The Concept of Existing at a Time and the Concept of Coexisting with a Time in Monologion by Anselm of Canterbury

Abstract

Anselm of Canterbury’s method to avoid antinomies in theology is presented and analyzed. In Monologion Anselm argues in favour of God’s existing at every time and every place on one side, and in favour of God’s existing at no time and no place on the other side. But this constitutes an antinomy, because e.g. for any time  God’s existing at the time  and God’s not existing at the time  are equally provable. Anselm claims ambivalence of terms of natural languages to be responsible for the antinomy. Anselm’s solution is to introduce to theological discourse two artifical terms: „existing at a time” and „coexisting with a time”. Those terms are provided with precise meaning, which constitutes deductional relationship between them. For any  and  if  is existing at a time then  is coexisting with the time  The converse is, however, not valid. This Allows Anselm to avoid the antinomy. The anticipation of Duns Scotus’ theory of univocity and some contemporary ideas of non-classical logics is also discussed.