Search results for: DISPUTATIONES SCIENTIFICAE in All Content

Descartes’ Idea and the Representations of Things

Dekartova idea i reprezentacije stvari

Author(s): Predrag Milidrag / Language(s): Serbian / Issue: 3/2011

Keywords: theory of ideas; direct realism; representationalism; Francisco Suárez; conceptus formalis; conceptus objectivus; early modern philosophy

On the basis of the analysis of relevant passages from Descartes’ writings, the article shows that Descartes’ ideas represent things in mind, but that he is not a representationalist in a Malebranchean sense: in Descartes, represented object is perceived, not the very representation of that object. Hereafter, three senses of idea in Descartes were analyzed, objective, formal and material, as well as the notions conceptus formalis and conceptus objectivus of Francisco Suárez who is direct his-torical source of Descartes’ theory of ideas. In the conclusion the centrality of the notion of idea in formal sense in Descartes’ theory of ideas is shown, and it is claimed that the representationalism and direct realism are equivalent in Descartes. At the end, the survey of influence and transformation of understanding of ideas in early modern philosophy is presented.

The book-bound scholar

The book-bound scholar

Author(s): Mary Beagon / Language(s): English / Issue: 13/2012

Keywords: Pliny; Natural History

This paper takes as its starting point Geoffrey Lloyd's comment that the sources for Pliny's Natural History are 'overwhelmingly literary'. While the encyclopaedic nature of his project might seem to make this inevitable, it is suggested that there are deeper‐seated reasons for Pliny's approach to be found in the attitudes of Rome's cultural élite in the late Republic and early Empire. For this élite, literary culture reflected the socio‐political dynamics of their society, while practical investigations of nature, on the other hand, may for the most part have been associated with the negation of these values. The contrast should not be over‐emphasised: texts on practical subjects could use and exploit empirical evidence and one or two individual enthusiasts may be tentatively posited. However, the breadth and depth of the literary tradition gave the text an authority denied to the particularities of personal experience.

Interpreting the Concept of ‘Plan’ in Sumerian and Akkadian Literary and Ritual Texts

Mõiste giš-hur tähendusest sumeri ja akkadi kirjanduslikes ja rituaaltekstides

Author(s): Liina Ootsing-Lüecke / Language(s): Estonian / Issue: 42/2009

Keywords: Akkadian; Assyriology; history of religion; mythology; religious phenomenology; Sumerian

The aim of this article is to interpret the meaning and concept of the word ‘plan’ or ‘drawing’ in Sumerian and Akkadian written sources and to give a brief summary of this phenomenon in Mesopotamia in the 3rd-1st millennium BC. The Sumerian word giš-hur (lit. ‘wood scratch’, meaning ‘plan’ or ‘design’), and the Akkadian word esRru(m) (‘to draw’, ‘to design’, ‘drawing’, ‘design’ or ‘plan’) are mostly mentioned in a substantive context which encompasses the divine sphere. Gods and kings establish the world order with various ‘designs’ and ‘plans’. The Sumerian phenomenon of me (the ‘divine power’ of gods) which describes god’s essence and is a divine attribute, and the Akkadian term parsu(m) (‘cultic ordinance’) which encompasses divine ‘order’ and ‘cultic rites’, are both closely connected with the phenomena of giš-hur and esRru(m). In Sumerian and Akkadian myths and epics, the phrases ‘the plan of heaven and earth’ and ‘the cosmic order’ refer to the actions of gods and kings who always plan or design something substantial. A ‘plan’ is a means of securing power for a king. Gods also have ‘plans’ and ‘designs’ and deliver them to kings in an effort to strengthen and guarantee their reign. Kings have a duty to fulfil the ‘plan’ or ‘regulations’ of the land or kingdom. In Sumerian mythology the phenomenon of giš-hur is connected with the underground aquifer abzu and its master, the god Enki. This understanding is also reflected in the late Babylonian epic of creation, which describes the establishing and securing the universal order. Sumerians and Akkadians also ‘designed’ and ‘drew’ many ‘temple’, ‘town’ and ‘kingdom’ plans, which had only local importance, but the loss of these plans is grieved about in several lamentation compositions. In later bilingual texts, abstract ‘cosmic’ and ‘life’ designs are mentioned. In Babylonian and Assyrian myths the creation of people is described as ‘drawing their shape’, and the same phrase is used in regard to the creation of other creatures and things. In Akkadian mythology the terms ‘plan’ and ‘design’ very often seem to be synonymous with parsu(m) (‘cultic ordinance’), which is administered by gods and kings. It can be lost in struggles for power and can therefore cause cosmic disorder and imbalance. In Sumerian and Akkadian incantations, primarily in apotropaic rites, the terms ‘magic circle’ or ‘drawing’ or ‘line’ describe a boundary that demons cannot cross. These ceremonial rites probably have a broader meaning: to avoid demons’ interference in the cosmic order which is under the control and patronage of gods. They set up ‘nets’ and ‘traps’ for evil ghosts who have crossed the magic border. The crafty god Enki/Ea mostly draws the magic circle: this phenomenon may be connected with the Sumerian perception about this god as a designer of temple plans.

