Uz metafizičko načelo uzročnosti - Tomino učenje o Božjem stvaranju bića kao učinku najuniverzalnijeg uzroka

Antonio Poljak -  Pregledni rad

With the Metaphysical Principle of Causality. God’s Creation of Being as the Effect of the Most Universal Cause

Sažetak
Ovaj tekst razmatra osnovni aspekt metafizičkog načela uzročnosti, a to je aspekt Božjeg uzrokovanja bitka bića. Zadanom razinom razmatranja metafizičkog načela uzročnosti naglašava se jedinstven pojam, a to je »participacija«. Pojam participacije izlaže sveti Toma Akvinski te njime izražava »višedimenzionalan « odnos Boga kao uzroka prema biću kao njegovu učinku. Učenje o participaciji ističe misao o Bogu kao najuniverzalnijem uzroku zato što je on jedini i prvi princip bitka. On je Stvoritelj, a sve biće jest stvorenje. Bog je sâm subzistirajući bitak po čijoj prvotnoj i čistoj zbiljnosti biće sudjeluje u bitku te na taj način bivstvuje. Stupanj sudjelovanja bića u bitku određen je specifičnom biti bića. Tomino učenje o Bogu kao o svršnom, uzorskom, tvornom i djelatnom uzroku implicira proizvodnju bitka bića, podjelu bitka u rodove i vrste bića, trajno održavanje u bitku te usmjerenost bića posljednjoj svrsi koja je Bog. Osim toga, uzročni odnos Boga i bića uključuje prisutnost božanskog bitka u bićima, ali i prisutnost ideja o bićima u beskonačnom božanskom umu. Već se time dijelom teksta podsjeća na često zanemarivanu platonističku pozadinu Tomina učenja o participaciji. Svojim sadržajem Tomina formulacija načela uzročnosti nadilazi formulacije ovoga načela nastale na temelju činjenice promjenjiva bića. Središnji pojam Tomine metafizike jest bitak. Iz pojma bitka postao je očigledan odgovor na trajno filozofsko pitanje: »Što je to biće?« Biće je stvorenje jer je ono učinak najuniverzalnijeg uzroka – Boga Stvoritelja.

Abstract
This article examines the fundamental aspect of the metaphysical Principle of causality – the aspect of God causing the being’s Being. By using the assigned level of examination of the metaphysical principle of causality, one emphasizes a unique concept – the concept called »participation«. The concept of participation, as a teaching, was presented by St. Thomas Aquinas, who had expressed a multidimensional relationship aspect of God. God represented the cause, which he directed towards the being, which was represented as the cause’s effect. Thomas teaches that God is the most universal cause because he is the only Creator, and all else except him, are the creation. God alone is the subsisting Being, »his own Being« by whose primary and pure act is for all beings to take part within the Being, which causes them to exist. God’s Being is the foundation for the activity of »the secondary causes«. This degree of participation within the Being, however, is determined by the limiting factor of the Being’s level of presence existing within the created being. This factor is the specific essence of the being. Consequently, this level of presence defines the ontological rank of the perfection of the being. The ontological differentiation of the essence and the Being both existing within the being implies the indifference of the being towards the Being, or non-being. It follows, therefore, that all of a being which is not »its own Being«, simply partakes within the Being. This means it inevitably is caused to exist. Thomas› teaching about God as the final, exemplar, acting and his efficient cause of being implies several points: the production of the being’s Being, the diversification of the Being into genera and species of beings, the permanent sustenance of the being in the Being, and finally the direction of the being towards its final purpose, which is God. Furthermore, the causal relationship between God and the being, titled by the concept of participation, not only marks the presence of God existing within the beings by his divine Being and essence, but also marks the presence of ideas about the beings, i.e. God’s creative thoughts from his infinite mind defining the cause of the being as a whole. The central concept of Thomas’ metaphysics, however, is still the Being by which God (who had revealed himself unto people) is named. From this, Thomas’ own answer to the old, present and permanent question of philosophy – what is a being? – became evident: A being is God’s creation because it is the effect of the most universal cause. With its content, Thomas’ formulation of metaphysical causality principle overcomes all other formulations of causality principle that were based on the fact of motion. The analysis of the teaching of participation also seeks to emphasize that, apart from Aristotle’s teaching, at least the equally fundamental moments of learning, takes from Plato’s tradition. The foundation and core of the teaching of participation, however, represents the divine Revelation that unites the elements of both metaphysics, combining them into a unified philosophical thought.