Category Archives: Alexander Earl

On the Putative Threat of Modal Collapse Within the Doctrine of Divine Simplicity

Posted on 4 November 2022 by Fr Aidan Kimel

by Alexander Earl Prompted by Dionysius’s doctrine of God and its Neoplatonic foundations, the question of Divine freedom has been the subject of theological reflection on this blog for the past few months. That it would become a sustained avenue of … Continue reading →

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Platonism and the Trinity: Plotinian Triad?

Posted on 8 April 2020 by Fr Aidan Kimel

By Alexander Earl So what resources might Plotinus offer for such an account? Many of these themes are already explicitly present in Plotinus’s thought, and I argue trinitarian speculation can already be intimated there as well. First, Plotinus frequently refers … Continue reading →

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Platonism and the Trinity: Apophaticism and Pure Relationality

Posted on 6 April 2020 by Fr Aidan Kimel

by Alexander Earl APOPHATICISM To recapitulate, in Plotinus there are several levels of reality: the Cosmos (from our discus­sion of beauty and bodies), Soul (especially discursive reasoning), Intellect (the all-at-once act of intellect intellecting the intelligibles), and then the One … Continue reading →

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Platonism and the Trinity: Hierarchy and Participation

Posted on 1 April 2020 by Fr Aidan Kimel

By Alexander Earl PLOTINIAN HIERARCHY To provide an initial sketch, Plotinus has three primary hypostases in his philosophical system: The One, Intellect (nous), and Soul (psyche). In brief, the soul, despite countless misconceptions, is not a foreign homunculus inhabiting a … Continue reading →

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Platonism and the Trinity

Posted on 29 March 2020 by Fr Aidan Kimel

By Alexander Earl That it is especially with the Platonists that we must carry on our disputations on matters of theology, their opinions being preferable to those of all other philosophers. —Augustine of Hippo1 Whether in education or previous adherence, … Continue reading →

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Theological Poetry in Prose: Metaphysics of the Cross

Posted on 22 March 2020 by Fr Aidan Kimel

by Alexander Earl When Christ’s side was pierced with the spear, water and blood flowed from his side. In that moment the Church was born; no, that moment was the perfect image of eternity, when the One, pure overflow, generated … Continue reading →

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Christ and the Endless Performance of Modernity

Posted on 19 February 2020 by Fr Aidan Kimel

By Alexander Earl Modern life is an endless performance. Like the proverbial monkey, we are more than eager to dance, and we hope our dancing will be seen and rewarded. While technology has exacer­bated this vice, it would be a … Continue reading →

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Looking for the Kingdom

Posted on 30 July 2019 by Fr Aidan Kimel

By Alexander Earl I was sitting on a plane the other week on my way home from a conference when the gentle­man sitting next to me, upon learning I taught theology and philosophy, asked, “So what time period do you … Continue reading →

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