John Philoponus, known as John the Grammarian or John of Alexandria, was a Byzantine Greek philologist, Aristotelian commentator, Christian theologian and an author of a considerable number of philosophical treatises and theological works.
17 Facts About John Philoponus
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John Philoponus was one of the first to propose a "theory of impetus" similar to the modern concept of inertia over Aristotelian dynamics.
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Later in life Philoponus turned to Christian apologetics, arguing against the eternity of the world, a theory which formed the basis of pagan attacks on the Christian doctrine of Creation.
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John Philoponus's critique of Aristotle in the Physics commentary was a major influence on Giovanni Pico della Mirandola and Galileo Galilei, who cited Philoponus substantially in his works.
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John Philoponus studied at the school of Alexandria and began publishing from about 510.
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John Philoponus was a pupil and sometime amanuensis to the Neoplatonic philosopher Ammonius Hermiae, who had studied at Athens under Proclus.
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John Philoponus is the only writer of antiquity to have formally presented such a concept.
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In 529 John Philoponus wrote his critique On the Eternity of the World Against Proclus in which he systematically defeats every argument put forward for the eternity of the world, a theory which formed the basis of pagan attack of the Christian doctrine of Creation.
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John Philoponus introduced a new period of scientific thought based heavily on three premises: The universe is a product of one single God, the heavens and the earth have the same physical properties, and the stars are not divine.
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John Philoponus argued that motion can occur in a void and that the velocity of a falling object is not based on its weight.
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John Philoponus held that God created all matter with its physical properties and with natural laws that would allow matter to progress from a state of chaos to an organized state forming the present universe.
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Around 553 John Philoponus made some theological contributions to the Council of Constantinople concerning Christology.
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John Philoponus produced writings on the Trinity around this time.
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John Philoponus asserted the understanding of Christ as divine and human, in opposition to Chalcedonian authors who strove to reach a middle ground.
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John Philoponus wrote at least 40 works on a wide array of subjects including grammar, mathematics, physics, chemistry, and theology.
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The argument made by John Philoponus is that substances by themselves require some determinate quantity for their being.
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John Philoponus has raised the central question of the scientific and philosophical Aristotle's work on chemistry.