Modern Theology

Ren Descartes

Argument from ThoughtWhere do we get our concept of God?Its the concept of something perfectWe never experience perfectionSo, the concept of God cant come from experienceSo, the concept of God is innateIt must come from something perfectSo, God must exist

Descartess PremiseNow it is manifest by the natural light that there must at least be as much reality in the efficient and total cause as in its effect. For, pray, whence can the effect derive its reality, if not from its cause? And in what way can this cause communicate this reality to it, unless it possessed it in itself?

Descartess PremiseAnd from this it follows, not only that something cannot proceed from nothing, but likewise that what is more perfect -- that is to say, which has more reality within itself -- cannot proceed from the less perfect.

Descartess ArgumentThe cause of the idea of X must have at least as much reality as XWe get the idea of fire from fireWe get the idea of red from red thingsThe cause of our idea of God must have at least as much reality as GodOnly God has as much reality as GodSo, our idea of God must come from God

Descartess Ontological ArgumentGod has all perfectionsExistence is a perfectionSo, God has existence

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)Does God exist?Place your betTotal uncertainty no dataWhat should you do?

Pascals WagerLet us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. Let us estimate these two chances. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation that He is.

Pascals Wager You believe You dont believe

God Heaven Hell

No God VirtueNothing

A bet on God cant lose; a bet against God cant win

Kants Moral ArgumentWe cant prove Gods existence rationallyBut we cant live and act except by assuming that God exists

Kants Moral ArgumentBad things happen to good people; the wicked prosperWhy, then, be good?

Kants Moral ArgumentIts rational to be moral only if its rewardedThat doesnt happen in this lifeIt must happen in another lifeSo, there must be an afterlife, and a just God

Leibniz (1646-1716)

LeibnizPrinciple of Sufficient Reason: Nothing happens without a sufficient reason.So the universe the series of contingent causes must have a sufficient reason for its existence:Something which is its own sufficient reason for existing: God

Leibnizs ArgumentThe world of efficient causes:

. . .

Sufficient ReasonBy the principle of sufficient reason, everything exists for a reason, including the entire series of contingent causes Take the entire history of the universe, finite or infinite, and ask why it existsWhy is there something rather than nothing? Why is this particular history actual? There must be a sufficient reason for the entire universe. And that is God

Material v. SpiritualThe sufficient reason for everything cannot be the universe itself, or anything material, since matter is indifferent to existence or nonexistence It must be something outside the realm of the material, temporal world that explains the existence of everything else There must be something spiritual that explains the existence of everything, spiritual and material And that can only be God

Three Kinds of EvilMetaphysical evil: the evil of anything in comparison with God, who is the most valuable beingMoral evil: evil done intentionally by human beings or other moral agentsNatural evil: evil in the universe for which no moral agent (other than perhaps God, the Creator) is responsiblefor example, disease, old age, and death

Best of All Possible WorldsGod is the omnipotent Creator of everything God is omnibenevolent, or all-lovingSo, this, the universe that God has created, is the best of all possible worlds

Metaphysical EvilThere is metaphysical evil just in there being a universe at all Thus Gods omnipotence and omnibenevolence are compatible with metaphysical evilGod, being omnibenevolent, would create a universe just to let creatures have their day in the sunThus metaphysical evil is not just compatible with an all-loving God; it is explained by Gods loving-kindness

Moral EvilMoral evil brought about by agents other than God results from free willFree will is itself something good Free-will theodicy: freedom is a valuable attribute of a creatureGod does something good in creating beings who are free Thus given a God who is omnibenevolent and the assumption that it is likely some with free will will sin, then moral evil is to be expected, too

Natural EvilThe main problem is natural evildisease, old age, and deathLeibniz contends that the universe is so complex, and its parts are so interdependent, that changing its structure to eliminate these natural evils would result in something even worse

James Branch CabellThe optimist proclaims we live in the best of all possible worlds; and the pessimist fears this is true.

Voltaire

Candide (1759)Voltaire mocks Leibnizs view as Candide and his Leibnizian friend, Dr. Pangloss, witness the Seven Years War, the Lisbon earthquake, and other misfortunes

Panglosss TheodicyPoor Vision: It is demonstrable that things cannot be otherwise than as they are; for as all things have been created for some end, they must necessarily be created for the best end. Observe, for instance, the nose is formed for spectacles; therefore we wear spectacles.

Panglosss TheodicyVenereal Disease: ... it was a thing unavoidable, a necessary ingredient in the best of worlds; for if Columbus had not caught in an island in America this disease, which contaminates the source of generation, and frequently impedes propagation itself, and is evidently opposed to the great end of nature, we should have had neither chocolate nor cochineal.

St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Aquinass Design ArgumentAll bodies obey natural lawsAll bodies obeying natural laws act toward an endTherefore, all bodies act toward an end (Including those that lack awareness)

Aquinass Design ArgumentThings lacking awareness act toward a goal only under the direction of someone aware and intelligentTherefore, all things lacking awareness act under the direction of someone aware and intelligent: God

Aquinass Design ArgumentAll things lacking awareness act under the direction of someone aware and intelligentThe universe as a whole lacks awarenessTherefore, the universe as a whole acts under the direction of someone aware and intelligent- namely, God

William Paley (1743-1805)

William PaleySuppose you find a watchIntricateSuccessfulYoud infer that it had an intelligent makerSimilarly, you find the universeIntricateSuccessfulYou should infer it had an intelligent maker, God

David Hume (1711-1776)

Humes CriticismsAnalogy isnt strongUniverse may be self-organizingWhy machine, rather than animal or vegetable?

Humes CriticismsTaking analogy seriously:God not infiniteGod not perfectDifficulties in natureCant compare to other universesMaybe earlier, botched universesMaybe made by committee

Humes SkepticismVariability: Many hypotheses are possibleUndecidability: We have no evidence that would let us select the most probableSo, we cannot establish Gods existence

This is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)

This is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)This is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)his is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)Description: James Branch Cabell, April, 1935Photographer: Carl Van VechtenCredit Line: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Van Vechten Collection, reproduction number {{{2}}}.As the restrictions on this collection expired in 1986, the Library of Congress believes this image is in the public domain.However, the Carl Van Vechten estate has asked that use of Van Vechten's photographs "preserve the integrity" of his work, i.e, that photographs not be colorized or cropped, and that proper credit is given to the photographer. For more information consult Restrictions on Van Vechten Photographs. (Wikipedia)This is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)This is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)Subject David HumeArtist Allan RamsayYear 1766Location Scottish National Portrait GalleryType Oil on CanvasThis is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:Public domain This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. (Wikipedia)