The Ontological Argument - Scholars

The Ontological Argument - Scholars

Immanuel Kant

* Definition of God = synthetic
* Propositions about existence are synthetic, therefore God's existence is synthetic and needs to be refined
* Existence is part of the concept of God (analytic statement) but doesn't prove he exists in reality
* Existence is not a predicate, unicorn analogy The Triangle Argument
* A triangle has three sides with three angles that add up to 180 degrees.
* If you dismiss any of these predicates it would no longer be a triangle.
* You can define anything but whether it matches your definition in reality is another matter.

* Kant also argues that existence is not a 'predicate'. For example, one can have an idea of what a unicorn is. However, that does not mean it exists in reality, even though we can think of unicorns as living creatures.
Another way some philosphers put this point is to say that Kant is saying what existence is part of the concept of God (an analytic statement) but it does not prove that God exists in reality.

Thomas Aquinas

Aquinas rejects claims that the existence of God is self-evident to human…