Philosophical Seminar: Dr Gaven Kerr 'Causality and Essentially Ordered Series'

Thursday, February 23, 2017 - 16:00 to 17:00
JH 7, John Hume Building

Abstract:

Philosophers have traditionally concerned themselves with infinite causal regress in demonstrations of God’s existence. This has led to the general distinction, prevalent in many medieval discussions, between per se (essentially ordered) and per accidens (accidentally ordered) causal series. In my own previous work and in general discussions these series are considered exclusively from the standpoint of efficient causality. In this paper I take a model for these causal series that I developed in a previous paper and here I consider how that model can accommodate final causality along with efficient causality in the series.

Speaker:
 

Dr Gaven Kerr
'I am from Belfast, Northern Ireland, and I'm married with two children. 
All of my philosophical studies were undertaken at Queen's University Belfast. I obtained my BA degree there in 2004; I then obtained my MPhil degree under the supervision of Rev. Prof. James McEvoy in 2006, and the examination of Prof. Thomas Kelly (Maynooth) and Mr Christopher McKnight (QUB). Finally I obtained my PhD in 2011 under the supervision of Rev. Prof. James McEvoy (until his death in 2010), and the examination of Prof. John Haldane (St Andrew's) and Prof. Michael Dunne (Maynooth). The title of my PhD was: The Metaphysics of St Thomas Aquinas and Neo-Thomistic Realism.
Outside of academia I take a keen interest in health and fitness, martial arts (Kung-fu), classical music and literature.'