Knowledge of God's existence Flashcards
(29 cards)
Natural theology
Deducing what God is like through his creation
Revealed theology
Aspects of God that he reveals to us. e.g through the bible.
Richard Dawkins
- Believes knowledge of God Presents a difficulty for us because the knowledge we might be claiming is not like any other forms of knowledge.
- Religious claims cannot be proven and therefore are not valid
- ’ Faith is the great copout’
Abstract Knowledge
Priori knowledge. Categories of knowledge created by the human mind. Does not require experience
Personal knowledge
Knowledge of someone you share a personal relationship with
Functional Knowledge
Knowledge based on experience. Skill based knowledge
Metaphysical knowledge
Beyond science. No way to prove or disprove. ‘Big questions’, e.g what is the meaning of life.
Sensus divinitatis
- Calvin
- All humans are made in God’s image (imageo dei) They have an innate capacity and desire to know God, including;
- Human openness to beauty and goodness
- Human intellectual ability to reflect on an recognise God’s existence
- Innate sense of the divine
Three examples of Sensus Divitas
- The capacity of conscience
- The capacity to appreciate God’s creation as beautiful
- The capacity to reason, and the ability to reflect on our surroundings to recognise God’s existence
Supporting evidence for innate knowledge
- Cicero and Calvin ague that so many people believe in God that there must exist a God
- Paul tries to convince Athenians they are worshipping the true God even if they do not know it.
- Religious rituals and mediations are so universal that ‘one can call man a religious being.
Evidence against innate knowledge
- Imagination needs to accompany reason in arguments of philosophy
- It is arrogant to imagine that human reason could lead to knowledge of God. Barth)
- Theological belief is more than wish fulfilment
Teleological arguments (design arguments)
- Reflect on the purpose of creation
- The orderliness of the universe seems to show a higher purpose behind it.
- Paley’s watch argument
- God has left clues about himself in creation
Duplex Cognito Domini
- Calvin argued that what can be known of God can be seen in the apparent design and purpose of nature
- Duplex Cognito Domino: two-fold knowledge of God as creator and redeemer
Strengths of Natural Knowledge through creation
- Works in way we are used to - it is normal for humans to use their brains to reason
- There is a long tradition of people using their reason to show God exists
- It is reasonable to suggest that the sheer number of people in faith means there must be a point of contact to God
- A god who made humans lovingly would have given us a way to contact him
- Awe and wonder takes is beyond physical feeling - this may point to an un-earthly God.
Weaknesses of natural knowledge through creation
- The gap is too great between humans and God to accept the Sensus divitas.
- Natural theology may be of no use if it does not allow us to personally know God
- Order and purpose in nature can perhaps be explained by other factors
- Just because we can feel awe, doesn’t mean God made us have that feeling.
- Augustine believed our reason is far too flawed due to original sin for us to be able to know God
Aquinas’ cosmological argument
- Aquinas Argued that we are used to seeing cause and effect in our everyday lives
- He argued that out world works in the same way - something must have caused the world to exist
- The cause is God and the effect is the world.
Revealed theology
Looks at what God has deliberately revealed to us. For example, through scripture such as the Bible.
Can be direct (Jesus) or indirect (e.g the Bible)
Augustine would agree with this
Calvin’s views on the effects of the fall
The fall means we have become so corrupted that we cannot rely on our sensus divitas, despite having it.
Christ the mediator allows us to overcome this. True knowledge is salvation in Christ.
Catholic Church’s views on the effects of the fall
The fall confused and distracted humans from God.
Natural theology is useful but we also need divine revelation or revealed theology.
The ‘leap of faith’
At some point, Christians must take a leap of faith- they must eventually believe in God without reason or logic
Kierkegaard wrote about this in ‘fear and trembling’
Knowing god through faith
- For both cathlocism and Calvin, faith is not enough to know God.
- It requires God’s grace to complete the relationship. This is the point where faith becomes an intimate relationship with God.
Revealed theology and Jesus
- Christians believe that God reveals knowledge of himself through Jesus
- Christianity is built on the nature and actions of Jesus
- For Calvin, Christ is the complete and most important revelation of God
- Christ is both the mirror of God, and the mediator
Knowing God through the Bible
- The bible is called ‘the word of God’
- Natural theologists see the Bible as an important source of knowledge of God
Catholic view on the Bible and revealed knowledge
- God’s revelation was completed through the Christ event
- The role of the church is to explore God’s revelation in the present day
- The actions of the church reveal aspects of God, for example the eucharist.
