Teleological (design) Arguments

Question 1

Summary of Aquinas’ argument (his 5th way)

Answer 1

• design ‘qua’ (understood as) regularity
• even from a biblical account of creation there is regularity
• can only achieve regularity through design and this creates the best possible outcome
• objects must have been directed by nature to achieve their purpose
• analogy of the archer

Question 2

Paley’s argument

Answer 2

• watch analogy shows the world is complex and ordered
  => must have been made by an external power/designer ie: God
• universe and natural things have the same property of order as a watch => must have had a designer
• even if we had no experience of it being designed, we can infer that it was indeed designed

Question 3

Behe’s argument

Answer 3

• irreducible complexity: eye is so complex that evolution is not a satisfactory explanation for how it came about, we can’t be reduced to a simple explanation such as evolution
  CP: sounds simple but the process of it is complex due to the length of development
• claims that you need a designer great enough to create a universe in all life forms i.e.: God

Question 4

Hume’s criticism

Answer 4

• order is a necessary part of the world’s existence
• not enough to say the world is orderly meaning God designed it => he exists
• cause and effect (Aquinas) doesn’t work, we only have the effect, the cause is hidden from us
• we cannot have experience of what things might have been as our universe is so unique => undermines whole teleological argument

Question 5

Mill’s criticism

Answer 5

• looking at the world there is a large amount of suffering

- EITHER: God is incompetent => is not the God of classical theism OR there isn’t a designer

Question 6

Swinburne’s argument

Answer 6

• God is the only satisfactory way that we can explain the fact that the universe allows life to evolve
• all scientific explanations presuppose laws => means they have no explanation and is a very unphilosophical way to argue
• simplest explanation for evolution is God, particularly the God of classical theism because its complexity suggest omnipotence and omniscience

Question 7

Define the teleological argument

Answer 7

• a posteriori and inductive (its evidence leads to a probable conclusion) reasoning for the existence of God

Question 8

Difference between strong and weak anthropic principle

Answer 8

• strong = universe is structured necessarily/fundamentally to allow human existence, intelligent life would always arise
• weak = it is less remarkable as the conditions allow human existence

Question 9

F.R Tennant argument

Answer 9

• unlikeliness of us being here makes it evident that there must be a designer to allow our existence
• uses strong anthropic principle to support design argument

Question 10

Kant’s criticism

Answer 10

perhaps order and complexity is just a human perception, we may impose it on the world