Arguments Based On Observations - teleological + cosmological Flashcards
The cosmological argument
The Cosmological + teleological Argument.
Cosmological: a-posteriori argument based on observation
(motion, cause and effect, and the contingency in the universe)
- includes Aquinas 3 Ways
Teleological: Arguements based on design + purpose thus god
deductive argument
Using premises/scenarios to back up your assumption
(E.G. All dogs have four legs, John’s pet is a dog, therefore John’s pet has four legs)
inductive argument
Using instances to come to a generalised conclusion
St Thomas Aquinas beliefs
He believed that the existence of God could be proven in five ways
- summa Theologica (his greatest book)
Aquinas’ first 3 ways
- The unmoved mover
- Uncaused cause
- contingency and necessity
the unmoved mover - motion (Aquinas)
- Everything is in motion
- There can’t be an infinite regress of motion
- There has to have been a first mover – a start to the motion we observe.
(E.g. if you see dominoes falling, there must have been a first one that was pushed – there couldn’t have just been dominoes falling forever)
- So, there must have been a first mover that was unmoved – that is God.
uncaused cause
attempts to explain cause and effect.
- everything has a cause (its contingent)
- nothing can cause itself
- however, there can’t be an infinite number of causes as there will be no first cause.
- therefore there must be an uncaused cause
- and we call that - GOD
Contingency & Necessity
- not every being can be contingent
- Therefore there must be a being whose existence is necessary – God.
Leibniz- The Principle of Sufficient Reason
- Everything must have a reason / cause.
- Even if the world eternal, we need an explanation for it
If you reject PSR, it means that you are claiming things without an explanation
The Grand Designer - Aquinas 5th Way
He drew upon Aristotle view that nature is teleological & each thing has its own purpose.
In order for something to reach its purpose it need to be guided by an intelligent being - God
Example of Aqunias 5th way
Unintelligent things can’t fulfil a purpose unless it is guided by something with knowledge.
E.G. An unintelligent Bow & Arrow without its archer would be wood and string
William Paley - 2 points of view for why god must exist
In the world we can see both:
Design qua purpose - the universe designed to fulfil a purpose
Design qua regularity - the universe behaves according to some order.
Strengths of the cosmological argument
- They are logical and common sense (based on what we see)
- Fits in with Christian teaching - Genesis “In the beginning God created the Heaven and Earth”.
- Leibnez argued that all things should have a ‘sufficient reason’ for their existence.
- Things in nature are contingent therefore there must be something necessary.
William Paley - (1743) Natural Theology
watchmaker Analogy
design qua purpose
- argued that the complexity of the world suggests there is a purpose to it - there must be a designer(God)
If he came across a watch on the ground, he would assume that the complex parts on the watch has a purpose and that it did not come into existence by chance - There must be a watchmaker.
‘Design must have a designer, to whom we call God’
he then widens his argument to the details of the eye. The complexity of the eye alone is further evidence for a designing intelligence.
Epicurean hypothesis
The theory that the world is the chance arrangements of atoms
Weaknesses of the argument of the design/teleological argument
- Complexity does not necessarily mean design -Too vague
- Mill (1806): Evidental problem of evil. The existence of evil and imperfection in the world suggest that there is a limited designer or a morally flawed God. Even if we accept that the world was designed, it cannot be assumed that its designer is God.
- Hume’s (1711) argument that the universe resembles a vegetable more than a machine. due to it organic nature, They grow themselves without the need for a designer. this backed up strongly by the theory of evolution.
- The theory of natural selection (Charles Darwin), shows a way of understanding how species develop without reference to a designer God.
Aquinas archer analogy
An arrow, an unintelligent object, cannot achieve its end goal, of hitting the target without something intelligent guiding it. Therefore, the archer (the intelligent being) has to direct the arrow to fulfil its end goal of hitting the target.
supports inanimate objects in our world. = supports design qua purpose & anthropic principle
prime mover
Aristotle’s names for the first unmoved mover responsible for all order that exits in the universe.
Aesthetic principle
F.R. Tennant (1866-1957)
- Human ability to perceive and appreciate beauty (the universe) at all levels.
E.G, Art, music, literature and culture.
This appreciation of beauty is not necessary for human survival and cannot be a result of natural selection.
(It points to the idea of an intelligent designer.)
Anthropic principle
F.R. Tennnat
- the universe is designed in a way that allows for the development of intelligent life
fallacy of composition
what is true of some parts is not necessarily true of the whole.
(E.G, car type is made out of rubber, therefore the whole car is made out of rubber)
Hume (1711-1776)
(Criticisms for the cosmological argument in his dialogue )
Fallacy of composition:
- just because we observe cause and effect in the universe does no mean this rules applies to the universe itself.
- we have no experience on creating the universe and therefore cannot meaningfully talk about it.
- there’s not enough evidence.
ANALOGY OF THE SCALES:
Doesn’t make sense to say that there was only one intelligent - God. when there cold be a committee of Gods.
Swinburne (supports Anthrophic principle
He points out that the order and complexity in the universe (as the Anthropic principle suggests) cannot be explained by science
