An examination of the concept of god in terms of the epistemological significance of the problem of universals

In this thesis, we aimed to examine the epistemological value of the "Problem of Universals" a philosophical issue that first emerged with Ancient philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato and later intensified with Medieval thinkers like Porphyry, eventually being formulated as a distinct philosophical problem by focusing specifically on its relation to the concept of God. Although the Problem of Universals has been a subject of extensive philosophical debate for centuries, it also encompasses significant areas of inquiry within the field of Philosophy of Religion. Our main reason for choosing this topic was the noticeable scarcity of thesis studies that explore the connection between the Problem of Universals and the concept of God, and we hope to contribute, even modestly, to this gap in the literature. In our study, we employed qualitative research methods, particularly content analysis and secondary data analysis. During the content analysis, we utilized a range of sources including various books relevant to the thesis topic and problem, articles published in national and international academic journals, master's and doctoral theses, and theses that have been later published as books. The data obtained from these sources were analyzed using tools such as classification, summarization, and categorization in a way that would help clarify the problem addressed in the thesis. In this thesis, we re-evaluated the Problem of Universals within the framework of the concept of God, from both metaphysical and epistemological perspectives. As a result of our analysis, we reached the following fundamental conclusions:The reality of universals directly affects the possibility of attaining knowledge of God. If universals are real entities independent of the mind (Plato, Ibn Sina), then knowledge of God possesses a transcendent and universal structure. However, if universals are merely mental abstractions (Ghazali), then knowledge becomes individual and limited. In light of all this information, we can conclude that the relationship between God's knowledge and the existence of universals is central to both epistemology and metaphysics. By demonstrating how this relationship has been addressed by various philosophers, this study has revealed the possibilities and limitations of a God-centered understanding of knowledge. If God's knowledge is grounded in universals, knowledge is universal and reliable; if not, human knowledge becomes merely a limited representation. In this context, the Problem of Universals continues to exist as a fundamental problematic that questions the limits of both God and human reason.