Main arguments Flashcards
What is the key problem with God being omniscient?
If he knows all of our thoughts, then that must mean we have no free will, and we observe that free will is a natural fact.
What is the formal argument against God and free will?
1) God knows beforehand everything that men will do.
2) Some actions of people are free.
What is the formal argument against God being immutable and omniscient
1) God isn’t subject to change
2) God knows everything
3) A being who knows everything also knows everything in time.
4) A being that knows things in time is subject to change.
5) Therefore, God is subject to change
What is the main problem with God being omnipotent?
The Paradox of the Stone. ‘Can God create a stone too heavy fot him to lift?’
What is the main problem with god being eternal?
If god is outside of human time, then he would not be able to interact with it.
What is the main problem with god being everlasting?
If he is in time, that means he is subject to change, as he moves with time, therefore, he is not immutable.
What are the arguments for the eternal nature of god from modern scientist perspective?
Stump and Kretzmann use the example of the observers of the train to highlight the different ways in which minds can experience time.
What is the problem of evil?
how can a God who is all-powerful, all-good, and all-knowing allow suffering and evil to occur in the world?
What is the Euthypro dilema?
It is the dilema that either morals are laid down by God because they are either:
1) good, and therefore God tells us to do them, which means there is a good outside of God.
2) Good because God tells us to do them. Which means we may be subject to a cruel God who claims cruel actions are ‘good’ simply because he has control over morality.
What was Aquinas’ response to the paradox of the stone?
It was the response that you do not limit god by asking him to do impossible tasks, because the tasks themselves are illogical, and therefore do not really exist. It is not god who lies at fault, it is the task.
