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Writer's pictureDr. Dilday

De Moor IV:29: God Alone Omnipresent



No Creature is Omnipresent like God. That is, the Omnipresence or Immensity attributed to God includes actual Infinity with respect to Somewhere, so that God is Omnipresent because Immense and Infinite. But no species of whatever Infinity is able able to have its place in a finite essence, of which sort is everything that is distinct from and dependent upon God.


Still less any Body, just as nevertheless the Ubiquitarians maintain in asserting the Omnipresence of the Human Body of Christ, and the Papists, establishing a Possible Omnipresence even of a Corporeal Creature for the sake of Transubstantiation; concern which see Chapter XIX, § 25, 26, Chapter XXI, § 28, and Chapter XXXI, § 23: but with Descartes denying the limits of the corporeal extension of the Universe, Wittich also asserted that nothing prevents a produced Body from being able to be infinite; see WITSIUS, Twist des Heeren met zynen Wyngaard, chapter XXI, pages 275, 276.



But this is impossible, because a Body have parts set outside of parts, on account of the denial of Penetration of Dimensions, is not able to be whole everywhere in the place of individual parts, as it would be necessary for Omnipresence: just as God is said to be in the whole Universe, in such a way that His whole is equally in its individual parts of it, that is, in such a way with the Universe, divisible and having parts, He does indeed coexist by Omnipresence, but without having parts Himself and in an altogether indivisible manner.


Whence alien is the example of the Universe, which is opposed; since it is one by aggregation, and it is here with respect to one part, and elsewhere with respect to another: yet in its own sense the Universe is able to be said to be present Everywhere, namely, with respect to its diverse Parts, by which it occupies every space in fact filled with a Body: but the Universe does not at all fill all possible Space, which belongs properly to Immensity.


It is also to be conceded, 1. that God is able by His own Power to create a most subtle Body, which would not penetrate, but rather permeate, all things; compare MARESIUS’ Systema Theologicum, common place V, § 12, page 193, note c. 2. That a Spirit is able to be produced by the absolute Power of God, which might be present to all created Space: which nevertheless would be finite, because all created Space always remains finite.



And so it remains, what HERMAS advises in Shepherd of Hermas, book II, mandate I, “First of all, believe that there is one God, who created and brought to completion all things, and made all things from nothing. He, being large enough for all, is alone Immense.”

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