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Research Paper | Philosophy | Volume 15 Issue 5, May 2026 | Pages: 1824 - 1828 | Tanzania
Bernard Lonergan's Transcendental Realism and Renewal of the Aristotelian-Thomist Quest for Being
Abstract: This paper examines Bernard Lonergan's transcendental realism as a critical renewal of the Aristotelian-Thomist understanding of being in response to the modern turn to subjectivity. It first outlines the metaphysical orientations of Aristotle and Aquinas before analysing the emergence of modern subjectivism in Descartes and Kant. The study argues that modern philosophy's emphasis on consciousness and phenomena generated a crisis for classical realist metaphysics. In response, Lonergan proposes self-appropriation and transcendental method as a way of integrating critical reflection on subjectivity with a renewed realism. Through an analysis of cognitional structure, the paper shows how objectivity emerges from authentic subjectivity and how being is understood as the unrestricted desire to know. The study concludes that Lonergan offers a persuasive contemporary framework for renewing metaphysics while engaging modern philosophical concerns.
Keywords: Bernard Lonergan, transcendental realism, Aristotelian-Thomist metaphysics, subjectivity, objectivity, metaphysics, cognitional theory
How to Cite?: Karol Shirima, "Bernard Lonergan's Transcendental Realism and Renewal of the Aristotelian-Thomist Quest for Being", Volume 15 Issue 5, May 2026, International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), Pages: 1824-1828, https://www.ijsr.net/getabstract.php?paperid=SR26527161726, DOI: https://dx.dx.doi.org/10.21275/SR26527161726