All movement depends on there being a mover. (movement meant growth, melting, cooling and heating.)- The rime mover causes the movement but not as an efficient cause, as a final cuase.
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What was the first 3 of Aquinas' 5 ways?
1. Motion/Change 2.Cause- The uncause causer. 3. Contingency.
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Explain the idea of motion/ change.
An object has the potential to become something different, so movement (or change) is the fulfilment of it. Nothing can be potential and actual at the same time. Whatever is moved must be moved by another which cannot go on forever. ***
5 of 17
Explain the idea of Cause and effect.
The uncaused causer- Nothing could be the efficient cuase of itself- it would already have to exist in order to exist (impossible). Therefore there must be a first cause, caused by no other. This is God.
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What is infinite regress?
A chain of events that goes backwards forever.
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What is efficient cause?
What causes motion and change to start/stop.
8 of 17
Explain Contingency.
The world consists of contingent beings which at one point did not exist, if everything didn't exists then there would have been nothing that could bring anything into existence. Therefore there must have been a necessary being= God.
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What does Contingent beings mean?
Beings that depend on something else for their existence.
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What does necessary beings mean?
beings which, if they exist, cannot not exist- they aren't dependent on anything else for existence.
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How is Aquinas' rejection of infinite regress important?
It runs through all 3 arguments but is unpacked in 3rd- Contingent beings cannot regress infinitely as they are temporary.
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What does the philosopher Gottfried leibniz argue?
The principle of sufficient reason.
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What is the principle of sufficient reasom?
There is some sort of reason, known or unknown, for everything.
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What are the two understandings of cause?
In fieri- becoming, commenced but not completed. in esse- in being, actually existing.
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What is the Kalam argument?
form of the CA that is islamic in origin and dates back to about 850ce.
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What does the Kalam argument argue?
For a temporal first cause- Whatever begins to exist has a cause. The universe began to exist. Therefore, the universe has a cause.
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