This paper relates the metatheological approach known as ‘Perfect Being Theology’ (PBT) and criticisms of the doctrine of divine simplicity (DDS) in its Thomistic version. After briefly contrasting PBT with Thomas Aquinas’ alternative approach, which will be labeled ‘Analogical Natural Theology’ (ANT), it is shown that an option for the first approach dominates much of what has been written on simplicity. Then the structure of ANT is outlined in an attempt to explain the stronger commitment this project has toward DDS.

In dialogue with John Webster and Karl Barth, this essay considers the intersection of divine aseity and holy scripture. I argue that the doctrine of holy scripture is constituted by a backward reference, namely, the plentiful life of the triune God. The doctrine of divine aseity denotes God's self-existent triune life, which anchors God's bestowal of life. Construed negatively, aseity establishes the incommensurability of God and creatures by distinguishing, without sundering, scripture and God's self-communicative presence. Construed positively, aseity constitutes scripture as ‘a field of divine activity’, the sphere of the life-giving missions of the Word and Spirit. The triune God who lives a se, elects the texts of scripture to serve as intermediaries of God's vivifying address.

The doctrine of divine aseity has played a significant role in the development of classical theism. However, very little attention has been paid in recent years to the question of how precisely aseity should be characterized. We argue that this neglect is unwarranted since extant characterizations of this central divine attribute quickly encounter difficulties. In particular, we present a new argument to show that the most widely accepted contemporary account of aseity is inconsistent. We then consider the prospects for developing a new account of aseity which avoids the pitfalls we have highlighted.