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The Importance of Time pp 187–197Cite as

Presentness, Dates and Eternity

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Part of the book series: Philosophical Studies Series ((PSSP,volume 87))

Abstract

Craig takes up an argument from my treatment of some claims of Augustine. Cleaned up a bit, it runs thus:

  1. (1)

    existence = presentness.

  2. (2)

    a timeless being exists.

So,

  1. (3)

    a timeless being is present.

  2. (4)

    no part of a timeless being’s life has, had or will have a past or a future.

  3. (5)

    any being no part of whose life has, had or will have a past or a future is more fully present than any being some part of whose life has, had or will have a past or future.

  4. (6)

    Some part of any temporal being’s life has, had or will have a past or a future.

So,

  1. (7)

    any timeless being is more fully present than any temporal being.

So,

  1. (8)

    any timeless being exists more fully than any temporal being does (from 1, 7).

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References

  • Craig, W. (1994), “The Finitude of the Past and the Existence of God,” in William Craig and Quentin Smith Theism, Atheism and Big Bang Cosmology ( New York: Oxford University Press ): 29–30.

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  • Leftow, B. (1991), “Timelessness and Foreknowledge,” Philosophical Studies 63: 309–325.

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  • Leftow, B. (forthcoming), “Eternity and Immutability,” in Willliam Mann (ed.), The

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  • Blackwell Companion to Philosophy of Religion (Oxford: Basil Blackwell).

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  • Lucas, J. R. (1989), The Future ( Oxford: Basil Blackwell).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fordham University, USA

    Brian Leftow

Authors
  1. Brian Leftow
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The University of Michigan-Flint, Flint, Michigan, USA

    L. Nathan Oaklander

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© 2001 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Leftow, B. (2001). Presentness, Dates and Eternity. In: Oaklander, L.N. (eds) The Importance of Time. Philosophical Studies Series, vol 87. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3362-5_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3362-5_16

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-5841-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-017-3362-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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