The possibilities of Incarnation: some radical Molinist suggestions
THOMAS P. FLINT a1 a1 Department of Philosophy, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556
Abstract
The traditional doctrine of the Incarnation maintains that God became
man. But was it necessary that God become the particular man He in fact became?
Could some man or woman other than the man born in Bethlehem roughly two
thousand years ago have been assumed by the Son to effect our salvation? This
essay addresses such questions from the perspective of one embracing Molina's
picture of divine providence. After showing how Molina thought his theory of
middle knowledge helps alleviate a traditional Christological puzzle, the essay turns
to the aforementioned questions concerning God's incarnational alternatives and
suggests some fairly radical answers. Finally, the essay presents two substantial
objections to these radical answers and argues that these objections fail.
