Basic Action and Relational Ontology
Basic Action and Divine Relational Ontology: A Theological Exploration through Magneto and Actus Purus
Abstract
This paper explores the concept of basic action within a theological context, examining its deep parallels within Catholic theology. We will create a philosophical understanding of basic action as an act performed directly without prior mediations, comparing it with theological notions of God’s nature as “Actus Purus” or Pure Act. An illustrative example from the comic book series, Resurrection of Magneto #4, demonstrates Magneto’s actions as a philosophical concept, alongside an analysis of divine actions in Christian theology.
This paper aims to demonstrate a truly Catholic relational ontology. In this context, God’s acts are relational, meaning that all existence and essence should be understood through the lens of relationship and communion, even when ontological divides between God and creation challenge human comprehension.
Introduction
The concept of basic action in philosophy refers to actions performed directly by an agent without executing any prior actions. Such actions are characterized by their immediacy and directness, akin to a “flow state” in psychology—instinctive or reflexive actions performed without apparent effort or premeditation. This paper examines this concept through a theological lens, reflecting on its implications for understanding the nature and actions of the Christian God.
Illustration from Popular Culture: Magneto’s Decisive Act
In Resurrection of Magneto #4, crafted by Al Ewing, Luciano Vecchio, David Curiel, Jesus Aburtov, and VC’s Joe Sabino, a critical moment in Magneto’s life exemplifies the philosophical concept of basic action (Ewing et al., 2024). Magneto, a character from the X-Men series known for manipulating metal, encounters a significant challenge at an Orchis facility. Here, soldiers equipped with suits engineered to neutralize his abilities confront him, testing both his powers and beliefs about his identity.
These soldiers’ suits are designed to detect and counteract any conscious use of Magneto’s powers by triggering mechanisms that disable his abilities. The situation becomes life-threatening as the soldiers aim their guns at Magneto, intending to arrest and permanently detain him.
In this narrative, Magneto’s decisive action—manipulating the metal in the soldiers’ suits without visible preparation or strategizing—exemplifies a basic action. Faced with immediate danger, Magneto bypasses conventional decision-making processes and reflexively crushes the metal components of their suits, neutralizing the threat in an instant. His manipulation is immediate and direct, an instinctive response integrated into his being. This portrayal offers a compelling example for philosophical and theological reflection, revealing insights into the nature of agency and identity.
Theological Reflection: God as Simple, Actus Purus, and Perichoretic
In Catholic theology, the concept of basic action parallels the understanding of God’s nature and actions. God is described as “Actus Purus” or Pure Act, signifying that He is pure activity without potentiality—complete actuality where essence and existence are unified in a singular, eternal act without precursor. This concept finds resonance in Aquinas’s metaphysics, which posits God as pure being (esse), whose existence is not contingent on anything external.
Gaven Kerr explains, “Insofar as creatures are dependent on God for their esse, creatures bear a real relation to God; should that relation cease, creatures would cease, since they would no longer depend on anything for their esse. On the other hand, insofar as God does not depend on anything in any way, for He is pure esse, He does not bear a real relation to creatures, only a rational one; should that relation cease, i.e., should creatures cease to be, God would in no way change” (Kerr 3).
If I may add some realism to Dr Kerr’s moderate realism and Thomism here, then please indulge me. From a relational ontology perspective, God is characterized in my own theological framework not only as the first principle of principles but also as a principle of pure relation. Creatures inherently depend on God for their existence, enabling them to relate to themselves, to God, and to others, thereby establishing a real relation where their essence relies on God’s sustaining presence. Conversely, God, being pure existence as pure relation (and in those terms), maintains no real dependence on creatures in essence, because He is His own act of relation. Nevertheless, in the active relation of the divine essence extrinsically, it is still categorically relational, presuming that essence begets, creates, and relates as said essence is. In this case, the divine essence is abstracted in terms of pure relation, because from relation comes relation.
Thus, God’s omnipotence and proactive engagement in creation can acknowledge His ontological unity and simplicity in terms of pure relation. This approach shows that direct “basic” action can be communicated within a relational ontology just as effectively as within the substantial ontology of classical theism, such as Aquinas’s Aristotelianism supplemented with Platonic participatory metaphysics. Substance and accident do not intuitively lead one to consider their unity in terms of act, but when supplemented with the relational sense of participatory metaphysics, it creates a complex where we can see how act from a first principle can be fundamental.
Even briefly converting the terms, albeit ambiguously and imaginatively, a strictly relational ontological context provides a more consistent narrative for basic action, further illustrating the intelligibility of such a concept. To recall the Magneto story, the basic action was an operation to himself in the context of great pressure, where he could only act in a basic way without being counteracted upon by protective armor. This armor could detect antecedent conscious and incremental actions rather than the purely basic action and pure relation of the primordial identity he is as the being who is more than his conscience states is the master of magnetism.
