The Ontological Argument
- Created by: Kathdent98
- Created on: 04-02-16 14:51
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- The Ontological Argument
- Introduction
- Analytic: God is true by definition
- Onto = existence
- A priori argument: logic and first principles are used
- Deductive: the argument leads to proof
- Anselm (1033-1109)
- Gaunilo
- Just because you can imagine a God, doesn't mean he exits in reality. Athetists believe he isn't there, who is right?
- He illustrated this throuhg the example of a perfect island. There canb always be a better island with an extra tress, likewide no ultimate being of maximal greatest, such as this idea of God cna exist.
- Proslogian Chapter 2
- God is; "that than which no greater being can be conceived."
- God exists in both the mind (in intellectu) and in reality (in re)
- Anselm writes from the perspective of faith seeking understanding
- The argument's form is actually a prayer to God
- Untitled
- God is; "that than which no greater being can be conceived."
- Proslogian Chapter 3
- Proof by contradiction has three premises
- 1. God is greater than anything else
- 2. For something to exist, it must either exist in the mind only or in mind reality
- Therefore, for God to exist the greatest than anything else, he must exist in reality.
- 1. God is greater than anything else
- 3. It is greater to exist in mind realit than mind only
- God exists continginently, not necessarily
- Therefore, for God to exist the greatest than anything else, he must exist in reality.
- 3. It is greater to exist in mind realit than mind only
- Proof by contradiction has three premises
- Gaunilo
- Descartes (1596-1650)
- He compared the essense of a triangle (three sides) to that of God and his three omnis
- If God is perfect then it means he must exist
- He compared the essense of a triangle (three sides) to that of God and his three omnis
- Kant (1724-1804)
- Kant states that existence is not a predicate (characteristic)
- 'Existence' doesn't give us any information about the being to be able to identify it in any way. You cannot treat existence as part of a definition
- God's existence is different from anything else in the world, because God is necessary
- Aquinas (1224-1274)
- There are different definitions of God, we have finite understanding and cannot fully know God.
- Aquinas viewed his Five Ways as a more dominant argument
- Russell (1872-1970)
- He claims that ANslem used the word "exist" incorrectly.
- Existence is not a predicate and by using it he is creating a syllogism which can be broken down easily.
- Plantiga (1932)
- 1. There is an infinte number of possible worlds
- 2. Somewhere a being of maximal greatness is likely to exist
- 3. If the being is of highest gretaness then they must exist in all possible worlds
- Therefore God exists!
- 3. If the being is of highest gretaness then they must exist in all possible worlds
- 2. Somewhere a being of maximal greatness is likely to exist
- 1. There is an infinte number of possible worlds
- Malcolm (1911-1990)
- He reformed Anslem's ideas
- If God does not exist he cannot come into existence. Liekwise, if God does exist he cannot cease to exist
- God has necessary existence. Therefore he must exist. It is a contradiciton to say he doesn't exist
- You have to accept that God is a necessary being i order to come to the conclusion that he must therefore exist. It is a circular argument.
- Introduction
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