The Catholic World, Vol. 22, October, 1875, to March, 1876: A Monthly Magazine of General Literature and ScienceVarious
Religion
The Catholic World, Vol. 22, October, 1875, to March, 1876: A Monthly Magazine of General Literature and Science
Various
Catholic Church -- Periodicals
Again: As there is no movement in space without immovable space, so there
is no flowing in duration without standing duration. For as a thing
cannot change its ubication in space unless there be a field for real
ubications between the initial and the final term of the movement, so a
thing cannot change its mode of being (the _when_) in duration, unless
there be a field for real modes of being between the initial and the
final term of its duration. Now, this real field, owing to the fact that
it is, in both cases, prerequired for the possibility of the respective
changes, is something necessarily anterior to, and independent of, any of
such changes. Therefore, as the field of all local movements is anterior
to all movements and excludes movement from itself, so also the field of
all successive durations is anterior to all successivity and therefore
excludes succession.
Although these two arguments suffice to establish our conclusion, what we
have to say concerning the next question will furnish additional evidence
in its support.
_Second question._--“Is standing duration an objective reality or a mere
abstract conception?” We answer that standing duration is an objective
reality as much as absolute space. For, as movement cannot extend in
space, if space is nothing real, so movement cannot extend in duration,
if the field of its extension is nothing real. But we have just seen that
the field through which the duration of movement extends is standing
duration. Therefore standing duration is an objective reality.
Secondly, a mere nothing, or a mere fiction, cannot be the foundation of
real relations. But standing duration is the foundation of all intervals
of real succession, which are real relations. Therefore standing duration
is not a fiction, but an objective reality. The major of this argument
is well known. The minor is proved thus: In all real relations the terms
must communicate with each other through one and the same reality; and
therefore the foundation of a real relation must reach by one and the
same reality the terms related. But the terms of successive duration
are _before_ and _after_. Therefore the foundation of their relation
must reach both _before_ and _after_ with one and the same reality,
and therefore it has neither _before_ nor _after_ in itself. Had it
_before_ and _after_ in itself, its _after_ would not be its _before_;
and thus the reality by which it would reach the terms of succession
would not be the same. It is therefore manifest that the foundation of
all real intervals of succession is a reality whose duration ranges above
succession.
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