Kalam argument Flashcards
Give a quote from the Qur’an that supports the cosmological argument and explain how it does.
“Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of night and the day are signs for those of understanding.” In the creation of heavens and the earth refers to how they have come into existence.
According to Turner, what do Muslims believe about creation?
Muslims believe that everything in creation is dependent upon the will of Allah. If God was to withdraw His creative power from anything, then it would immediately cease to exist.
What does Malebranche say about actions?
“No man can lift his arm” - humans cannot create an action if they do not know how it works. All they can do is will the action and then God creates the action for him/her.
What do Muslims believe about creation?
Muslims believe that as contingent things do not have the power or knowledge to keep themselves going, God must ensure that they are kept going. This is continuous creation. Ultimately, therefore, God is causing everything to happen - he creates, re-creates, sustains and annihilates.
What would Dawkins argue sustains life?
Life is sustained due to the conditions in nature being right to sustain life i.e. it is nature that keeps humans going not God. Conditions are just right to sustain life and that is due to chance. Evolution ensures that life is sustained through survival of the fittest.
What would Tennant argue sustains life
Would argue that too many conditions have to be just right to sustain life (anthropic principle). There has to be a mind behind this.
What does al-Baqillani argue?
Argued that we can observed identical things coming into being at different times. If coming into existence is caused by an intrinsic quality, then all identical things should come into being at the same time. However, this is not the case and must be caused by something external as this ability is not a part of the thing itself.
What is the Kalam argument in its simplest form?
Everything that begins to exist has been caused to exist by something else. The universe began to exist and so must also have a cause. Therefore, the universe has a cause which is outside of itself. This is God.
What scientific support is there for the Kalam argument?
Science supports a start - red shift came from a point in a finite past. Borde-Vuth-Vilenkin, any universe which has been expanding - cannot be eternal but must have an absolute beginning.
What is Craig’s analogy of the library?
Imagine a library with an infinite number of books. If you add a book to it or loan one out, it still has an infinite number of books in it (you cannot add to or take away from infinity). If every book was taken out, the shelves would still have to be full if it is an infinite library.
How does Craig use his analogy to support the Kalam argument?
In our universe we add events, and we add time. We are always adding to the universe in some way. If the universe was infinite, we would not be able to do this as you cannot add to infinity. This suggests that the universe is not infinite. Craig says that infinity is simply a mathematical concept. It does not exist in reality.
What does Hawking argue against the first premise?
That the universe came from nothing. It appeared out of the laws of gravity. There was no need for a God. He is challenging the first premise - that the universe has a cause - by saying that it does not have a cause, it came out of nothing.
How does Hawking argue against the second premise?
Time started with the Big Bang. As all causes need time in which to happen, the universe cannot have been caused.
What does Graham Oppy argue?
Disagrees with Craig and the Kalam argument about infinity and claims it could exist in reality.
What does Taymiyya argue about infinity?
Says that there is no evidence against infinite regress.