Does and in What Whay Descartes's Idea Represent?

Da li i kako Descartesova ideja reprezentuje?

Author(s): Predrag Milidrag / Language(s): Bosnian / Issue: 3/2010

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Komentár

Author(s): Martin Sentiváni / Language(s): Miscellaneous languages / Issue: 03/2011

Tento text Sentiváni zaradil na samý začiatok Miscellaneí zrejme preto, že hovorí o základných otázkach celého stvoreného sveta – o jeho vzniku, trvaní, usporiadaní ako aj o prieniku dejinného/ľudského s prírodným. V ďalších štúdiách (statiach) Miscellaneí sa potom zaoberá jednotlivými zložkami sveta. Umiestenie kozmologického textu na začiatok Miscellaneí môže svedčiť aj o celkovej Sentivániho predstave o usporiadaní poznatkov o svete. Lebo napr. J. H. Alsted píše: Nonnulli Cosmologiam vel omittuntur, vel reliquis Physicae partibus praemittunt. Neutra sententia nobis probatur. Non prima: quia omne ens debet tractari in aliqua scientia: et nominatim ens physicum in Physica. Jam vero mundus est ens physicum, quippe corpus naturale collectivum. Non secunda: quia cum mundus sit collectio omnium corporum naturalium, necessum est ut prius explicentur illa corpora, ex quibus constat. (Encyclopaedia, s. 781)

Universalistic ambitions and Claims of Divine Origin of Early Dynastic Sumerian and Akkadian rulers

Mesopotaamia kuningate universalistlikud taotlused, jumalik päritolu ning valitejate jumalikustamine Varadünastilisel ja Akkadi ajastul

Author(s): Vladimir Sazonov / Language(s): English / Issue: 1 (68)/2015

Keywords: Ancient Near-East Studies;History of Religions;

As we can see, ideology and religion (theology) played a significant role in warfare and especially in the justification of wars in Mesopotamia already since ca. 2400 BCE (or even earlier). We have hundreds of pieces of evidence from Ancient Mesopotamia where the ruler used theological justification for his military campaign or the invasion of another country. The theology of warfare in Ancient Mesopotamia developed with the new period and became better formulated and more complex during the course of history. If the inscription of Ur-Nanše (Early Dynastic ruler of Lagash) does not document the use theology (or much use of it) to support his wars against Umma (we have no evidence) then his grandson E-anatum certainly did use it and lot of relevant ideas were already quite well developed. Many ideas from the Early Dynastic period (E-anatum, En-metena, Lugal-zage-si, etc.) were adapted by Sargonic kings such as Sargon of Akkad or Naram-Sîn, or Neo-Sumerian kings (Ur-Namma, Šulgi) who tried to implement theology more effectively than their predecessors. We can see that the theology of war was used by Sargonic and Neo-Sumerian kings in their aggressive politics as a tool for justifying war; theology even helped them to create a centralized state (Akkadian ‘empire’, Neo-Sumerian kingdom). In the Ur III period we find many texts (especially Šulgi’s hymns, royal inscriptions, etc.) in which theology was often used very masterfully and to propagandistic ends, and it seems that the theology of war at that time was already quite well-developed. In Assyria as far back as the late second millennium (Middle Assyrian period) and the first millennium BCE the theology of war became a very important part of state ideology, one of the fundamental pillars of state propaganda, and was used for justifying wars, deportations, mass killing, etc. So the theology of war is a very old and traditional phenomenon, continually changing, developing, transforming with each new epoch or new term of rule, yet still retaining many similarities with its earlier manifestations. If we compare the theological justification of the Neo-Assyrian kings with that of the period of E-anatum, En-metena, Lugal-zage-si or the Sargonic periood or the Ur III period, we find a lot of similarities and certain differences. Of course, on the one hand it was the same Mesopotamian cultural area where people greatly honoured ancient tradition, while on the other hand it was also a dynamic culture, not isolated from outside influences. This is the reason why in the inscriptions of the Neo-Assyrian kings we find several elements originating from earlier times – from their predecessors in Assyria, but also from even the Early Dynastic, Sargonic, Neo-Sumerian and Old Babylonian periods.

