Etienne Gilsondesde la filosofía de la biología a la causa final

Abstract

Étienne Gilson, from the philosophy of biology to the final causa Abstract: Aristotle had observed that in nature the beings that are composed of heterogeneous parts are ordered according to an end. These beings also have the characteristic of having within themselves the beginning of their own change, so that their movement is spontaneous. However, Aristotle understood that living beings were based on a form or a model to follow, which presided over their development and their respective relationships. That is why he believed that in nature there was a principle analogous to intelligence that gave reason for order, since both in works of nature and in works of art, beings are constituted according to an order according to a plan. The problem is that science does not recognize the existence of such a principle because the end is not a cause that can be observed in action, for this very reason the end is not measurable or calculable, it can only be said that it is there. However, in 1859, Darwin proposed a theory that pretended to explain the existence of order but not as a result of an intention. This does not mean, however, that evolutionary theory is incompatible with divine intervention in the natural world. Order, at any level, cannot be understood without intelligence as a cause. Only intelligence can create because only intelligence can order, and, although chance or chance exists, it is only noticeable from a final objective.