ESSENCE (es'sens), THE DIVINE. (Essence from Latin verb esse, to be).
Berkeley says : "The absolute existence of un thinking things without any relation to their being perceived is . . . unintelligible. Their esse is pereipi; nor is it possible that they should have any existence out of the minds or thinking things which perceive them." Esse si»zpliciter, uncondi tioned being, applied to God as self-subsistent.
J. H. Fichte says: "It is that true being, which remains in itself the same, over against the in finitely non-being, the appearance.' Hegel says it is "being (Sein), coming into mediation with self through the negativity of itself—the truth of being, the concept as established." Kant teaches that it is "the primary internal principle (the ground) of all that belongs to the possibility of a thing." Schelling says: "It is that whereby a thing is in conformity with all things; opposed to Form, that whereby it is itself." These are more philosophical than theological definitions. But theology has an intimate rela
tion to philosophy. And while the Scriptures do not contain such abstract terms as essence and substance, at the same time it must be admitted that some of the names under which God has re vealed himself, as Elohim and Jehovah, refer directly to the eternal Divine essence. At all events theology has often made large use of these terms in its attempts to arrive at the proper and scriptural conception of God.
The questions have been earnestly discussed to what extent, if any, the Divine essence can be known to us; and, secondly, as to the relation ex isting between the attributes of God and his es sence. His attributes are the living realization of his essence. Accordingly, while the Divine es sence is incomprehensible, we have nevertheless some measure of true knowledge of God, knowl edge that relates to his very essence. (See GOD,