Does Aristotle’s Akratēs Not Choose and If Not, Why Not?

Czy i dlaczego Arystotelejski słaby wolą (ἀκρατής [akratēs]) nie wybiera?

Author(s): Wojciech Żełaniec / Language(s): Polish / Issue: 3/2017

Keywords: G.E.M. Anscombe; will; weak-willed (akratēs); strong-willed (enkratēs); choice

G.E.M. Anscombe put her finger on an inconsistency in Aristotle’s Nicomachean ethics: Aristotle seems to claim that whatever results from deliberation is the object of choice, and he admits that the akratēs deliberates at times quite successfully, yet he denies that the akratēs makes a choice. She provides a solution: A choice (she thinks Aristotle should have said) is not just whatever results from deliberation but only if the goal at which the deliberation aims was itself chosen, which she interprets as constituting object of the agent’s will (βούλησις [boulēsis]). I examine this Anscombian solution, point out its diverse shortcomings (infinite regress, the inscrutability of the lineage of choices, the unachievability of the primordial goal) and yet I attempt to improve upon it. To this aim I put up for consideration whether such (post-)primordial choices as Anscombe seems to require are not, after all, sometimes made, viz. in the light of one’s idea of living well, and if they are not at least in principle translatable into goals that we can reasonably hope to achieve.

New manuscript witnesses of S. Adalberti vita altera in the Benedictine abbey of Rajhrad in Moravia

Nowe świadectwa rękopiśmienne Żywota drugiego św. Wojciecha w benedyktyńskim klasztorze w Rajhradzie na Morawach

Author(s): Miłosz Sosnowski / Language(s): Polish / Issue: 55/2017

Keywords: Bruno of Querfurt; Adalbert of Prague; Rajhrad (Moravian abbey); textual criticism

The Second Life of St. Adalbert of Prague by Bruno of Querfurt (BHL 38–39) survives in small number of copies, so every new witness is potentially important for reconstructing the text closest to the original. The article discusses two such previously unused manuscript witnesses; both are abridged versions for liturgical use, currently in the Benedictine monastery in Rayhrad (Moravia). The first one contains the introducing parts of the text (in its shorter redaction) as a part of a 1342 breviary (no. R 394), which is of interest also due to it containing a historiated initial with the oldest depiction of St. Adalbert in the cephalophore type. Due to the method of abridging – selected fragments copied in extenso – this manuscript is useful both for constructing the archetype and the history of the text in Czech milieu. The second witness is contained in a 1613 antiphonary (no. R 30). This text appears to be a selective manuscript copy from 1590 print by Frans Verhaer (Franciscus Haereus), which in turn is an abridged and stylistically modified version of the longer redaction printed earlier by Larentius Surius from a currently lost manuscript.After presenting the manuscripts themselves, the article discusses the corpus of readings, analysing the similarities and differences with previously known witnesses. The author also focuses on re-evaluating the readings of a previously known Rayhrad witness, a twelfth–thirteenth-century lectionary (no. 376).An appendix presents the corpus of Moravian readings against the background of the rest of the manuscript tradition.

Palingenius, The Zodiac of Life, Book III, The Twins

Palingeniusz, „Zodiak życia”, ks. III: „Bliźnięta”

Author(s): Ewelina Drzewiecka / Language(s): Polish / Issue: 1/2018

Keywords: Zodiacus vitae; Palingenius; Epicureism; Renaissance literature; Humanism; Voluptas.

The paper presents a new Polish translation of the third book of Zodiacus vitae (1536) by Marcello PalingenioStellato (Palingenius) with a short introduction and commentary.

