Deism presents the Christian with two distinct but related problems: firstly, it appears to argue that God and creatures are in a zero-sum relationship, so that if science explains why certain events occur, then God cannot, thereby removing all divine providence in the world; and secondly, by so removing providence, it makes the incarnation difficult if not impossible.
Drawing on Thomas Aquinas’ doctrine of creation, David O. Brown shows that if creation is understood as a relationship of dependence that creatures have with God, rather than an event that happens at the beginning of time, then providence is reframed as the fulfilment of an ontological relationship rather than the guiding of history towards a specific future end.
If creation is understood as a relationship of ontological dependence, then the incarnation is that relationship, not something God does subsequent to creating. Jesus Christ is that through which all things are created, because the ontological relationship that constitutes the doctrine of creation is the hypostatic union. The incarnation becomes the single divine activity of the deist, and a genuine Christian incarnational deism is possible.
This book offers a novel application of Thomas Aquinas’ doctrine of creation and interpretation of the biblical doctrine of Christ as creator, providing the tools to defend a genuine Christian deism.
David O. Brown’s research focuses on the relationship between science and religion as well as the role of participation, divine activity, and kenosis in Christian theology. He is the author of several essays and books, including Incarnation and Neo-Darwinism, also published by Sacristy Press.
