fathers as directly related to Scripture since these were composed under the guiding influence of the same Holy Spirit. There exists therefore a continuity of thought between the Fathers as representatives of the authority of the Apostles and the Bible.1 For this reason, one would do well to recognize how deeply St. Thomas draw upon the thought of the Fathers. In this contribution we will present the main themes within the writings of the Alexandrian and Cappadocian Fathers that have influenced St. Thomas’s own thought.
Cornelio Fabro and Jacques Maritain’s Theoretical Philosophy
In this study which follows other works on the convergences and divergences between 20th century Thomists, we wanted to offer the readers of Espíritu a brief structural comparison between the theoretical philosophy of Jacques Maritain and that of Cornelio Fabro. Our purpose is articulated in two stages: 1. the critique of the Cartesian cogito and its later vicissitude; 2. the metaphysical analysis of the being. In this last respect, we explain how the two philosophers oppose each other, first as regards the ontological and noetic status of the “ens primum cognitum”, then as regards the principles – act of being and essence – in which they resolve themselves “being qua being”.
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The present issue of Revista Espiritu collects several articles of very different themes; therefore, it could be considered a miscellaneous number. Among these articles we would like, however, to highlight some. The first of these is the one of the well-known philosopher Alain Contat, which offers us an interesting work on the Thomism of Maritain heard by Cornelius Fabro. With thanks and appreciation, we also publish an unpublished work of Fr. Leo Elders, recently deceased. This publication is thus a posthumous recognition of one of the great diffusers of Thomistic thought of the last century and who was also a contributor to our magazine.
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