Patrick Grim has put forward a set theoretical argument purporting to prove that omniscience is an inconsistent concept and a model theoretical argument for the claim that we cannot even consistently define omniscience. The former relies on the fact that the class of all truths seems to be an inconsistent multiplicity (or a proper class, a class that is not a set); the latter is based on the difficulty of quantifying over classes that are not sets. We first address the (...) set theoretical argument and make explicit some ways in which it depends on mathematical Platonism. Then we sketch a non Platonistic account of inconsistent multiplicities, based on the notion of indefinite extensibility, and show how Grim’s set theoretical argument could fail to be conclusive in such a context. Finally, we confront Grim’s model theoretical argument suggesting a way to define a being as omniscient without quantifying over any inconsistent multiplicity. (shrink)

John Abbruzzese has recently attempted a defense of omniscience against a series of my attacks. This affords me a welcome occasion to clarify some of the arguments, to pursue some neglected subtleties, and to re-think some important complications. In the end, however, I must insist that at least three of four crucial arguments really do show an omniscient being to be impossible. Abbruzzese sometimes misunderstands the forms of the argument themselves, and quite generally misunderstands their force.

استدلال کانتوری گریم از جمله براهینی است که در مباحث فلسفی اخیر ناسازگاری مفهوم علم مطلق را مورد هدف قرار داده است. گریم با استناد به اصل ریاضی کانتور و بر مبنای تعریف پذیرفته‌شدۀ علم مطلق، یعنی علم به تمامی گزاره­های صادق، وجود عالم مطلق را به دلیل عدم امکان وجود متعلق علم او، یعنی «مجموعه گزاره­های صادق»، انکار می­نماید. در این زمینه پاسخ­های متعددی در دفاع از علم مطلق الهی از سوی متفکران مسیحی معاصر ارائه شده که یکی از (...) مهم­ترین آنها خودمتناقض دانستن این استدلال است که پلانتینگا آن را مطرح کرده است. سنت فلسفه اسلامی از جهت تبیین ماهیت علم مطلق با سنت الهیات مسیحی تفاوت مبنایی دارد. اما با توجه به ظرفیت حکمت متعالیه صدرایی، با استناد به مباحثی چون تعریف و ماهیت مجموع و همچنین شرایط تسلسل محال، می‌توان علاوه بر ابطال فرض استدلال گریم مبنی بر وجود حقایق بیشتری از مجموعه تمام حقایق، امکان علم عالم مطلق به سلسله نامتناهی از مجموعه حقایق را اثبات نمود. (shrink)

Current evolutionary and cognitive theories of religion posit that supernatural agent concepts emerge from cognitive systems such as theory of mind and social cognition. Some argue that these concepts evolved to maintain social order by minimizing antisocial behavior. If these theories are correct, then people should process information about supernatural agents’ socially strategic knowledge more quickly than non-strategic knowledge. Furthermore, agents’ knowledge of immoral and uncooperative social behaviors should be especially accessible to people. To examine these hypotheses, we measured response-times (...) to questions about the knowledge attributed to four different agents—God, Santa Claus, a fictional surveillance government, and omniscient but non-interfering aliens—that vary in their omniscience, moral concern, ability to punish, and how supernatural they are. As anticipated, participants respond more quickly to questions about agents’ socially strategic knowledge than non-strategic knowledge, but only when agents are able to punish. (shrink)