Teleological argument Flashcards
what are teleological arguments
Arguments based on observation of the world around us
uses posteriori knowledge
Paley watch analogy
if you find a watch you can see that it has been intricately designed to fulfil its specific purpose by an intelligent designer
the universe is so complex, we can assume it has some intelligent designer- Paley assumes this designer is the God of Classical theism
FOR GOD
SWINBURNE on Paley’s theory
agrees with Paley
our universe shows order and regularity
E.g planets all have precise orbits, atoms follow universal laws
points to a perfect God
FOR GOD
JOHN STUART MILL
our world is imperfect
E.g natural disasters such as earthquakes
why would a loving God harm his own creation
AGAINST GOD
Aquinas’ 5th way
all things act towards their purpose
things and objects lack intelligence, require something to direct them to their goal
FOR GOD
archer and arrow example for Aquinas’ 5th way
an arrow cannot move by itself
it’s archer shoots the arrow to it’s target
like God directs us onto the right path so we can achieve our TELOS
FR Tennant ‘Anthropic priniciple’
the world is perfectly conditioned for human life
God created the world to fit our needs
FOR GOD
Paul Davies ‘Goldilocks enigma’
in the story, Goldilocks finds her perfect bowl of porridge
our world mirrors that perfect bowl, it it ‘just right’ for us and our needs
FOR GOD
Charles Darwin
invented theory of evolution
- we evolved from earlier species
organisms adapt to their surroundings
E.g finch beaks grew longer and sharper so they can crack nuts easier
AGAINST GOD
Big Bang theory
our universe was caused by a huge explosion, lots of atoms and particles coming together
AGAINST GOD
for chance
-evolution and big bang supported by scientific evidence
-God seems an unrealistic answer
-Our world is imperfect- natural disasters
- we have no experience in universe making- cannot assume God created it without proof
-
against chance
- doesn’t tell us why we exist
- God is simpler answer
- qua regularity- world shows order
- SWINBURNE- if world was created by chance then everything would be random
- we cannot prove God doesn’t exist
- what if God caused the big bang and evolution
DAWKINS ‘blind watchmaker’
Against Paley, links watch analogy to creation of the universe but says it was created by a “blind watchmaker” which is the random motion of particles and atoms
Ockham’s razor
the simplest answer is the right answer
God is a simpler explanation than chance and is the easiest way to understand our purpose
HUME on Paley
- even if a designer exists, it doesn’t mean that designer is the God of Classical Theism
- there could be multiple Gods, or a dead God (but using Ockham’s razor, one God is simplest answer)
-problem of evil- God cannot be perfect if he created a faulty world (But God could just be testing us)