Expanding on this, the doctrine of Perichoresis in Trinitarian theology highlights the relational aspect of God. Perichoresis describes the interpenetration and co-inherence of the Trinity—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—within one divine essence. These relationships are eternal, necessary, and intrinsic to God’s nature, constituting a perpetual outpouring of love and knowledge immanent in the divine life and expressed in salvation history.
The Incarnation of Christ represents a unique exemplification of basic action in theology. The Word becoming flesh (John 1:14) is an instantaneous, perfect divine act that does not alter the divine nature but fully manifests in time and history. This act bridges the divine and human natures in Jesus Christ, embodying grace and salvation while remaining intrinsically divine.
Thus, God as Actus Purus, the mysteries of the Trinity, and the Incarnation illustrate divine actions as fundamental, revealing God’s perfect nature. These acts demonstrate divine simplicity and relationality in creation, redemption, and self-revelation. These manifestations affirm that God’s actions, inherently efficacious and self-originating, extend into the lived reality of faith, presenting a model for understanding divine agency’s immediacy and directness.
The Eternal Now and Relational Ontology
Incorporating the earlier discussion on Time and Eternity, which you can find here: (https://robertdryer.com/god-is-not-time/), we see that God’s eternal now provides a profound basis for understanding divine action. God’s eternal now functions as an internal ordering principle, where all moments of time are present in an atemporal manner, allowing God to interact with creation without undergoing change. This eternal perspective ensures that God’s actions are not subject to temporal limitations but are governed by His own self-ordering principle, maintaining His transcendence and immutability.
In a deeper sense, recalling the doctrine of Perichoresis, we recognize a primordial relation where the relations of the divine persons to their ordering principle extrinsically reflect on nature in relation to the point of simplicity. This means that God’s eternal now, as an internal ordering principle, ensures that all temporal events are present to Him in an atemporal, unified manner. Therefore, God’s interaction with creation does not involve any change within Himself, preserving His immutable nature.
God’s eternal now not only underscores His transcendence but also His relational ontology. The eternal now provides a framework where divine action is not constrained by temporal succession but is instead a unified, timeless act. This relational ontology perspective aligns with the view that God, being pure act and pure relation, sustains all of creation continuously without Himself undergoing any temporal change. This understanding illustrates that God’s actions are fundamentally basic actions, arising from His essence as pure act and relation. Thus, the eternal now provides a coherent and profound understanding of how God’s timeless essence can actively and simply relate to the temporal world, performing basic actions that uphold His divine simplicity and immutability.
Using the analogy of Magneto, we can understand this concept more concretely. Magneto’s deeper essence and primordial identity gave him a basic action rooted in his relation to himself. Similarly, albeit in an ever-dissimilar and more profound way, we can say that God’s nature involves a basic, unified action from His relational ontology perspective. This single, continuous act reflects God’s omnipotence, simplicity, and immutability, demonstrating how God’s eternal now facilitates His fundamental actions within creation.
FYI, I develop this relational ontology in a theory called the RE theory which you can read more about here: https://robertdryer.com/god-as-relatio
Conclusion
Both Magneto’s actions and divine actions in Christian theology illustrate the concept of basic action. Magneto’s manipulation of metal and God’s extrinsic acts of creation and salvation highlight a seamless integration of power and identity (from the intrinsic essence to the essence of all things), where actions are direct outpourings of the agent’s nature. These examples provide a deeper understanding of agency and existence in their most potent forms.
By integrating the concepts of God’s eternal now and relational ontology, we gain a more nuanced understanding of divine actions. This approach reinforces the coherence of God’s immutable and relational nature within the framework of RE Theory and classical theism. Thus, it becomes clear that God’s basic actions, performed without mediation and rooted in His essence as pure act and pure relation, exemplify the ultimate expression of relational ontology. This understanding bridges philosophical concepts with theological insights, offering a profound perspective on divine agency and existence.
References:
– Ewing, A., Vecchio, L., Curiel, D., Aburtov, J., & Sabino, J. V. C. (2024). *Resurrection of Magneto #4*. Marvel Comics.
– Kerr, G. (2023). God and the alone world. Irish Theological Quarterly, 88(1), 76-89. https://doi.org/10.1177/00211400221144750
Credits:
I’d like to thank Dr. Gaven Kerr, a lecturer in philosophy at St Patrick’s Pontifical University Maynooth, whose work on divine action inspired this piece, especially his paper on Divine Action and the Aloneness Argument.
