Cosmological Arguments Flashcards
A priori
Knowledge acquired through reasoning alone
A posteriori
Knowledge acquired through experience
Deductive
The truth of the premises means that the conclusion must be true
Inductive
The truth of the premises means the conclusion may be true but not necessarily
Cosmological arguments - Plato
Some things have the power to move or change both themselves and others (primary movers)
Others could only move or change once they had been moved (secondary movers)
Only souls can be primary movers, therefore whatever causes the universe to change must be a soul
The universe is dependent on an intelligent primary mover
Cosmological argument - Aristotle
An unmoved mover is the ultimate cause of the universe.
He argues that the chain of causes and effects in the universe could have no beginning with no ultimate cause, however, in this case nothing would cause the chain. As nothing comes from nothing, and nothing caused the chain, there would be no chain at all. However, there clearly is a chain of causes and effects, therefore there must be an ultimate cause to start the chain.
Aquinas’ 5 ways
First way – the argument from motion (or change)
Second way – the argument from causation
Third way – the argument from contingency
Fourth way – a type of moral argument
Fifth way – a type of teleological argument
The argument from change (or motion)
All objects have the potential to change and become different
For example, a block of marble has the potential to become a statue.
However, in order for this potential to become actualised, a third party has to be involved – in this case a sculptor.
Aquinas uses the example of a piece of wood that has the potential to become hot but needs fire to actualise the change.
Aristotle called the third party who actualises the potential the efficient cause. This must be in a state of actuality (exists in reality) in order to make anything else change.
The argument from causation
We can observe in the universe the law of cause and effect, and that these form a chain that could go on forever.
However, Aquinas rejects the infinite regress of causes and argues that cause and effect need an explanation that lies outside the chain (otherwise the effect would be prior to its cause, which is illogical)
Therefore an uncaused causer, outside the laws of cause and effect is required to start the chain. This is God.
Carl Sagan
The idea that God is an oversized white male with a flowing beard who sits in the sky and tallies the fall of every sparrow is ludicrous. But if by God one means the set of physical laws that govern the universe, then clearly there is such a God. This God is emotionally unsatisfying… it does not make much sense to pray to the laws of gravity…
Contingency
Having the possibility to not exist
Cosmological arguments from contingency
Cosmological arguments claim that it is impossible for everything to be contingent.
Although everything in the universe is clearly contingent, there must be a non-contingent being (i.e. a necessary being) upon which the contingent universe is dependent – this is God
The argument from contingency
Things in the world are contingent (they pass in and out of existence)
If everything was contingent; then there was once a time when everything had passed out of existence
Then there would be nothing now
Therefore not everything can be contingent, there must be at least one thing that is necessary
There must be a necessary being which causes and sustains all other necessary and contingent beings – this being we call God.
Bertrand Russell
Calls the universe a ‘brute fact’, stating that it requires no explanation
The Kalam argument
Everything that begins to exist has a cause for its existence
The universe cannot be actually infinite must have had a beginning
The universe requires a cause
The cause must have been a personal being capable of choosing to cause the universe
God is the cause of the universe
Hilbert’s infinite hotel
A hotel with an infinite number of rooms that were all occupied.
A new guest turns up
In a hotel with a finite number of rooms there would be no room, but in Hilbert’s hotel, the guest in room 1 could be moved to room 2 and so on, making room for the new guest
The universe is potentially infinite
