The Cosmological and Teleological Arguments for God

God: What We’re Not Talking About

God: What We Are Talking About

The arguments for & against the existence of a supernatural

– Force.

– Being.

– Intelligence.

– Designer.

– Cause.

– Logical and/or physical necessity.

Conversations about the Existence of God

How can we decide whether God exists or doesn’t exist?

Are there rational arguments that demonstrate that God exists or doesn’t exist, or at least that its existence/non-existence is probable?

Are questions about God’s existence/non-existence questions that can/should be approached empirically?

Evidentialism.

Nonevidentialism.

Theism, atheism, and agnosticism.

Fideism.

Conversations about the Existence of God

How do we determine whether or not to believe?

Why do we want to determine whether or not to believe?

Why does the question about whether or not to believe remain and why do we believe we can find an answer?

Cosmological Argument: First Cause

The world contains things whose existence depends on some cause.

Everything that exists is either uncaused or caused to exist by another thing.

There cannot be an infinite regress of causes.

So there must be an uncaused first cause.

An uncaused first cause is what we mean by God.

Therefore, God exists.

Which seems more plausible?

The series of causes producing present events can be traced back infinitely, never leading to a first cause.

The series of causes producing present events can be traced back to an uncaused cause.

Cosmological Argument: Principle of Sufficient Reason

Everything that exists has a reason for existing (but not necessarily a purpose).

The reason something exists or does not exist may be known or unknown.

PSR: Contingent and Necessary

Something “created” is something contingent on its creator—i.e. the created thing depends on a creator for its existence.

A contingent thing cannot be its own cause or its own creator.

A contingent thing may or may not exist—i.e. it is finite, destructible, and not necessary.

All the things in the world and the world itself are contingent.

A necessary thing does not depend on anything outside of itself for its existence and nothing can prevent it from existing.

It is uncaused, indestructible, self-sufficient, and independent.

God is the necessary being on which the existence of the world depends.

Why is there something rather than nothing? 4 Options

1. The universe is just “there” and that is all we can say.

2. The universe came into being out of nothing.

3. Every event had a cause that preceded it in the past, and this series goes back in time forever.

4. A necessary being (God) created a contingent universe.

Teleological Argument/Argument from Design

The universe exhibits an apparent design, that is, the ordering of complex means to the fulfillment of intelligible goals, ends, or purposes.

We have usually found a purposive, intelligent will to be the cause of such design and order.

Therefore, it is reasonable to conclude that the universe was caused by a purposive, intelligent will.

The Watch and Watchmaker

Universe is Like a Watch Universe is Unlike a Watch

Problems for the Teleological Argument?

Weak analogy.

Choice of intelligence as cause is arbitrary since there are many other causes of events.

Composition fallacy.

Have to have knowledge of how worlds are created to judge whether this world was created.

A finite, imperfect world does not necessarily imply an infinite, perfect creator.