Design Arguments

Question 1

Hume’s inductive argument from spatial order/purpose

Answer 1

1)The world and human machines share certain properties in common, namely they both have intricate parts that are organized in space to serve some purpose or end.
2)Human machines are created by intelligence
3)Therefore it is probably the case that the world was created by an intelligence, though one with “much larger facilities”

Question 2

The problem of spatial order

Answer 2

Lot of spatial disorder apparent lack of purpose exists eg the disorderly arrangement of trees in the African rainforest, so why should we conclude that there is a designer of the universe on the basis that we perceive order, when so much disorder exists

Counter-Paley argues that the existence of some spatial disorder should not lead us to reject the existence of a designer eg if a watch exhibited some disorder ie breaking down sometimes, we would still infer it had a designer

Question 3

Argument from natural selection

Answer 3

We do not need to invoke God to explain purpose and complexity in nature. Darwin’s theory of evolution claims that by seeing variation in population, there is competition for limited resources and food, these creatures survive by passing on their favourable traits to their offspring

Question 4

Paley’s deductive argument from spatial order

Answer 4

1)Some things in nature posses design-like properties (eg the eye)
2)Design like properties cannot be produced by random natural processes
3)Therefore some things in nature (e.g plants and animals) are products of intentional design

Question 5

Argument against Paley

Answer 5

It fails as it is an argument from unique case, we have observed watched being designed by intelligent beings in the past, But no one has seen a universe being created in the past so we cannot conclude that our universe was created by a designer

Counter-An argument from unique case can still be successful, eg cosmologist are reaching well supported conclusions about the origins of the universe as a whole, despite the fact that it appears to be unique and singular

Counter-Few people have experience of certain artefacts being made, nevertheless we can still conclude it had a designer

Question 6

Swinburne’s argument from temporal order

Answer 6

1)Fundamental laws of the universe operate with such uniformity, the universe could have been chaotic
2)There are only 2 explanations for these laws (a) scientific and (b) personal
3)scientific explanations cannot account for these laws ad they use these very laws to explain things
4)Therefore the uniform laws of nature must have a personal explanation that is God

Question 7

against Swinburne

Answer 7

argument from unique case
counter- can still work
A-Hume: Who designed the designer?
R- We do not need to answer this question, if God explains the universe then we don’t need to explain him
R2-Minds are not complex like the universe so need no explanation