Clear all
Work #1823

Confessio

Patrick of Ireland (Patricius)
c. 450–461 CE · Latin
Spiritual autobiography and apologia · Latin patristic Christianity; insular Christianity

"I am Patrick, a sinner, most unlearned" — Providence working through weakness, captivity turned to mission, faith as the answer to exile

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.

Attribute Confessio
Time · Extent Both
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Both
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature not engaged
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality not engaged
Matter · Extent Finite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality not engaged
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Immediate
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Total
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Both
Observer · Number Plural
Observer · Metaphysical Agency Providential
Observer · Moral Authority Scripture
Observer · Theological Method
Energy · Extent Finite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Conserved
Information · Granularity not engaged

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

Confessio

"Both": created time and God's eternity. Linear, eschatological — Patrick sees his Irish mission as part of the end-times fulfilment.

Space

Confessio

Patrick's captivity and mission make space a lived theological category; God is omnipresent in creation.

Matter

Confessio

Created, good, conserved; the body matters — cold, hunger, rain as spiritual testing ground.

Observer

Confessio

The believer who acts and is acted upon by Providence; God conquers through the weak.

Energy

Confessio

Finite created order sustained by divine power; no independent energy doctrine.

Information

Confessio

Scripture conserves the deposit of faith; the Confessio itself is an act of information conservation.

Internal Tensions

Where each work's argument pulls against itself.

Confessio

Rough Latin and self-described ignorance vs. theological sophistication; direct divine communication through visions vs. institutional church authority; the Confessio is partly a defence against critics within the church.