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COSMOLOGICAL ARGUMENT - Coggle Diagram
COSMOLOGICAL ARGUMENT
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Aristotle's influence
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potentiality vs actuality e.g., coal is the potentiality and burning coal is the actuality
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Weaknesses
- there is no proof that God exists
- there are lots of inductive leaps + there is no imperical evidence (HUME)
- the world could simply be infinite (RUSSEL)
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- quantum physics shows that something (atoms) can actually come from nothing
- the cosmological argument alone cannot stand as proof for the existence of the universe (BRIAN DAVIES)
Strengths
- provides a level of evidence for the classical theistic God (characteristics)
- science shows that the universe must have had a beginning
-> can be combined with other theories e.g., Big Bang Theory
- the train carriage analogy (J.L.MACKIE)
- provides a sense of hope with something to believe in
- a strong deductive argument with a solid conclusion (RICHARD SWINEBURN)
- a posteriori argument which is understandable e.g., everyone experiences cause + effect
Hume's Criticisms
- why should EVERYTHING have a cause?
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- the fallacy of composition
- if everything has a cause then what is the cause of God?
- why should we reject infinite regress?
George Cantor: maths/numbers are able to be infinite, so why can't causes be?
- why does it have to be the classical theistic God?
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Aquinas 3 ways
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P3. because everything exists now, there must be a necessary being who we rely on/provided it for us
C1. this being must be eternal and unchanging, it must be God