If the Teleological Argument was a play...

Act 1, Scene 1

Thomas Aquinas in a field, with a bow and arrow. He is firing at a target. William Paley sits nearby, playing with a broken watch. Hume can be seen in the background. He is engaged in reading a large book, entitled “The Idiot’s guide to Quantum Physics”.

Aquinas:              Paley?

Paley:                   Yes, Aquinas?

Aquinas:              What would you say if I told you I was God?

Paley:                   (looks puzzled) Are you okay?

Aquinas:              You see the target?

Paley:                   Yes, Aquinas...

Aquinas:              The target is what God aims for, you see, and he uses the arrow to reach it.

Paley:                   Ah, yes, I see. And what is the arrow?

Aquinas:              Creation.

Paley:                   So you’re saying that God uses creation to a reach an end goal... Telos?

Aquinas:              Exactly. That’s why everything follows rules, the laws of nature if you will. It is this regularity in the movement of the arrow that ensures it reaches the target God directs it towards.

Paley:                   So would I be right in saying that the universe was designed to fulfil a teleological purpose determined by the designer God?

Aquinas:              Yes, I can see how that would work.

Paley:                   And the universe behaves according to some order in order to ensure the fulfilment of this purpose?

Aquinas:              Yes,…