The Ontological Argument

The ontological argument

·         St. Anselm’s argument from A priori knowledge

·         Nothing is more perfect than God

·         Derived from the bible section Psalms 14 – 53

ANSELM’S BELIEF

·         God is a being than nothing greater can be conceived

·         Something that exists is bound to be greater than something that just exists in thought

·         If there’s no being greater than God, God must exist in reality as well as thought

GAUNILO

·         Contemporary of Anselm and a fellow monk

·         Believed in God but though Anselm’s argument was flawed

·         All our experiences are gained through the senses (A Posteriori knowledge) senses show us things aren’t perfect…