Teleological Argument
- Created by: ClarissaFray
- Created on: 13-12-16 12:03
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- Teleological Argument
- The teleological argument of Aquinas
- Aquinas' fifth way is know as the Teleological Argument (from the Greek 'telos' meaning purpose)
- Things that lack knowledge cannot achieve anything unless directed by someone with knoweldge
- This suggests that there is a being hat directs all things
- For Aquinas, there is an intelligent being that directs everyone towards a purpose - who is called God
- All natural occurences show evidence of design
- The argument attempts to show that the universe is being directed towards a telos and that there is evidence of intelligent design in the world, which infers the existence of a designer
- Aquinas' fifth way is know as the Teleological Argument (from the Greek 'telos' meaning purpose)
- David Hume's criticisms
- Hume's second argument
- It is very possible that the world came about by chance
- This is due to either chance or design
- The world is ordered
- Hume's first argument
- There is great design in the world
- Great design implies a great designer
- Therefore, there must be a great designer - God
- To speak of design is to imply a designer
- Furthermore, Hume says that there is nothing in the argument to suppose that there is only one creator - there may a team of lesser Giods that built the world
- This supports paganism
- Hume set out two versions of the design argument and then criticised them
- Hume also supported the idea of natural selection
- He proposed that it was entirely possible that a series of random adaptions made in order to survive led to the apparent intelligent design of humans
- Hume argues that this analogy in fact implies a superhuman, anthromorphic concept of God, which is inconsistent with the notion of perfection.
- Also, the world is imperfect and flawed. Does this imply an incompetent designer?
- Hume's second argument
- William Paley's argument 'Natural Thelogy'
- Design qua purpose
- Stone-natural could have been there for years
- Watch-Multiple parts-different =different purpose. Complex for chance.
- Reproducing watches-if designer make watch that could reproduce itself perfectly then increased awe. Compare world where millions reproduce daily more interested by world designer
- Eye-specific design
- Watch-Multiple parts-different =different purpose. Complex for chance.
- Stone-natural could have been there for years
- Design qua Regularity
- Further evidence at universe regularity
- Motion of planets-if gravity stronger or weaker humans might not exist
- Design qua purpose
- Darwinist challenges
- Richard Dawkins
- Natural selection gave the appearance of design, which led to the mistake of assuming design in the universe
- Supported Darwin by saying that random mutations in DNA alone gave rise to variation in the world.
- Charles Darwin
- Apparent world design result of natural and random process.
- Theory of Natural Selection- fittest and healthiest survive and procreate.
- Steve Johns 'A series of successful mistakes'
- Ex: Longer necked Giraffe eat more lives, survives and procreates. Shorter necked dies
- Richard Dawkins
- J.S Mill's criticism
- Questions God's omnibenevolenence and worthiness of worship not existence
- Example: Claws, poison weapons designed to cause pain and parasites creatures survive by feeding off others
- 'Nearly all the things which man are hanged or imprisoned for doing to one another are nature's everyday performance'
- The teleological argument of Aquinas
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