Aristotle's God: Emotional Or Unmoved?

Aristotle's concept of God is a complex and fascinating topic that has been the subject of much discussion and interpretation. In his philosophy, God serves two main roles: as the source of motion and change in the universe, and as the pinnacle of the Great Chain of Being, existing purely as form without any relation to matter. Aristotle's God, often referred to as the Unmoved Mover, is seen as the final cause of all motion in nature and the prime mover of the universe. This God is immaterial, unchanging, and eternally self-contemplating.

One of the key aspects of Aristotle's God is the absence of emotions. Unlike the personal and intervening God of Abrahamic religions, Aristotle's God is unmoved by anything else and is not attributed emotions such as mercy, love, sympathy, or providence. Instead, God is described as being in a state of absolute self-consciousness, contemplating only Himself as anything else would be unworthy of His attention. This view of God has been criticized as cold and inhuman, especially when compared to the loving and compassionate God of Christian, Jewish, and Islamic traditions.

However, it is important to note that Aristotle's concept of God is the result of his philosophical reasoning and his understanding of divine perfection. By carrying the idea of God's perfection to its logical conclusion, Aristotle arrives at a God who is remote from the world and devoid of emotions. This God, while not a God of providence or love in the traditional sense, still serves as the ultimate final cause on which the entire universe depends and aspires.

Aristotle's God is not a God of love

Aristotle's concept of God is that of an "unmoved mover". This God is not attributed qualities such as mercy, love, sympathy, or providence, but rather, eternal self-contemplation. Aristotle's God is immaterial, unchanging, and unaffected by anything else. This conception of God is, therefore, incompatible with the idea of a God of love.

Aristotle's God, as the unmoved mover, is a God that is unmoved by anything else. This means that it is not affected by anything else and does not have emotions. Aristotle describes this God as being "simple" (indivisible), unchangeable, and perfectly beautiful. This God endlessly contemplates itself as it is the only thing in the universe worthy of its attention.

The God described by Aristotle is very different from the God of Abrahamic religions, who is depicted as personal, intervening in human history, and revealing messages to prophets. The God of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism is a God of love, who cares for and feels emotions for humanity. This is in stark contrast to Aristotle's God, who is distant, dispassionate, and unmoved by emotion.

While medieval theologians, such as St. Thomas Aquinas, attempted to synthesize Aristotle's God with the Christian God, the two conceptions are fundamentally incompatible. Aristotle's God, as an unmoved mover, does not inspire or provide comfort, and it is difficult to reconcile the idea of a perfect and unchanging God with an imperfect and changing world.

In conclusion, Aristotle's concept of God is not a God of love. His God is a distant and dispassionate entity, unaffected by the world and unconcerned with human affairs. This view of God is at odds with the personal and loving God of Abrahamic religions.

God is an unmoved mover

Aristotle's concept of an "unmoved mover" is an influential idea in philosophy and theology. The unmoved mover is a being that causes motion in the universe without itself being moved by any prior action. Aristotle's writings on the unmoved mover are found in Book 12 of his Metaphysics, where he describes it as indivisible, perfectly beautiful, and engaged in self-contemplation.

The idea of the unmoved mover is rooted in Aristotle's understanding of motion and change. Aristotle argued that for there to be motion, there must be something to cause it—a "mover". He initially applied this idea to the various spheres of the heavens, positing multiple unmoved movers. However, he later concluded that there must be a single, solitary, ultimate cause behind all motion. This ultimate cause, or unmoved mover, is purely an abstraction and not a person. It is intellectual but not personal, in the sense that it does not interact with others.

Aristotle's concept of the unmoved mover is often contrasted with the God of the Bible. While there are similarities, there are also crucial differences. Aristotle's unmoved mover is not a personal, relatable being, and he did not attribute emotions such as mercy, love, or sympathy to it. Instead, he viewed the unmoved mover as a "thought, thinking about itself." This idea of self-contemplation is central to Aristotle's conception of the unmoved mover.

The unmoved mover, for Aristotle, is the final cause of all motion in the universe. It is immaterial, unchanging, and eternal. It is the source of motion and change, standing outside the Great Chain of Being yet influencing all development. While Aristotle did not explicitly identify the unmoved mover as a deity, later theologians, such as Thomas Aquinas, synthesized Aristotle's concept with the Christian God. Aquinas used the idea of the unmoved mover as part of his cosmological argument for the existence of God, one of his "five ways".

In conclusion, Aristotle's concept of the unmoved mover is a fundamental idea in his philosophy. It represents a purely intellectual, abstract being that causes motion without being moved itself. While it shares some similarities with the God of the Bible, there are also significant differences, particularly in terms of personality and emotion. The unmoved mover serves as the ultimate cause of motion and change in Aristotle's philosophical system.

