The Views of Aristotle’s Idea of the Prime Mover Vs. the Judaeo Christian's Idea of God

The Views of Aristotle’s Idea of the Prime Mover Vs. the Judaeo Christian's Idea of God

The traditional theist Judaeo Christian belief of God is in many ways

very similar to Aristotle’s ideas and explanations of the Prime Mover.

However, although very similar in many situations, the beliefs about

God and the Prime Mover can also be very different and varied. Yet,

both ideologies of theists God and Aristotle’s Prime Mover follow the

same foundations - they are both eternal and responsible for change in

the world.

In Aristotle’s view, the Prime Mover is the common source of all

substance; it is the cause or purpose of change, but it itself remains

unchanged. Aristotle’s argument was that, because everything physical

was subject to change, there must be an immaterial, immutable mover,

causing movement without being changed itself during the process. This

is the Prime Mover. In a similar was, Judaeo Christians believe that

God is invariable and eternal. These traditional theists think God is

the creator of the world, and creates ex-nihilo, but is unaffected by

these creations. He is purely a sustainer of the world and all things.

By stating this, Judaeo Christians are saying that it is logically

impossible for the creatures to be or become the creator - God. They

believe that God is transcendent, and is completely distinct from all

people and creatures in everyway.

Resembling this idea is Aristotle’s belief that the Prime Mover is

totally set apart from creatures or any substance with physical matter

subject to change. This is because, although the Prime Mover is the

purpose and cause of all processes of change; like God in theist

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...thing else for his existence.

Even though Aristotle’s and Judaeo Christian beliefs vary about the

necessity of the world, the idea that God is eternal is equal to

Aristotle’s teachings of the eternal Prime Mover. Because the Prime

Mover is eternal, like God, it must be very good as there can be no

defects in anything that exists eternally and necessarily. God is

eternal so he is said to be complete perfection. He is also said to be

omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent. This suggests that he is not

limited by space or time. Similarly, the Prime Mover is not limited by

space or time either, as it is immaterial and unaltered by things with

the potential to change. Like God’s total knowledge, the Prime Mover

knows itself, and therefore knows all things, as the Prime Mover is

The Final Cause, and nothing pre-existed it.