formerly treated of in natural theology, and as having, in fact, its place in theology as an element in the philosophical knowledge of God. It has, since the time of the Kantian philosophy, been cast aside as mean, bad, unworthy of notice, and for this reason it requires a justification.
Determination of the Notion, of Notion in general, is in its real character by no means something in a state of repose, but is something which moves itself, is essentially a state of activity, and is for this very reason mediation, as thinking is an activity, a mediation within itself, and thus also contains the definite thought of mediation within itself. The proofs of the existence of God are likewise mediation, the notion is to be represented by a mediation. Thus the same thing is found in both. In the proofs of the existence of God, however, the mediation takes a form which suggests that it has been contrived for the behoof of cognition or reasoned knowledge, in order that for this latter a fixed view or insight might grow up. It is to be proved to me; it is this, accordingly, which constitutes the main interest of my cognition. After what has been said about the nature of the notion, it is clear that we must not so conceive of mediation, nor think of it as subjective, but get to see that what is true is an objective relation of God within Himself, of His logical element within Himself, and only when and in so far as mediation is so conceived of is it a necessary moment. The proofs of the existence of God must show themselves as a necessary moment of the notion itself, as an advancing movement, as an activity of the notion itself.
The first form of this activity derives its character from the fact that here we are still entirely at the first stage, which we have described as the immediate one, the stage of immediate unity. It results from this determination of immediateness that we have to do here with wholly abstract determinations, for immediate and abstract are the same. The immediate is Being, and so in thought, too, the
