Without getting into the philosophy, I say that if Jesus Christ is God, then that means that the last thing we ought to do is to reduce that fact to an abstraction.God is not in any genus, and principles of a given genus are in that genus. So it’s impossible that God is a principle of any genus. But God is supposed to be the principle of all being and since genus is a being, either as a thing or an idea, then God has to be the principle of genera but again, God is not in any genus and is certainly not a principle in a genus.
- Is this something every catholic must believe?
- I’m not sure what this means, probably because I’m not sure how the word “being” is being used. Here are my objections:
Or again God is considered to be like Being but being is not a genus and the same reasoning applies.
Yet God is the creator of everything so it seems strange that He isn’t a principle.
God can’t be defined in any genus, He is Himself the source of all all beingGod is not in any genus, and principles of a given genus are in that genus. So it’s impossible that God is a principle of any genus. But God is supposed to be the principle of all being and since genus is a being, either as a thing or an idea, then God has to be the principle of genera but again, God is not in any genus and is certainly not a principle in a genus.
- Is this something every catholic must believe?
- I’m not sure what this means, probably because I’m not sure how the word “being” is being used. Here are my objections:
Or again God is considered to be like Being but being is not a genus and the same reasoning applies.
Yet God is the creator of everything so it seems strange that He isn’t a principle.
Can this be elaborated on? It seems to me that God is either a principle of being in which case being is a Genus (it’s not) or (granting Being is a genus) God is in some genus (which He is not). I suppose it is not illogical to believe that something that has a principle can still not be a genus but yet if God is the principle of ALL being then certainly He would be the principle of a genus -since a genus is a categorization of being.God can’t be defined in any genus, He is Himself the source of all all being
God’s Characteristics as we can understand them are hugely different from any other being we have encountered, he is not made up of matter, and thus not limited by space and time, he created the universe so he must be all powerful and he can perceive anything because he isent limited by matter. Now this is all rather obvious but when compared with lesser entities like ourselves we fit none of these categories, no being possibly could, so i guess its possible to say God is in a class all his own, even outside our understanding of being. the practice in biology of putting things into geniuses includes things with similar attributes, but we don’t share any of the attributes Ive already mentioned and they constitute the largest differences. He is the source of all being, we are and will cease to be(except by his power) but He is. So to place him in the same Genus as us (being) limits God.Can this be elaborated on? It seems to me that God is either a principle of being in which case being is a Genus (it’s not) or (granting Being is a genus) God is in some genus (which He is not). I suppose it is not illogical to believe that something that has a principle can still not be a genus but yet if God is the principle of ALL being then certainly He would be the principle of a genus -since a genus is a categorization of being.