Literary notes about temporal (AI summary)
In literature, "temporal" is employed to highlight the fleeting, changeable nature of the worldly realm, often contrasting it with the eternal or spiritual. In theological works, authors emphasize that earthly goods or honors are transient compared to eternal spiritual rewards ([1], [2], [3]), underscoring the impermanence of human affairs. At the same time, historical and political narratives use the term to describe secular power and authority in opposition to spiritual leadership ([4], [5], [6]). Moreover, in philosophical and psychological reflections, "temporal" refers to processes bound by time or sequence—as when the ordering of events or the limits of one’s lifespan are considered ([7], [8], [9]). These varied applications illustrate how the term enriches texts by framing the stage of human existence as continuously evolving and inherently temporary.
- That the saints lose nothing in losing temporal goods.
— from The City of God, Volume I by Bishop of Hippo Saint Augustine - for better is temporal happiness than eternal misery.
— from The City of God, Volume I by Bishop of Hippo Saint Augustine - This is a kind of royal way, which alone leads to a kingdom which does not totter like all temporal dignities, but stands firm on eternal foundations.
— from The City of God, Volume I by Bishop of Hippo Saint Augustine - They fought for their spiritual country, which the Church had, somehow or other, made temporal.
— from The Social Contract & Discourses by Jean-Jacques Rousseau - Such powerful motives should have firmly attached the voluntary and pious obedience of the Roman people to their spiritual and temporal father.
— from The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon - This was the reason why the temporal powers of the pope were little esteemed in Italy.
— from The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli - Fancy , the association of images without temporal order.
— from The Principles of Psychology, Volume 1 (of 2) by William James - Focusing and ordering are thus the two aspects of direction, one spatial, the other temporal.
— from Democracy and Education: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Education by John Dewey - quandō , when , introduces a temporal clause with the indicative.
— from A Latin Grammar for Schools and Colleges by George Martin Lane
