Ideas from 'Reportatio' by William of Ockham [1330], by Theme Structure

[found in 'Ockham's Philosophical Writings' by Ockham,William of (ed/tr Boehner,P) [Hackett 1990,0-87220-078-7]].

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28. God / A. Divine Nature / 3. Divine Perfections

9111	God is not wise, but more-than-wise; God is not good, but more-than-good

			Full Idea: God is not wise, but more-than-wise; God is not good, but more-than-good.
			From: William of Ockham (Reportatio [1330], III Q viii)
			A reaction: [He is quoting 'Damascene'] I quote this for interest, but I very much doubt whether Damascene or William knew what it meant, and I certainly don't. There seems to have been a politically correct desire to invent super-powers for God.

28. God / C. Attitudes to God / 4. God Reflects Humanity

9112	We could never form a concept of God's wisdom if we couldn't abstract it from creatures

			Full Idea: What we abstract is said to belong to perfection in so far as it can be predicated of God and can stand for Him. For if such a concept could not be abstracted from a creature, then in this life we could not arrive at a cognition of God's wisdom.
			From: William of Ockham (Reportatio [1330], III Q viii)
			A reaction: This seems to be the germ of an important argument. Without the ability to abstract from what is experienced, we would not be able to apply general concepts to things which are beyond experience. It is a key idea for empiricism.