main arguments Flashcards
1
Q
arguments in favour of Plato’s forms
A
- explains the puzzle of change
- the ideal standard
- the one over many argument
2
Q
arguments against Plato’s forms
A
- no empirical evidence
- process and change doesn’t need a solution
- lack of clarity to the forms
3
Q
arguments in favour of the four causes
A
- most objects seem to conform to the idea
- they tell us whether something is doing its job correctly or not
4
Q
arguments against the four causes
A
- a weak form of empiricism
- relies on the idea of telos
- seems to oversimplify the world
5
Q
arguments for Aristotle’s Prime Mover
A
a better solution to a christian God?
6
Q
arguments against Aristotle’s prime mover
A
- does not seem to be empirical
- a generally unappealing idea
- we can reject the idea of a telos
7
Q
arguments for the teleological argument
A
- the unlikelihood of chance
- the importance of faith
8
Q
arguments against the teleological argument
A
- we can reject the idea of telos
- the challenge of evolution
- evidence of design does not equal a christian god
9
Q
arguments for the cosmological argument
A
- the importance of faith
- modern science suggests there is a definite beggining to the universe
10
Q
arguments against the cosmological argument
A
- evidence of a designer does not mean we can jump to a christian god
- must everything have a cause
- the concept of a necessary existence
11
Q
arguments for the ontological argument
A
- Anselm’s argument
- Anselm’s reply to Guanilo
- modern variations
12
Q
arguments against the ontological argument
A
- Kant’s criticisms
- Guanilo’s criticisms
- more modern criticisms along the same line
13
Q
arguments that religious experience can act as the basis for belief
A
- mystical and nouminous experiences
- conversion experiences
14
Q
religious experiences cannot be used as the basis of belief
A
- conversion experiences do not provide proof
- too big a leap from positive effects to a christian god
- physiological or psychological explanations
15
Q
corporate religious experience is convincing
A
- more people to back it up
- better a group than an individual ‘favourite’
16
Q
corporate religious experiences are not convincing
A
- trivial acts
- individual experiences tend to have more lasting and profound effects
17
Q
is personal testimony enough for religious experience
A
- people should be believed
- but rather the effects should be studied
- they may still have scientific explanations
18
Q
arguments for Augustine’s theodicy
A
preserves the omnibenevolent nature of God
19
Q
arguments against Augustine’s theodicy
A
- not really a theodicy
- doesn’t fit with God’s nature
- the issue of religious language
20
Q
arguments for Hick’s theodicy
A
- overcomes many of the weaknesses of Augustine’s argument
- evil is a tool of God
- in line with modern interpretations of Genesis
- universal salvation
- gives a purpose to natural evil
21
Q
arguments against Hick’s theodicy
A
- evil may have a purpose but why is it so extreme
- issues with universal salvation
- issue of religious language
22
Q
overview of the evidential problem of evil
A
- William Rowe’s argument (Sue and Bambi)
- Stephen Fry
- open theists defence but Anselm’s objection
- Wykstra’s parent analogy
- Plantinga’s defence using free will and love
23
Q
overview of the logical problem of evil
A
- Epicurus: is God willing… etc.
- JL Mackie triad
- Romans 11:34 (‘who has known the mind of the Lord?’)
- the two main theodicies
- Leibniz’s best of all possible worlds theodicy: despite the existence of seemingly gratuitous evil, our world is the best one God could have created because it leads to the greatest good
24
Q
the three approaches to God’s omnipotence
A
- he can do the logically impossible
- he can’t do the logically impossible
- he technically can but he has self-imposed limitations
25
two views on God's omniscience
atemporal
sempiternal
26
issues with God's omnibenevolence
omniscience and omnipotence: if God knows about future evil and can stop it then why doesn't he
27
arguments for the apophatic way
avoids anthropomorphic talk of God
28
arguments against the apophatic way
1. does it provide any meaningful discussion of God
2. undermines the importance of evangelism
29
arguments for the cataphatic way
1. resolves issues of the apophatic way
2. method of analogy is not dissimilar to scripture
30
arguments against the cataphatic way
everyone interprets analogies differently
31
arguments for symbols
preserves the transcendency and mystery of God
32
arguments against symbols
1. everyone interprets symbols differently
2. the fact our idea of symbols changes over time might mean our idea of God does as well
33
strengths and weaknesses of Plato's view on the soul
**Strengths**
- innate knowledge: the story of the uneducated slave boy suggests we have knowledge from our past lives
- the linguistic argument: ‘i am happy’ vs ‘i have a body’ - suggests we are not our bodies
**Weaknesses**
- you also say 'I have a headache'...
- Wittgenstein said language has gone on holiday
- all criticisms of materialists
34
Descartes' thought on dualism
- med 1 (doubt all things) med 2 (cogito ergo sum)
- Leibniz's law, mind and body can't be the same
- the soul exists in the pineal gland
35
materialists arguments
**Gilbert Ryle**
- belief in the soul was making a category error: when something is talked about in completely the wrong way and belongs to a different category entirely
- called substance dualism ‘the dogma of the ghost in the machine’, the idea that it is impossible for a non-physical soul to interact with a physical body or brain, a ghost cannot operate a machine
**Dawkins**
- the soul is a mythological invention to explain the mystery of consciousness
- modern science will one day explain it (soul 1 v soul 2)
**Daniel Dennett**
- the mind is a computational system, a more mechanistic understanding
**neuroscience**
- states of consciousness are affected by brain chemistry like depression, one day we will be able to explain everything
36
property dualists
**Susan Blackmore**
- rejects the idea the conscious is non-physical but accepts it is ‘the last great mystery in science’
**Frank Jackson**
- having a thought or experiencing pain cannot be reduced to a specific location in the brain even though they are caused by the brain
**John Searle**
- mental states caused by the brain’s physical processes but are not reducible to them
37
Aristotle and Aquinas' view on the soul
**Aristotle**
- the soul is a property that is possessed by the body but is not additional to it (football)
**Aquinas**
- Integrated Aristotelian philosophy with Christian theology, emphasising the unity of the soul and body and advocating for the soul’s immortality
