Arguments For The Existence Of God: Paley's Design Argument Flashcards
Paley’s argument is “a posteriori”, what does this mean?
An Argument that is based/dependent on sense experience
Paley’s argument is “empirical”, what does this mean?
An Argument based on the senses
Paley’s argument is “inductive”, what does this mean?
An Argument based on probability
Paley’s argument is “analogical”, what does this mean?
An Argument that is based on a comparison between two things
Paley’s argument uses the approach of “natural theology” (also the name of his book), what does this mean?
Natural Theology is the view that questions about God’s existence and nature can be answered by reasoning, observation and science
What are the 3 observations of the world that Paley bases his argument on?
- Complexity
- Purpose
- Regularity
Explain Paley’s Watchmaker analogy
You are on a stranded island and come across a watch. A watch cannot occur by itself as it is so complex in nature meaning there must be a watchmaker. The universe is the most complex thing in existence meaning there must a universe maker
What are some illustrations Paley gives to support his argument?
- The eye is superbly adapted for vision
- The fins and gills of fish are perfect for living in water
- Birds bones, feathers and wings are perfect for flight
- There is regularity in the universe such as the orbits and the seasons
Give a quote from William Paley’s Natural Theology
“The marks of design are too strong to be gotten over. Design must have had a designer. That designer must have been a person. That person is GOD”
Hume’s Criticism 1: Rejection of the idea of design
Hume believed that mechanistic analogies are inappropriate, why?
- Analogies are deliberately chosen because they encourage the idea of a designer
- Living organisms would be a more appropriate as they don’t require an explanation in terms of a designer
(remember Hume died before Paley published his natural theology)
Hume’s Criticism 1: Rejection of the idea of design
Hume believed that apparent order may be due to chance, why?
- The constantly changing arrangements of atoms over time makes it inevitable that the order would eventually emerge
- The universe may also alternate between periods of order and chaos and we may just be in a period of order
(remember Hume died before Paley published his natural theology)
Hume’s Criticism 2: Little can be said about any designer
Hume believed that the mechanistic analogy is anthropomorphic why?
- Humans have no knowledge of how universe are made nor do we have the capabilities or nature of any universe designer
- The designer is not necessarily the God of Christian Theism - the designer may be a mortal who is long dead or maybe it is a group of designers
(remember Hume died before Paley published his natural theology)
Hume’s Criticism 2: Little can be said about any designer
What does Hume say about the problem of evil?
- The existence of so much natural and moral evil in the world is evidence of a flawed design
(remember Hume died before Paley published his natural theology)
What are some weaknesses of Paley’s design argument?
- Claims made by theism about the nature of God go beyond any evidence we have
- Existence of evil suggests a malevolent or incompetent designer
- Apparent order, purpose and design may be just chance
- Universe could have ‘designed itself’
What are some strengths of Paley’s Design Argument?
- Swinburne argued the existence of a single omnipotent God may be the simplest explanation
- Paley said evil may be unavoidable for God to bring about good
- Evolution itself requires explanation so we cannot argue it is the simplest explanation
- Anthropic Principle: God fine tuned the universe for us
How can Paley’s design argument offer proof of God?
- Inductive: most things we accept as true are inductive as they are accepted as ‘true beyond reasonable doubt’
- Laws of nature require explanation
- Multiverse theory is just as unlikely as it is likely meaning we are simply basing it on a probability. Occam’s Razor would argue that Paley’s argument may be a simpler explanation
How can Paley’s Design Argument fail to offer proof of God?
- Only deductive argument can give absolute proof so Paley’s argument can never be certain
- Paley’s observation to support his argument can be explained naturally such as the rotation of planets being due to gravity. Apparent design may just be pure chance
How is Paley’s Design Argument helpful for religious faith?
- Paley’s argument is rationally and empirically based
- Consistent with biblical teaching of a ‘guiding hand’
- Theist cannot proof God but Atheists cannot disprove it either
- Follows H.H Price ideas that religious faith should include ‘belief in’ and ‘belief that’
How is Paley’s Design Argument unhelpful for religious faith?
- Doesn’t combat the problem of evil
- Fideists believe rational arguments play no part in faith as they do not lead to commitment
What does H.H Price mean by ‘belief in’ and ‘belief that’?
Both are necessary to faith.
- ‘Belief that’ is the acceptance of propositions about something
- ‘Belief In’ is an attitude of commitment and trust
