Thinking Above: The Transcendentals

In Christian theology, the transcendentals are qualities or properties of being that transcend—stand beyond and above—limitations of time and space. Therefore, the transcendentals are rooted in the very being of God. God is Truth. God is goodness. God is beauty.

The transcendentals have also been described as the ultimate desires of humanity. Man ultimately strives for perfection, which takes form through the desire for perfect attainment of the transcendentals.

Because the transcendentals are rooted in the eternal being of God, they are not defined by cultural diversity, human traditions, or personal ideologies. Although a transcendental stands above creation, it also defines something that can be known and experienced in the world.

The Transcendentals and Aristotle’s Categories

The transcendentals have been discussed and debated since the time of the classical period in Greek philosophy. Aristotle contrasted the transcendentals with his 10 Categories. Aristotle intended these categories to list everything that can be expressed without composition or structure, which is to say in a complete sentence. These categories can be either the subject or the predicate of a proposition. Just scanning over his categories helps us set some context for the Transcendentals:

1. Substance defines what a thing is in and of itself, distinct from all other things: tree, man, dog, etc.
2. Quantity defines how much of something there is: 10 inches, 4 pounds, 10 minutes
3. Qualification or quality describes the nature of something: white, black, grammatical, hot, sweet, curved, straight.
4. Relative describes how one thing is related to another: double, half, master, student.
5. Where or place describes where something is in relation to the surrounding environment: the house, Memphis, the gym
6. When or time describes “where” something is in the flow of events: now, then, yesterday, tomorrow
7. Being-in-a-position, posture, attitude describes a condition of rest resulting from an action. It my also imply a condition of potential action: ‘Lying’, ‘sitting’, ‘standing’.
8. Having or state, condition describes the state of something that has been acted on or affected: clothed, beaten, dressed, molded, etc.
9. Doing or action describes the change of state or process through some activity: running, sitting, laughing
10. Being affected or affection describes how one thing acts or affects another thing: lanced, shot, stabbed. Most of the examples imply that this is a negative affecting.

Medieval theologians and scholars argued that the transcendentals stand above these ten categories.

What are the Three Transcendentals?

The transcendentals which are most discussed are Truth, Goodness, and Beauty. To use biblical terms we could also talk about Truth, Righteousness, and Glory. As you will see, these transcendentals are inseparable in that they all need one another in order to be defined.

Truth: A way of describing or representing what is really real. Opposing truth is that which is false or deceptive (the lie).

Goodness / Righteousness: Describes acting in a way that is in line with Truth. This entails ethics and morality. Opposing goodness is that which is evil or twisted.

Beauty / Glory: Describes Truth and Goodness expressed to our senses: sight, taste, sound, etc. Opposing beauty is that which is ugly or shameful.

Jesus Transcends

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us,
and we have seen His glory,
glory as of the only Son from the Father,
full of grace and truth. ”
(John 1:14–15 ESV)

In this statement, John, one of Jesus’ first disciples, the “beloved disciple,” is describing his experience of being in the presence of Jesus. The thing that is interesting about this passage is the way John relates the three key ideas of glory, grace and truth. John does not say, “We heard His truth full of glory and grace.” Neither does he say, “We experienced his grace full of glory and truth.” Now both of these statements would be true, but the way John makes glory full of grace and truth is a profound insight.

I believe transcendentals we have been discussing are fully revealed in Jesus as truth, grace and glory.

Truth tells us what is really real. Truth is always in line with reality. Jesus not only defines truth, He is truth. Jesus is Creator (looking to the past), Savior and Sustainer (present), and King (focusing toward the future). Jesus shapes reality. His Truth orients us to the reality of the Larger, Master Story in which we are living.

Goodness speaks to that which is virtuous and praiseworthy, acting in a way that is consistent with the Truth. Goodness asks the question, “What can we do to make life flourish?” Jesus reveals the goodness of God in His Grace. We have defined grace as Father-God’s unearned favor given to us in Christ that gives us access to the unlimited power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the very vehicle of God’s grace. Out of His goodness and grace flows life.

Beauty is also that which is praiseworthy, but it is much more than that. Beauty is truth and goodness made manifest to our senses. Beauty is a profound concept that is nearly impossible to box in by definition. But what I would like to suggest is that beauty is inextricably tied to the biblical idea of glory. I would also like to suggest that it is the beauty of Jesus that John is talking about when he says, “We have seen His glory.”

Glory is the inexhaustible, profound (sometimes incomprehensible), radiant beauty of the Lord God that is absolutely remarkable.”

This “definition” is centered around the word beauty because it is really the only word that we have which is large enough to hold all that we need to say. It is important to understand that we are not talking about the Lord God’s physical, outward appearance. We are talking about all He is in essence and action. And this glory is seen in Jesus who reveals the One True God to us.