Humanist Sources of Christian Francken’s Thought

Fonti umanistiche nel pensiero di Christian Francken

Author(s): Mario Biagioni / Language(s): Italian / Issue: 1/2017

Keywords: Radical Reformation; skepticism; Sextus Empiricus; Pomponazzi; Francken; unbelief

The radical reformer Christian Francken (1552–1610?) was deeply influenced by Pietro Pomponazzi and, later, by Sextus Empiricus. Much less important was the influence of Neoplatonism. Pomponazzi’s works were the main sources in his early theological and philosophical writings from the Breve colloquium Iesuiticum (1579) to the Praecipuarum enumeratio causarum (1584). The influence of Sextus Empiricus became crucial from around 1587, when Francken began writing the Disputatio de incertitudine religionis Christianae, where he exhibited a sharp skeptical attitude that led him not far from unbelief.

Unknown clergy library from the end of the 17th century

Ismeretlen lelkészi könyvtár a 17. század végéről

Author(s): Sándor Előd Ősz / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 6/2011

Keywords: library of church ministers;17th century;Pataki István (1650-1705);peregrination;

Es lohnt sich uns István Patakis (1650 – 1705?) Namen zu merken. Er war Pfarrer der refor-mierten Kirche in Siebenbürgen. In Klausenburg geboren, studierte er in seiner Heimatstadt. Danach peregrinierte er nach Utrecht und Marburg. Nach seiner Heimkehr diente er in fünf Kirchengemeinden: Radnót, Kolozs, Torockószentgyörgy und Görgényszentimre. Sein Tagebuch war teilweise erst 1887 von István Török veröffentlicht, aber aus dieser Publikation fehlen leider viele wichtige Informationen, wie z.B. ein Bücherverzeichnis seiner Bibliothek. Diese Quelle enthält 109 Bände, vorwiegend theologische Fachbücher: biblische Kommentare, hebräische und griechische Grammatiken, systematische Werke und kleinere polemische Traktate. Ausserdem gibt es dort einige Bücher geschichtlicher Fachliteratur, aber es fehlen naturwissenschaftliche und philosophische Werke. Die Bibliothek diente der Vorbereitung beim alltäglichen Dienst eines Gemeindepfarrers.

Oration on the Dignity of Man by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola

Giovanni Pico della Mirandola: Beszéd az ember méltóságáról

Author(s): Monika Frazer-Imregh / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 1/2010

Keywords: Quattrocento; Giovanni Pico della Mirandola; Oratio; humanism and renaissance

Essendo l’ oratio di Giovanni Pico della Mirandola il discorso preliminare alla sua disputa romana mancata può presentarci prima di tutto quali erano i suoi scopi con essa. L’ oratio si divide in due parti; nella prima parte dopo quasi cento anni di lotta fra albertisti, tomisti, scotisti, ockhamisti, averroisti ed umanisti, Pico cercando la pace prova a dimostrare due cose. Per primo: la dignità dell’uomo che propongono gli umanisti sta nella sua posizione centrale e nella sua natura indeterminata, in cui si trovano tutte le possibilità del mondo creato – è lui o lei a fare decisione cosa diventare, ed il mezzo a questo è il suo libero arbitrio. Per secondo: la possibilità più alta è elevarsi ed unificarsi con Dio tramite l’amore. Per arrivarci dobbiamo seguire la strada spirituale seguita dai saggi di tutte le culture: 1. purificandoci; 2. illuminandoci; 3. perfezionandoci. Ci aiuta in questo 1. la filosofia morale; 2. la dialettica e la filosofia naturale; 3. la teologia. La seconda parte risponde agli attacchi sferrati contro Pico. Attraverso le sue risposte riceviamo un quadro sulla struttura e sugli scopi delle 900 Tesi, e ci troviamo la sua ars poetica della filosofia: cioè tutte le filosofie sorgono dalla stessa fonte divina e portano allo stesso fine – a Dio. Da questo fatto dobbiamo capire che sostanzialmente sono tutte concordi.

Conference Report: Biblical Studies in Poland in the Context of Current Tendencies.SBL Meeting, Berlin, 7-11 of August, 2017

Conference Report: Biblical Studies in Poland in the Context of Current Tendencies.SBL Meeting, Berlin, 7-11 of August, 2017

Author(s): Mirosław S. Wróbel / Language(s): English / Issue: 66/4/2019

Keywords: Conference Report;

