Arguemts For God From OBSERVATION Flashcards
(47 cards)
What can the world tell us about God’s existence?
There is an analogy of the painting and how it enables us to draw inferences about the painter just as the world around us enables us to draw inferences about God
What do the supporters of their design argument point to?
- The order in the world (everything works properly)
- The beauty of nature
- Everything seems to have an ultimate purpose
- Complexity in the world
It is extremely unlikely that all this would occur by chance, therefore this is strong evidence for existence of God
What is the difference between a posteroiori and a prior argument?
Posteriori: can show the existence of gods is probable and uses inductive reasoning (inductive reasoning)
Priority: claims to provide conclusive proof of God‘s existence (deductive reasoning)
What was Aquians’ influence?
Aquinas believed that the only way humans can know God (in a limited way) is through the world he created
He also develops aristotles four causes theory and in particular the final cause which is the purpose
What are the two ways Aquinas thought that God’s existence can be demonstrated?
Natural theology
Revelation
What are the five ways for Aquinas?
In Summa Theologica, Aquinas wrote five succinct arguments that demonstrate the existence of God through observation of the world.
These are called the five ways.
The ‘fifth way’ is his teleological argument.
What was Aquinas’s fifth way?
We can see that things which lack intelligence such as natural bodies act for an end. Whatever lacks intelligence cannot move forward towards an end unless it is directed by some being with knowledge and intelligence. Therefore, some intelligent being exist by whom all natural things are directed to their end and this is God
What analogy does Aquinas give for his fifth way?
Like a bow and arrow and how the arrow is shot to its mark by the archer
What are some examples of non-thinking living beings?
A bee pollinating a plant and making honey.
The heart constantly pumping blood around the body
What are examples of design and purpose?
The eye
Lungs
Wings
A giraffe neck
Who was Paley?
He was a rationalist who lived at a time when scientists were making exciting new discoveries and great advances in mechanical engineering (due to the Industrial Revolution).
What story does Paley say to explain his idea?
Paley imagines himself walking across a heath and coming across a stone lying on the ground, which he strikes with his foot. It is natural and unsurprising that the stone is there.
However, if he came upon a watch on the ground, this would demand further explanation as it is not natural but complex
The watch has several intricate, moving, independent parts; it is framed, has beautifully made cogs, levers, springs etc., all of which work together for a purpose– to tell the time.
What is Paleys analogy?
He is saying that the universe is like a watch.
Which has complex features and parts and each part has a function and these who work together to perform a purpose.
This shows that the universe has been designed by designer and its purpose is to sustain life
What are Paley’s premises of his argument?
P1. If one found a watch on a beach, observation of it would suggest purpose and design in its manufacture.
P2. Objects in nature can be observed which suggest purpose and design.
P3. Anything that can be observed to be designed must have a designer.
C. Nature demonstrates the existence of a designer which we call God.
What are some examples of purpose in nature?
Complexity of the human eye
The wings of a bird and the fins of a fish
What does Paley say about regularity and order?
Paley also argued that the regularity, order, pattern and predictability that we observe in the natural world are further indications of God’s design. For example:
• The rotation of the planets
• The regularity and predictability of gravity
• The seasons
What are criticisms of Paley’s argument?
- we may be ignorant of how watches are made
- Watches sometimes go wrong
- Some parts of a watch me appear to have no purpose
- The watch cannot have come together by chance
Who is Hume?
He was an influential philosopher and was known for his empiricism and scepticism and made criticisms of teleological arguments
What is Humes first criticism?
Analogy doesn’t Work:
They Work by arguing that because X is like Y in one respect, they must be like in another respect.
Aquinas is fifth way and Paley teleological argument are both arguments from analogy
He is saying that analogies can lead to mistaken conclusions
What is Hume’s second criticism?
God is inferred not proven
What is Hume’s third criticism?
God is assumed
What did Charles Darwin come up with?
He made a scientific development and he made the theory of natural selection
What is natural selection?
Natural selection is the process by which living entities (animals, plants, bacteria) which are better adapted to their environment tend to survive, and produce more offspring.
What are the four main principles of natural selection?
- Replication: Organisms reproduce themselves, passing their characteristics onto their offspring.
- Random mutation (change): Every generation brings new characteristics, some better for survival, some worse.
- Harsh conditions: In the fight for survival, those with a slight advantage will be more likely to reproduce, causing small changes in the species
- Aeons of time: Small changes in the species add up from generations to generation, resulting in new species
