2. BACKGROUND
-He was a Christian philosopher
-He was senator by the age of 25
-He was executed by King Theodoric The Great after being accused of
conspiring with another Empire after he has spent time in prison in
Pavia
- Boethius and his sons were both in consols
3. BOETHIUS
- Boethius said that God doesn’t experience the past, present and
future, everything is all at the same time this is because God exist out
of time.
- Boethius believed that God was eternal, and changeless.
- Boethius wrote the Consolation of Philosophy which is a story
(“Imaginary dialogue”)
4. DENIAL OF THE PLEASURES OF
THE FLESH
- This is the idea that noting materialistic brings happiness, this is because
anything that is a pursuit of the flesh , whether this is physical, or spiritual is only
aesthetic pleasure.
-Real happiness cannot be achieved though spiritual or physical means.
Nothing on earth is such as wealth and power cannot completely be
someone’s therefore happiness is unattainable in this world.
-CLASSICAL REFERENCES
The work from Plato is often quoted alongside others and he did so by
memory as he did not use his library. He was able to quote them without
doing so.
This also includes various pieces of poetry and literature, these provide a wide
range of allusions.
5. HONOR OF RUSTICIANA AND
SYMMACHUS
Boethius’s wife and father-in-law were paragons of virtue in his life. He
was an orphan and brought up within the Symmachus household then
married Rusticiana. He held the thought of their virtue during his time
in prison.
GOODNESS OF THE WORLD
The good things within the world are merely decorations on what is
the highest and greatest good (humans). Goods such as love are just
temporary and are unable to satisfy the eternal soul. Again,
everything is materialistic and we should not be upset if we lose it, as
materialistic things do not matter, you real values cannot be taken
away. z
6. EVIL HAS NO SUBSTANCE
Evil doesn’t participate in the pursuit of the supreme good. The wicked
pursue things that do not hold give them whey desire. Even if they do
have power of those who are virtuous, this power only extends to the
body or possessions of the person, not their minds or souls. Evil cannot
have the same goal, the ultimate goal.
God as the attainment of perfect happiness:
We all judge happiness, it is innate to us, it is not learnt on earth. There
is a being capable of perfect happiness, this is God. He is the perfect
happiness and is exists out of the world, out of time, he is eternal. The
focus is of happiness, the perfect happiness, God.
7. BOOK 5
Boethius answered the questions of chance, and whether we have free will
with the idea that God imposes order on things therefore there is no
opportunity for random events. This could suggest that we do not in fact
have Free Will, which is what Boethius asks. Philosophy raises the argument
that we must have free will in order for rational nature to exist. This allows us to
rationally choose, the more rational someone is, the more they choose virtue
and happiness in God and this means they are freer they are.
He argued that any event that seems to be a chance event actually has its
own set of causes that are hidden.
Just because God is aware of the choice that a free person is going to
choose, it doesn’t mean that he caused it, he was just aware of its
occurrence. He is aware of everyone’s actions that they decide to do with
their free will however does not intervene. He knows our actions as part of
him being all-knowing as he sees the past, present and future at the same
time. Eg seeing the opening scene, the film and the credits all at the same
time.
8. If God already knows the future and is aware of what is going to
happen, issues can arise with the idea of prayer. However Boethius
said that it was important as it is the pathway to virtue. God sees all so
it is important to gather as much virtue as possible.