During International Meeting of Society of Biblical Literature in Berlin on 7-11 of August 2017, Polish scholars from different biblical centers present-ed the theme: “Biblical Studies in Poland in the Context of Current Tendencies”. It was the first so large presentation of Polish biblical studies organized outside of Poland after the World War II. Prof. Waldemar Chrostowski spoke about developments and perspectives of Polish Biblical Scholarship. He emphasized the meaning of the creation of the Association of Polish Biblical Scholars in the year 2003. It is the most important forum of meetings, scholarly presentations and discussions. As to the perspec-tives, some aspects should be noted, all of them connected with the up-to-day scholarly researches done especially at the theological faculties in the country. The list of most important topics, taken and developed currently, and, possibly also in the near future, follows: biblical hermeneutics; the diaspora of Israelites in Mesopotamia (VIII-VI B.C.E.) and its impact on the history and religion of ancient Israel; the prophetic literature; the Septuagint as the Bible of Biblical Judaism and the Church; the Aramaic Bible; Biblical Judaism – Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism; the studies of Gospel, focused especially on historical Jesus; studies of St. Paul. Prof. Mariusz Rosik spoke about new translations and commentaries of the Bible. He noted that after Vatican II several translations of the Bible emerged in Poland. Each of them is characterized by its specificity, which reflects the assumptions used by the translators. In recent decades, also several biblical com-mentaries in Polish were published. Some of them are strictly scientific, while others may be classified as pastoral aids. Polish translations of the Bible as well as well as polish biblical commentaries were shortly presented in the paper.Prof. Grzegorz Szamocki in his paper reviewed the works of Polish schol-ars related to the Old Testament, especially Pentateuch, Prophets and Wisdom Literature. The results of the studies are discussed in the annual conferences, organized by the Association of Polish Biblical Scholars, and published in the open-access journals. The presentation of Prof. Artur Malina focused on researches undertaken re-cently by Polish biblical scholars which can make an impact on New Testament The Biblical Annals772The Biblical Annals 9/4 (2019)studies. Their results were discussed in the annual conferences, organized by the Association of Polish Biblical Scholars as well as the Institutes of Biblical Sciences of the Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw and the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, and published in the open-access journals. Among them there are some research projects rated excellent and innovative by the international experts of the National Science Centre in Poland.Prof. Mirosław S. Wróbel presented in his paper the findings of a new project started in Poland in 2014: Multivolume seriesBiblia Aramejska[Aramaic Bible]which include, Targums to the Pentateuch (Targum Neofiti 1, Targum Pseudo-Jon-athan, Targum Onkelos), Targums to the Prophets and Targums to the Writings, all translated into the Polish language. The first two volumes: Targum Neofiti 1 to Genesis and to Exodus were published in Poland and constitute the model for the whole project. Prof. Wróbel also outlined his recent work, i.e. Wprowadzenie do Biblii Aramejskiej [Introduction to the Aramaic Bible] which, being a volume 0, serves as the explanation and introduction to the targumic literature. Prof. Krzysztof Mielcarek in his paper noted that despite the fact that the Polish biblical institutes cannot claim as vast an involvement in the studies of Septuagint as some West European centres, in the last few decades quite a few scholars at different Polish theological faculties issued some interesting mono-graphs and articles concerning this very biblical field. Moreover, just four years ago (in 2013) the first Polish translation of the LXX came into being (prepared by R. Popowski) and in 2017 a special interuniversity project has been established at the Card. Wyszyński University in Warsaw (UKSW) to study Codex Alexandri-nus accompanied by the biannual journal named Studia Biblica Graeca

PORTRAIT STELAE FROM THE AREA OF TODAY’S HERZEGOVINA – SOCIAL CONTEXT

Portretne stele na prostoru današnje Hercegovine - društveni kontekst

Author(s): Almir Marić / Language(s): Bosnian / Issue: 18/2019

Keywords: Herzegovina; Konjic, Ljubuški; portrait stelae; social structures;

The theme of this paper is an analysis of Roman funerary monuments from today’s Herzegovina containing a portrait of the deceased. In the introductory part, we thematized Roman funerary monuments as a medium for presenting social structures. Unlike most papers that approached monuments with portraits from the perspective of analyzing structure and iconography, we decided to analyze in this paper the social context to which the deceased belonged. Most of these monuments were found in the wider area of presentday Ljubuški and Konjic. Monuments with portraits from the Ljubuški area are associated with members of Roman auxiliary cohorts stationed at the Humac camp in the 1st century and veterans of the VII Legion who received land from Emperor Tiberius. The inscriptions from the portrait stelae from the Konjic area do not reveal which social structure the commemorated belonged to. Therefore, the paper focuses on the analysis of family relationships on the basis of monuments which depicts several family members, as well as their clothes, which is an excellent example of preserving domestic traditions.

