Aquinas' Second Way

Question 1

What is the second way from?

Answer 1

Cause

Question 2

What does Aquinas say everything in the world is in?

Answer 2

A chain of cause and effect

Question 3

How are things caused/bring about effects?

Answer 3

Analogy of domino effect, everything comes from one initial cause, that then ‘knocks’ each other thing like dominoes, like these effects are ‘consequences’ of the first cause. Each thing knocked down will subsequently knock the other thing down hence why every action has an effect.

Question 4

Why can nothing cause itself?

Answer 4

Because to cause itself, it would have to be “prior to itself, which is impossible”.

Question 5

What are the three causes?

Answer 5

1 - First cause
2 - Intermediate causes
3 - Ultimate/Final cause

Question 6

Why can there not be an infinite regress?

Answer 6

We witness intermediate causes every day, therefore these intermediate causes must have spawned from a first cause. If you remove the first cause, you will not have the intermediate causes, but we do, therefore an infinite regress of intermediate causes.

Question 7

Why is a First Cause necessary?

Answer 7

Because without it, the intermediate causes would cease to exist, meaning everything we know and see would cease to exist, too, which is not the case.

Question 8

What does the argument from cause place God as?

Answer 8

The Uncaused Cause