More Arguments for God
- Philosophy 020E/1
- September30, 1999
- St. Anselm
- St. Thomas
- Wm. Paley
Anselm�s argument
- God is that being than which none greater can be conceived (Premise 1)
- God does not exist (Premise 2)
- Greater to exist than not (Premise 3)
- Can conceive of a greater (From 2 & 3)
- Can & cannot conceive . . . (1 & 2 & 3)
- Therefore, God must exist (2 guilty)
Standard objection
- Begs question or invalid
- Anselm begs question
- First premise asserts existence
- God�s existence not proved
- Unless first premise asserts existence
How argument should look
- If God exists, then he is that . . .
- Assume God does not exist
- Then possible to conceive of . . .
- But it is not possible to conceive of . . .
- So if God exists, then it is not true that
- God does not exist
- So if God exists, then God exists
Summing up Anselm
- Key is first premise
- Anselm would say
- To understand who God is
- Is to know that he exists
- This would be real understanding
- A kind of mystical vision of God
St. Thomas Aquinas
Also born in Italy
1225-1274
Chief theologian of Catholicism
Aquinas� five ways
- God is the First Mover
- God is the First Cause
- God is the Necessary Cause
- God is the Absolutely Perfect
- God is the Designer of the Universe
- We will concentrate on
First Cause
- Nothing can cause itself
- Would have to exist prior to itself
- So something must be Self Caused
- That is who God is
Argument from design
- Nothing happens fortuitously
- As a fluke by chance
- Things achieve their end by design
- To explain this fact
- We must assume the existence of
- An Intelligent Designer of the universe
- That is who God is
Aquinas� replies to two objections
- Problem of evil
- God allows evil to exist
- In order to create good
- God gratuitous hypothesis
- Whatever happens happens because
- God wills it to happen
- Problem of predestination
William Paley�s argument
1743-1805
Teleological argument
Argument from design
Intuition behind the argument
- Machu Pichu
- Inca fortress city in Peruvian Andes
- Writing on the sand at Lake Erie
- Kilroy was here
- Could not just be
- Results of laws of nature
The argument
- "Indication of contrivance"
- Greatest in nature
- So if we need designer to explain
- Inca architecture & writing in the sand
- Then we certainly need designer to explain
- Nature�s marvels