“God Made Him Who Had No Sin to Be Sin for Us” (2 Cor 5:21a): Understanding of Paul’s Statement in the History of Exegesis

„On to dla nas grzechem uczynił tego, który nie znał grzechu” (2 Kor 5,21a): Rozumienie Pawłowej wypowiedzi w historii egzegezy

Author(s): Tomasz Siemieniec / Language(s): Polish / Issue: 7/2020

Keywords: 2nd Epistle to the Corinthians; Sin; Soteriology; Death of Jesus; History of exegesis

The article aims to answer the question of how in the history of exegesis the statement of the Apostle Paul from 2 Cor 5:21a (“God made Christ a sin”) was interpreted. The article consists of several parts examining the issue chronologically. At the beginning the interpretation of 2 Cor. 5:21a by theologians of the Patristic era (esp. Origen, Cyril of Alexandria, Gregory of Nazianzus; Gregory of Nyssa, John Chrysostom, and Augustine of Hippo) was presented. Then, the interpretation by medieval theologians (esp. Anselm of Canterbury) was discussed. In the third stage the understanding of 2 Cor 5:21a by Martin Luther, Jan Calvin, and other theologians of the Reformation era has been examined. The last step is the presentation of the interpretation of 2 Cor 5:21a during the modern era. It has been noticed that contemporary exegetes refer to the results of the theologians who lived before. In the interpretation of 2 Cor 5:21a, the three most important tendencies can be distinguished. First of them sees here a reference to the incarnation of the Son of God, the second one—a reference to His death understood as a sacrifice for sin, and the third trend understands making Jesus sin in relation to the reality of sin that Jesus Christ faced.

Existence as a Force in the Thought of Spinoza and Leibniz

A létezés mint erő Spinoza és Leibniz filozófiájában

Author(s): Dániel Schmal / Language(s): Hungarian / Issue: 2/2020

Keywords: Spinoza; Leibniz; Duns Scotus; conatus; force; metaphysics of being; late scholasticism

The purpose of this paper is to show that conatus is not just one of the many philosophical terms discussed at the beginning of the modern era: it is not intended to highlight one of the many attributes inherent in natural objects, but concerns the most fundamental meaning of being. In addressing this phenomenon, Spinoza and Leibniz propose new definitions of the notion of being in terms of inner dynamism. According to this approach, whatever exists, realizes its own possibilities, counteracting all alternative pretensions to existence. I maintain that this thesis represents a real turning point in the history of modern metaphysics. It can best be understood against the backdrop of at least three different historical and intellectual contexts. The first one is centered upon the problem of dynamism discussed in the physical sciences of nature. The second context is that of the Platonic tradition which occupies an important place in the thought of Leibniz. The third has to do with how the traditional metaphysics was transformed by Duns Scotus and his followers during baroque scolasticism. It will be argued that the first two perspectives, well known to early modern scholars, fail to make sense of Spinoza’s and Leibniz’s attempts to reformulate the notion of the being in terms of force and effort (conatus).

ARBITER OF THE ROMAN ARBITRATION PROCEDURE

ARBITER OF THE ROMAN ARBITRATION PROCEDURE

Author(s): Ivan Milotić / Language(s): English / Issue: 2/2020

Keywords: Arbiter; iudex; Roman law; arbitration; court procedure; terminology; Middle Ages

Unclear distinctions between arbiter and iudex and thereby the difficulties and inconsistencies of understanding accurately the legal nature of arbiter in Roman law were primarily conditioned by the vague differentiation between arbitration and court procedure per formulas. The legal sources indicate that the precise meaning of an arbiter could be reached only from case to case analysis because it seems that this term and institute signified only a basic concept or an idea, or even a common denominator of a wide spectrum of decision makers that dealt with disputes differently than the iudex in court procedure. In different localities, disputes, among different disputants and on the grounds of different arbitration arrangement an arbiter receive substantially diverse meanings, roles and functions. Moreover, at least sometimes even the Romans themselves might use the terms iudex and arbiter indiscriminately. The problem did not go unnoticed by the scholars who study Roman law and was to some extent elaborated and clarified which provides better understanding of this specific procedural phenomena, but still requires the ongoing work and analyses of the legal sources. Although the Romans used the term arbiter to denote more a universal concept than a complex role and function of an individual decision maker in an actual case, the term and the specific language referring to him, as well as the differentiation between more types of arbitri, survived in late antiquity and were transferred to the Middle Ages and the procedural treaties of the time.

