Cosmological Argument. The forms of cosmological arguments - Essay Example

Cosmological Argument Introduction A cosmological argument attempts to prove the existence of God. The argument attempts to do this by showing that an infinite number of regressions that caused things to exist, is not there. The cosmological argument usually asserts that God is the final uncaused cause of all things. Cosmological arguments usually strive to explain the existence of God in many forms. Many philosophers in the past, from Aristotle and Kalam to Aquinas, tried to argue the existence of God in different ways (Taliaferro 21). The several forms of cosmological arguments usually explain the existence of God in the following ways: that there is the existence of things, that it is possible for the same things not to exist and that those that are non-existing, yet they exist, must have been caused to exist. On this note, it is an illogical fact that things cannot bring themselves into existence since they must exist to bring themselves into existence. The argument shows that an infinite number of causes that can bring something into existence cannot exist. This is because there is no initial cause of an infinite regression of causes, meaning that the cause of existence is not there. Cosmological arguments try to prove that the universe has a cause since it exists. This shows that all things have an uncaused cause, and the uncaused cause must be God (Craig and Moreland 52). The most successful cosmological argument is Thomas Aquinas’ argument of contingence. Aquinas (1225–1274) was a theologian born in Medieval Europe. He read works of Aristotle and developed the most influential version of the cosmological argument called the argument of contingency. He was a Christian philosopher who argued and proved the existence of God in several ways. One of his most successful works that proved God’s existence was the Summa Theoligiae, which proved the existence of God in five ways. The first way was the argument from motion, the second one was causation of existence, the third one was the argument of contingence, the fourth one was the argument from degrees and perfection, and the fifth one was the argument from intelligent design. Even though the model of contingence is the modal cosmological argument, his work Summa Theoligiae is based on five arguments in which the argument of contingence is one of them. One has to use all the five arguments since all of them form the basis of his argument (Craig and Moreland 56). The Argument from Motion Using the works of Aristotle, Aquinas through observation, concluded that any moving object is able to move because another supreme object or supreme force makes it move. He observed that there must have been a mover that was making the objects move. This mover must have been unmoved and it must have been God. Aquinas believed that of all the things that were moving, none could move itself. This means that nothing can move itself. He also noted that in order that all objects to be in motion, the first object to be in motion needed a mover. He also said that the mover was unmoved and was God and that movement cannot last forever. Aquinas believed that all things must be at rest and motion is unnatural. According to him, motion is any change that occurs, for example, growth, rotation, etc. He concluded that a supernatural power must have put the state of motion (Craig and Moreland 61). The Argument of Causation of Existence In the argument of causation of existence, Aquinas said that it was logical that nothing can create itself. There must have been a previous object, which created it. This first object must have been uncaused cause and it must have been God. He concluded that causation of all things that exist, are other things and that nothing can be the cause of itself. The things that cause other things to exist cannot be an endless string of objects; therefore, the first uncaused cause is God (Craig and Moreland 63). The Argument of Contingence The argument of contingence is the modal argument. Aquinas argued that an uncaused cause must have caused the universe and asserted that the uncaused cause was God. He argues that there must be a cause of existence. A cause that is supreme must exist for all other things to exist. Aquinas said that there are two beings that exist in the universe: the contingent being and the necessary being. The contingent being can only exist if the necessary being causes it to exist. He asserted that a necessary being must exist for all the contingent beings to exist. The necessary being is the uncaused cause, which is God. In his conclusion, he said that a necessary being causes all contingent beings and the necessary being is God (Craig and Moreland 65). The Argument from Degrees and Perfection Aquinas argued that all qualities have a perfect standard measure. Whether something is good, beautiful, wise, or has other good qualities, there must be a perfect standard, in which all fall. This he referred to as gradation of quality. Aquinas discussed his argument on the basis of comparing the qualities of things and noted that some things have a higher degree of quality than others do, but there is a perfect standard for them all. He concluded that all perfect qualities are contained in God and the perfect standard is God. The Argument from Intelligent Design The last argument by Aquinas explains the order of nature and the universe. He states that since the universe is perfectly designed, the designer must have been intelligent and perfect. No one can conclude exhaustively how the universe works and this shows the highest order of intelligence not found in human beings or other creatures. The creator must have intelligence that is beyond measure. He put in place all the physical laws in nature, life and order. The intelligent being is God (Craig and Moreland 66). Criticism of Aquinas’ Version Other philosophers in Aquinas’ time criticized his version. They argued that his argument had one weakness in that if all things must have a cause for them to exist, then the cause that causes things to exist also needs a cause to exist. Their criticism, however, does not make sense since it pushes causation back and tries to show that the causes of existence are many, which is impossible. Another criticism that came up is that all human beings have a mother who causes their existence. This criticism, however, does not make sense since even the mothers came from mothers and there must have been a first mother (Taliaferro 91). Effectiveness of Aquinas’ Version Aquinas cosmological argument is self-explanatory. It is the simplest and the most effective cosmological argument. The concepts are easy and allow quick comprehension. The concept that there is only one cause of all causes and that the existence of an infinite number of causes is impossible makes sense. Aquinas has clearly asserted that objects cannot bring themselves to existence. They cannot move by themselves, be perfect by themselves, or be as intelligent as the designer who designed the universe. Aquinas’ cosmological argument is logical, and the fact that there is a supreme being, who has to exist for the rest to exist, makes sense (Cohen). In conclusion, a cosmological argument is an argument that attempts to prove the existence of God. The argument attempts to do this by showing that an infinite number of regressions that caused things to exist, is not there. The cosmological argument usually asserts that God is the final uncaused cause of all things. The most successful cosmological argument is Thomas Aquinas’ argument of contingence. One of his most successful works that proved God’s existence was the Summa Theoligiae, which proved the existence of God in five ways. They include the argument from motion, the argument of causation of existence, the argument of contingence, the argument from degrees and perfection, and the argument from intelligent design. Works Cited Cohen, Martin. Philosophy for Dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2010. Web. Craig, William L., and James P. Moreland. The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology. Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 2011. Print. Taliaferro, Charles. Evidence and Faith: Philosophy and Religion since the Seventeenth Century. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2005. Print. Read More