I focus in this article on the work of the contemporary Thomist, David Burrell, and the ways in which he is influenced particularly by Robert Sokolowski and Kathryn Tanner in his articulation of the sui generis relation between creature and Creator. By paying close attention to Burrell's work on the metaphysics of creation I show how the notions of ‘distinction’ and ‘relation’ cannot be separated in his understanding of the world-and-God. I then examine how Thomas's own thinking through of these issues was carried out in engagement with voices from outside the Christian tradition and, finally, explore Burrell's invitation to extend the conversation beyond Abrahamic frontiers by turning to the work of a lesser-known Thomist scholar – Sara Grant.

在本文中，我将重点介绍当代托马斯主义者大卫·伯雷尔（David Burrell）的工作，以及他在阐明生物与造物主之间特殊关系方面受到罗伯特·索科洛夫斯基（Robert Sokolowski）和凯瑟琳·坦纳（Kathryn Tanner）的影响的方式。通过密切关注伯雷尔关于创造的形而上学的工作，我展示了在他对世界和上帝的理解中如何无法区分“区别”和“关系”的概念。然后，我研究托马斯如何通过与基督教传统之外的声音互动来对这些问题进行思考，最后，探索伯瑞尔的邀请，通过转向鲜为人知的汤姆斯学者的工作，将对话扩大到亚伯拉罕疆域以外。萨拉·格兰特（Sara Grant）。