Thomas Aquinas and the Spectre of Hidden Nominalism

Tomasz z Akwinu i widmo ukrytego nominalizmu

Author(s): Michał Głowala / Language(s): Polish / Issue: 3/2022

Keywords: universals; hidden nominalism; Thomas Aquinas; Avicenna; triplex status naturae

In the paper, I discuss the interpretation of the Thomistic theory of universals put forward in Paweł Rojek’s book Tropy i uniwersalia. Badania ontologiczne [Tropes and Universals: Ontological Investigations] in the context of the issue of hidden nominalism. My aims are threefold. (i) I suggest a more precise definition of a universal that enables a defence of basic claims by Rojek concerning hidden nominalism; (ii) I show that the interpretation of Aquinas put forward by Rojek does in fact collapse into hidden nominalism; (iii) I offer another interpretation of the Thomistic theory of universals based on the theory of triplex status naturae that seems free from the trap of hidden nominalism.

Iustitia and Corruptio in Liber Constitutionum sive Lex Gundobada

Iustitia and Corruptio in Liber Constitutionum sive Lex Gundobada

Author(s): Dorothea Valentinova / Language(s): English / Issue: 12/2022

Keywords: Burgundians; Lex Gundobada; ius Romanum; iustitia; corruptio; legal reception; Romanitas; Barbaritas; leges Barbarorum

After 476, Flavius Gundobadus, King of the Burgundians (473–516), sought ways and means to consolidate and strengthen his power, including through legal regulation of the relations between the Burgundians themselves, on the one hand, and between the Burgundians and the Gallo-Romans, on the other. Thus, Liber Constitutionum sive Lex Gundobada was issued, the main purpose of which is the legal regulation of the complex relations in the kingdom, through a codification of the preserved customary law – an embodiment of tribal traditions, practices, and customs, with reasonable use of Roman legal ideas, notions, and norms. The translation and analysis of selected provisions from Lex Gundobada in this paper show the extent to which the Burgundians perceived, received, adopted, and adapted some of the most valuable Roman legal and moral rules and principles, especially the Roman concepts of iustitia and corruptio, and how the rights of both the Burgundians and the Romans were regulated and protected through them. Lex Burgundionum is part of a series of legal Barbarian codes, compiled, adapted, published, and applied in the Barbarian regna between the 5th and 9th centuries. These codes are one of the significant and true sources for the historical reconstruction of the socio-political, socio-cultural, and legal-administrative transition from the late Roman Empire to the German kingdoms and early medieval Europe. They manifest how historically the arena of clashes, confrontations, and wars between Romanitas and Barbaritas gradually became a contact zone of legal reception, of cultural, legal, and socio-political influences, from which a new world will be born, a successor to the old ones, and a new legal system – the Romano-Germanic one.

Predestination before and after the recognition of merit by selected proponents of the libertarian conception of liberty

Predestinace před a po poznání zásluh u vybraných zastánců libertariánského pojetí svobody

Author(s): Petr Dvořák / Language(s): Czech / Issue: 1/2023

Keywords: Jesuits;Dominicans;predestination;libertarianism;history of philosophy

The paper explains the nature of the dispute between the Dominican and Jesuit orders to the resolution of which Congregatio de auxiliis (1597-1607) was established. From the philosophical point of view, there is the prima facie incompatibility between the primary divine causation and free human decision-making. From the theological perspective, divine predestination and the workings of grace might clash with the libertarian notion of free human decision-making. We also focus on the key issue whether divine predestination occurs before the foreknowledge of merits (ante praevisa merita) or after their foreknowledge (post praevisa merita). We present various solutions to the issue arising among the Jesuits whose priority is precisely to salvage libertarian freedom in the solution to the theological problem (F. Toledo, L. Lessius, Gregory of Valencia, Luis de Molina, R. Bellarmine, F. Suárez). After that we introduce the ante praevisa merita conception of predestination in J. D. Scotus who is the main reference point for Baroque Scotists. Among the latter we introduce those who favor libertarian freedom and predestination post praevisa merita which is easier to square with the aforementioned kind of liberty (C. Frassen, J. Poncius). In passing, we also mention some Capuchin theologians who follow especially St. Bonaventure.