4 Ontological Arguments for the Existence of God

All arguments outlined below are ontological and thus deductive- if one accepts the first premise they are also forced to accept the conclusion, as the argument is tautological (I.e. the conclusion is already implicit within the premises). Ontological arguments work by proposing a definition and then analysing it in order to 'draw out' implicit propositions.

ST ANSELM

• 1033-1109
• Aimed in his book the Proslogium to find a single proof of God's existence that a) demonstrated God's existence and b) made God dependent on nothing else ('supremely good').
• Made two ontological arguments.

First Argument:

• God is the greatest possible being ('that than which nothing greater can be conceived')
• It is greater to exist both in the understanding (imagination) and in reality, than merely in the understanding.
• Ergo the greatest possible being, God, must exist in both the understanding and reality.

Further explanation

Anselm argues that a being with the highest ontological status must exist both in the mind and in reality. It is undeniable that God exists in the mind because we already have a concept of him. Anselm asks us to consider what is greater: a conceptual God or a real one with real power to perform miracles and create the universe?

Criticism- Gaunilo

• A monk who wrote On behalf of the fool in response to Anselm
• Suggests that Anselm's argument is deductively invalid (I think): Argues that, using Anselm's method, anything can be defined as existing if it is said to have the property of being…