Cartesius Vindicatus: a reassessment of Cartesian Eucharistic physics

Abstract

The far-reaching metaphysical innovations of Rene Descartes' Meditations garnered significant criticism from contemporary 17th century philosophers and theologians. This paper will address one particular line of debate frequently raised by these critics: namely, whether the novel Cartesian worldview could still permit an orthodox Catholic explanation of Eucharistic physics. I shall argue that many aspects of Descartes' Eucharistic work can be vindicated in light of 20th century Neo-Scholastic metaphysics. In particular, we show that Neo-Scholasticism's philosophy of sensible qualities and its reassessment of hylemorphism offer the means by which one might interpret at least a significant portion of Cartesian physics in a way conformable to official Catholic doctrine.