Which theological perspective asserts that God cannot act against His own nature?

Prepare for the OCR A-Level Philosophy Exam with interactive quizzes, flashcards, and insightful explanations. Ace your exam with confidence!

The perspective that God cannot act against His own nature is articulated in Aquinas' theology. Thomas Aquinas, a prominent medieval philosopher and theologian, emphasized the idea that God is a being of perfect goodness and rationality. According to his view, God's actions are consistent with His essence; therefore, He cannot act contrary to His own nature.

Aquinas argued that God's nature is defined by essential attributes such as omnipotence, omniscience, and perfect goodness. As a result, any action taken by God must align with these attributes, meaning He would not do anything that contradicts the goodness inherent in His nature. This coherence preserves God's integrity and rationality, presenting a view where divine capability is within the bounds of His essentially unchanging nature.

In contrast, other theological perspectives mentioned may not focus on this same conceptualization of God's nature as consistently guiding His actions. They might emphasize different aspects of God's relationship to humanity or interpret divine attributes in various ways, but they do not specifically highlight the assertion that God is bound by His own nature in the same manner as Aquinas’ view.

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