Philosophy
Peter often condemned philosophy. He claimed that the first grammarian was the Devil, who taught Adam to decline deus in the plural. He argued that monks should not have to study philosophy, because Jesus did not choose philosophers as disciples, and so philosophy is not necessary for salvation. But the idea (later attributed to Thomas Aquinas) that philosophy should serve theology as a servant serves her mistress originated with him. However, this apparent animosity may reflect his view that logic is only concerned with the validity of argument, rather than the nature of reality. Similar views are found in Al-Ghazali and Wittgenstein.
The most well-known view defended by Peter is that God can bring it about that a past event did not exist. This is apparently a contradiction. If it had been the case that p five minutes ago, and now God brings it about that it never was p, this implies both p has been the case, and never has been. However, it may be that Peter thought God can act outside time, as Gregory of Rimini later argued.
Read more about this topic: Peter Damian
Famous quotes containing the word philosophy:
“The fact is, mental philosophy is very like Poverty, which, you know, begins at home; and indeed, when it goes abroad, it is poverty itself.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
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—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)