Ontological Argument Flashcards
Is it analytical?
Yes
It is ________ to deny God’s existence.
nonsense
Once you understand the meaning of the word ‘God’…
you must recognise his existence.
Who is the main advocate of the OA and what were his dates?
Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)
In which book did Anselm write his OA?
Proslogian
What was Anselm responding to?
Psalm 14:1, where there is a ‘fool’ that denies God.
In Anselm’s 1st OA, God is…
TTWNGCBC
To Anselm, existing in reality and the mind alone is better than…
the mind alone.
To have an idea of God as the greatest being…
proves his existence. (1st OA)
Existence is a necessary and intrinsic _________ of God (1st OA)
predicate
What is Anselm’s 2nd OA?
Something which cannot be thought not to exist is greater than anything which CAN be thought not to exist.
According to Anselm’s 2nd argument, it is impossible to…
say that God cannot exist.
If you say that God doesn’t exist…
you are contradicting yourself.
God has… (2nd OA)
necessary existence, not contingent.
If God existed contingently, he would not be great because…
he would rely on something else for existence.
Gaunilo’s response to Anselm was ‘on behalf of…
the fool.’
To Gaunilo, saying God cannot not exist does not prove that
God necessarily exists.
How did Gaunilo describe Anselm’s theory?
‘Unintelligible’
Gaunilo - You cannot move from what is said (de dicto) to…
what exists (de re)
What example did Gaunilo use and what does it mean?
Perfect island. Just because it is perfect doesn’t mean it exists. This applies the same way to God.
How did Anselm reply to Gaunilo’s “on behalf of the fool”? How did Plantinga add to this?
He said an island isn’t necessary, it has contingent exist.
Plantinga said there is no intrinsic maximum island, it can always be bettered.
What book was Descartes’ OA in and what were his dates?
Meditations 3+5
1596-1650
Descartes - God planted an idea of himself in…
everyone.
Descartes - God cannot be doubted as he has already been…
demonstrated.
What example did Descartes use in his OA? Explain it.
Triangles
Existence is a predicate of God, the same way 3 sides is a predicate or a triangle.
Descartes - If God was not perfect…
his essence isn’t complete.
What was Kant’s challenge to Descartes’ OA?
Existence is not a predicate.
Kant on OA - Just because a part of God’s concept is existence…
it is still a synthetic concept. We need evidence.