God is a final cause

Aristotle's concept of God as the final cause is a complex and multifaceted idea that builds upon his teacher Plato's philosophy. In Aristotle's view, God serves two primary roles: as the source of motion and change in the universe, and as the pinnacle of the Great Chain of Being, existing purely as form without any relation to matter.

Aristotle's argument for the existence of God, presented in Books VII and VIII of the "Physics" and Book XII of the "Metaphysics", revolves around the concept of change or motion. He posits that there is an eternal circular motion, such as the movement of the sphere of fixed stars. This motion, according to Aristotle, must be caused by something else, leading to the conclusion that there is an unmoved mover, which he identifies as God.

In Aristotle's philosophy, God is the final cause, or the ultimate end, of all motion and development in the cosmos. As the unmoved mover, God is unchanging, indivisible, and purely immaterial. God's activity is one of pure thought, contemplating only Himself as anything else would be a degradation of His divinity. This concept of God as self-contemplation and absolute self-consciousness has been criticised as cold and distant, lacking the qualities typically associated with a divine being, such as love, mercy, and providence.

However, Aristotle's God is not entirely detached from the world. As the final cause, God is the principle upon which the universe depends and towards which it aspires. Nature, in Aristotle's view, seeks and desires the good, and God, as the ultimate final cause, embodies this principle.

Aristotle's concept of the four causes, including the final cause, is central to his scientific and philosophical enterprise. The four causes are:

• Material Cause: The aspect of a change determined by the material composition of the moving or changing thing.
• Formal Cause: The change caused by the arrangement, shape, or appearance of the thing changing or moving.
• Efficient Cause: Things external to the thing being changed or moved that interact to bring about the change or movement.
• Final Cause: The change or movement for the sake of a thing to be what it is.

These causes are not mutually exclusive, and Aristotle believed that several, preferably all four, were necessary to explain a phenomenon. For example, the final cause of a seed is the adult plant it will become, and this end determines the other causes, such as the material cause (the seed's nature) and the efficient cause (the growth process).

In conclusion, Aristotle's concept of God as the final cause is a complex idea that positions God as the ultimate end and source of motion in the universe. While God is unmoved and unchanging, the world aspires towards and depends upon this divine principle, which embodies the good.

God is an object of attraction or desire

Aristotle's concept of God is as an unmoved mover – a force that moves other things but is itself unmoved by anything else. Aristotle's God is the ultimate cause or "mover" of all motion in the universe, and is thus the crowning objective of all dynamic development in the cosmos.

Aristotle's God is not attributed human emotions such as mercy, love, sympathy, and providence. Instead, he is a force of eternal self-contemplation, with his own activity being that of a purely immaterial being, whose thought is its own object. Aristotle describes this as "thinking on thinking" or "noesis noeseos".

However, God is described as an object of attraction or desire. As the ultimate cause of motion, God is an efficient cause by being a final cause. This means that while God does not mechanically move the outer heaven, he moves it in a non-physical way by being something that is desired or attracted to.

This concept of God as an object of attraction or desire is further explored by Aquinas, who synthesises Aristotle's God with Christian theology. Aquinas argues that God, as a perfect being, can only think perfect thoughts. Therefore, God's thought must be directed towards himself as the only object worthy of his contemplation. This idea suggests that God does not contemplate the world, which is less than perfect.

Aquinas' interpretation of Aristotle's God as a remote, unmoved force has been criticised as cold and inhuman, especially when compared to the God of Christian, Jewish, and Islamic beliefs, who is often depicted as a personal, emotional being.

God is a being of pure thought

Aristotle's concept of God is as an "unmoved mover" – a being that affects other things but is unaffected by anything else. Aristotle's God is the ultimate cause or "mover" of all motion in the universe, and is thus the source of all movement and change.

Aristotle's God is a being of pure thought, or "absolute self-consciousness". As a perfect being, God can only think perfect thoughts, and thus, the only content of thought worthy of a perfect divinity is itself. This leads to the conclusion that God contemplates itself. Aristotle's God is also immaterial, unchanging, and indivisible.

While Aristotle's God is not attributed human emotions such as mercy, love, sympathy, and providence, later theologians like Aquinas synthesized Aristotle's God with the God of Christianity. Aquinas argued that, as a self-subsisting existence, God's intellect and will are the source of His properties, including life, omniscience, and love. Thus, although not explicitly stated by Aristotle, one could argue that God, as a being of pure thought, possesses a form of emotion.

However, it is important to note that Aristotle's concept of God is primarily philosophical and does not include the idea of God as an object of worship or prayer. The God of Aristotle is remote from the world and does not create it in the sense of a human maker producing a work of art. This view of God has been criticized as cold and inhuman, especially when compared to the personal and involved God of the Abrahamic religions.

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