Craig's Kalam Argument

Question 1

What types of infinity does it deal with?

Answer 1

Actual infinity and potential infinity

Question 2

What does he demand we do?

Answer 2

Gain an appreciation for the different types of infinity.

Question 3

What is actual infinity?

Answer 3

Fairly obvious, that time goes backwards forever and forwards forever. Time is infinite and has reached infinity.

Question 4

Does Craig want us to accept actual infinity?

Answer 4

No, his cosmological argument relies on us rejecting actual infinity.

Question 5

What is the first issue of actual infinity? Explain it.

Answer 5

The infinite bookcase. Standing on an X in front of an infinite bookcase, looking left there is an infinite amount and looking right there is an infinite amount. In removing one book, you can place an infinite amount of books in its place. There is an infinite amount of blue and an infinite amount of red.

Question 6

What conclusion does the Infinite Bookcase argument come to?

Answer 6

That actual infinity is logically impossible and leaves us in a state of complete uncertainty.
Says that it lets us justify ridiculous things like “if i take away an infinite amount of books then I have an infinite amount of books left”

Question 7

What is the second issue of actual infinity? Explain it.

Answer 7

Zeno’s Paradox. Achilles vs a tortoise, despite being 2 times faster, he will never catch the tortoise, and will only ever half the distance between them. He can get closer, but can never reach him, resulting in an infinite gap between them.

Question 8

What conclusion does Zeno’s Paradox come to?

Answer 8

The conclusion that if actual infinity is the case, then we can never live in the present moment.

Question 9

Why does Craig say actual infinity cannot be true in terms of our existence in the present moment?

Answer 9

• Because if we exist in the present moment, then an infinite amount of time ought to already have happened, which is impossible.
• It makes the time between now and one second forever, which is again impossible and not true.
• If time is infinite, then it is impossible that we live in the present, however Craig says we DO, therefore infinite time is not the case.

Question 10

What does the rejection of actual infinity mean for time?

Answer 10

That it must have a start

Question 11

What is his solution to actual infinity?

Answer 11

Potential infinity

Question 12

What is potential infinity?

Answer 12

Taking specific bits of actual infinity and making them finite, e.g. making the infinite bookcase finite.

Question 13

What does infinity act as in potential infinity? What does this mean?

Answer 13

Something to head towards, meaning the thing heading towards it must have a start.

Question 14

What is the frozen planet example?

Answer 14

Uses the CAUSE of freezing conditions to produce an EFFECT of a frozen planet, showing that an actually infinite mechanical cause leads to an actually infinite effect.

Question 15

Explain the Kalam Argument in full.

Answer 15

Whatever exists has a cause. The universe exists therefore it has a cause.

Question 16

Why is the Kalam argument not very helpful?

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Answer 16

At most, it establishes the universe HAS a cause, yet says nothing about a deity, or anything about the NATURE of said cause.

Question 17

What does Craig say the starting point cannot be? What must it be instead?

Answer 17

Mechanical, personal

Question 18

What does he say about personal agents? What does this mean for the universe’s creation?

Answer 18

That they do not cause an actual infinite effect. As no scientific explanation can come up with a causal account for the creation of the universe, the cause must be a personal agent (God).