as philosophy - cosmological argument notes (compatible)

7/29/2019 As Philosophy - Cosmological Argument Notes (Compatible)

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Yamina Hamadache


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The Cosmological argument:

The world consists ofcontingent things

(things which rely on things external to them

for existence) Everything is a result of a cause, in a long

causal chain (chain of causes)

Infinite regression the chain of causes going

back forever cannot happen. So something MUST have set this chain into

motion. This thing must be external to the

causal chain (uncaused) and is known as God.


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Three of his five ways (published in his SummaTheologica) outline versions of the CosmologicalArgument.

First Way: Change/Movement change in an object is

always caused by an external movement nothingcan change itself. These movements go back in acausal chain, but Aquinas said this chain cannot beinfinite so there must be something which set offthis chain of movements, an unmoved mover PrimeMover (God).

Things change to fulfil their potential. If things couldchange themselves they would be both actual andpotential. Aquinas believed this to be contradictory.God has no potentiality, just actuality as he is all hecan be.


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All effects can be accounted for by causes

to cause itself something must pre-exist

itself which is impossible. Each cause has a

cause, which has a cause, and so on. Thiscausal chain cannot regress infinitely, so

there must have been an uncaused cause,

i.e. God.


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The third way addresses the CosmologicalArgument from the point of contingency:

All things are contingent; they rely onexternal things for their existence.Contingent things come in, then out, ofexistence whereas time is infinite (which is asupposition made by Aquinas) therefore theremust have been a time when there was

nothing. Nothing comes from nothing, sothere must have been something to bring allcontingent things into existence Anecessary being, known as God.


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Coplestone: Nothing has within itself a sufficientreason to explain its existence the sufficientreason is always external to the object. So, theUniverse must have an external sufficient reasontoo.

Russell: Just because an object within the worldneeds a sufficient reason, doesnt mean theUniverse should as well. That is like saying we allhave a mother so the Universe must have amother. Some things dont need a reason, they

just are and require no explanation. Coplestone: Famously replied one cannot be

checkmated if one refuses to sit at thechessboard


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Originally developed by Muslim scholars inthe 9th century, William Lane Craig developed

a modern version of this argument in his

book, The Kalam Cosmological Argument.

It seeks to prove that God was creator of the

Universe, and is therefore Cosmological.

This argument has two parts.


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In an actual infinite universe there can exist

no present, as successive events cannot be

added to an actual infinite.

The present does exist due to a series of

successive events in history. Therefore the Universe is not infinite, but

finite.

A finite Universe must have a beginning (as

all finite things do) Things cannot cause themselves.

The Universe had a first cause.

God caused (created) the Universe


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If there was a beginning to the Universe, itwas either caused (brought into existence byan external being) or uncaused (a naturaloccurrence). Supporters of the Kalam

argument reason that it cannot be a naturaloccurrence, as the laws of nature only cameinto existence with the Universe.

The Kalam argument relies heavily on belief

in ex nihilo. If the Universe came fromnothing, then the beginning of the Universemust have been the beginning of time. So,the creator of the universe must be outsidetime (God)


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It is logical to assert, from our life

experience, that things do not bring

themselves into existence.


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Both Aquinas and Craig reject the possibility of an infinite

in regards to the universe, yet postulate that an infinitebeing can exist.

Anthony Kenny argued that in Aquinas First Way hisassertion that nothing moves itself is wrong, as a) animalsand humans move themselves, and b) Newtons law ofmotion states that movement can be explained by a bodys

own inertia from previous movement. Russell and Hume argued that the Universe need not have

a cause at all (see R&C radio debate)

Recently, Quentin Smith used quantum mechanics to arguethe idea of something needing a cause. He said that justbecause the Universe has a beginning, doesnt mean it

needs a cause. Kant believed it impossible to extend the knowledge we do

have to make assumptions about that beyond ourexperience (God). He argued that the idea that everythinghas a first cause applies only to the world of sense-experience.

It implies existence of the Classical Theistic God, but whynot many gods or some other being?


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Actual infinite - A mathematical concept

referring to numbers of things with an

infinite number. It is not growing, as it is

infinite already. A part within an actualinfinite is equal to the whole set...as it is

infinite. (Craig argued that the universe

cannot be an actual infinite, because that

would mean there are as many wars as

events in time)

Ex nihilo The belief that the world/universe

was created from nothing.

as philosophy - cosmological argument notes (compatible)

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