Plotinus & Justin Martyr- One Form To Rule Them All

Feb 20

What is Neoplatonism?

Before I begin, it’s important to explain what Neoplatonism is and what Neoplatonists are. Put simply, Neoplatonism is a school of thought that elaborates on the ideas of the philosopher Plato (428/427 or 424/423-348 B.C). A Neoplatonist is a person who belongs to this school. Neoplatonists come in many varieties, and in this post I will be discussing two of them: Plotinus and Justin Martyr.

Shippin’ Up to Athens

Even those who don’t study philosophy probably know about the Ship of Theseus. But if you don’t, let me give you a crash course: A ship is built and sets sail. As time goes on, parts of the ship are gradually replaced as the boat undergoes regular wear and tear. As the crew gets older, some of them retire and some are lost at sea. Eventually, all of the ship's parts and crew are replaced. Is it the same ship?
If you think this question is silly and trivial, ancient Greek Neoplatonist Plotinus (204/5–270 A.D) may agree with you. Reason being, Plotinus thinks things only exist in unity. An army exists only as long as its soldiers are assembled. An animal is only alive as long as its various bones, nerves, and organs are together. Plotinus would go so far as to say that there is a fundamental unity to the entire universe, which he calls The One.

Form Over Function

Before we delve into the realm of The One, let’s take a minute to look at Plato’s forms. In brief, the forms are perfect (or ideal) versions of the things we see around us. There is a perfect form of a pizza, a perfect form of math, and a perfect form of love. These forms exist in a world separate from our own, but by practicing philosophy our soul can gain proximity to the world of forms.

Plotinus, in the Enneads, attempts to elaborate on Plato’s world of forms. He still believes in it, but thinks that The One is a step beyond the world of forms. Why is he elaborating on Plato’s thought? Because of a problem that had been persistently nagging Platonists- the problem of the regression of the forms. Think about it like this: We have the form of a tree, but trees contain branches, leaves, bark, cells, sap, etc. Do all of these parts each have a form? Does each part of those parts have a form? Plato seems to be in deep trouble here, and Plotinus seems to know it. His introduction of The One is supposed to solve this problem.

One and Done

The One, according to Plotinus is, a first principle. All this means is that it’s square one of everything. It cannot be reduced to anything else, cannot be deduced from any other propositions, and everything else is dependent on it. In brief, it’s a cosmic axiom. The One is fundamentally unified and unable to be described, because describing it would violate its unity. If we described it as “motionless” then we would be fracturing it into “moving” and “unmoving”, thereby violating The One’s unity. Even thinking about it is tricky, because when we think there is a distinction between thinker and thought. The One solves Plato’s reducibility problem because it implies that all forms share a fundamental unity.

Plotinus nonetheless believes that we are capable of becoming aware of The One, “[A]wareness of The One comes to us neither by knowing nor by the pure thought that discovers the other intelligible things, but by a presence transcending knowledge.”

Cryptic, I know. And it doesn’t get easier when he says this awareness happens in the soul. As our soul grows in proximity to The One, it grows in unity. This unity is beyond thought or word, and we must take it on faith and experience that it’s happening.

Apology Accepted

Highlighting the immense diversity of Neoplatonists, we have Justin Martyr (100-165 A.D). Venerated as a Saint and martyr in many Christian denominations, he is best known for his Apology defending the Christian religion from accusations made against it by the Romans. Coincidentally (or perhaps not), he is an important figure in the Neoplatonist tradition because he applied Plato’s philosophy to Christianity. This application of Plato’s philosophy to Christian thought helped the spread of Christianity in the West and influenced later thinkers like Augustine.

In his Dialogue with Trypho, Justin describes his likely fictitious encounter with an old man. In dialogue four, the nature of the mind and soul is discussed. Unlike Plato, Justin rejects reincarnation. Justin thinks we are capable of thinking about God in our mind, but when our soul departs from our body we, “get possession of that which it was wont continually and wholly to love.” It’s important to mention that, according to Justin, our souls do not “see”. This is because seeing is a faculty of our mind, “So long as it is in the form of a man, it is possible for it to attain [sight] by means of the mind.”

If this idea of an unthinkable, unseeable God reminds you of Plotinus’ concept of The One, you’re not far off base. Both Justin Martyr and Plotinus are looking to explain, elaborate on, and defend Plato’s philosophy. They reached different conclusions, but this is part of the joy of philosophy. To see two brilliant minds read the same source but reach different conclusions, to me, highlights the value of philosophy as a creative pursuit.

Mike Sprung