Moral Philosophy- the concept of God

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what does necessary mean?
not reliant on other things
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what does contingent mean?
reliant upon other things
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what are Gods divine attributes?
omniscient, omnibenevolent, omnipotent, necessary, maximally great, unchanging, personal (have perfect intellect and will)
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what does Descartes believe about Gods omnipotence?
things are the way they are because God wills them to be this way. God has the power to change things, but not the will.
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What does Aquinas believe about God?
God can do anything which is logically possible. (cannot change law of mathematics). PROBLEM- God cannot sin, this is logically possible.
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why can't God change?
because he is all perfect and outside the chain of causation. if he changed, it would imply he needs to change for the better or the worse, and he can't do either. it is not limiting, but self-contradictory of his attributes. also without a body.
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What is the paradox of the stone?
can God create a stone which God cannot lift?
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who responds to the paradox of the stone?
George Mavrodes
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what are the first 2 options?
either he CAN create the unliftable stone-not omnipotent. or he CAN'T create an unliftable stone - not omnipotent
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what are the second 2 options?
so either God is not omnipotent, or God is omnipotent and the paradox is a contradiction!
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who challenges Mavrodes on his response to the paradox?
Wade Savage
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what did Wade Savage conclude?
that God can create a stone God cant lift. he says we can still believe in an omnipotent being as there is no evidence to prove otherwise.
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what is the argument from omnipotence and supreme goodness?
that to do evil is to fail to be supremely good. if God is good, then he can't do evil. so if God is good, there is something he cannot do. so God can't be supremely good and omnipotent.
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what are the 3 solutions?
1.God has the power to do evil, but wills it not. 2.there is no 'power' to commit evil, God just chooses not to. 3.Aquinas says evil is a lack of good. God doesn't lack the power,so he can't commit evil.
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what does the euthyphro dilemma challenge?
Gods supreme goodness
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What is the euthyphro dilemma?
1.that either God commands what is good. 2. an action is good because God commands it.
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explain the first response:
that good exist apart from God(he doesn't control it), so there is an objective good, then God cannot be omnipotent as something exist beyond him he has no control over.
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explain the second response:
so there is only good because God commands it - like a divine dictator. therefore, for example if God commands **** is good, then **** is good. so saying 'God is good' is just saying God does what he wills.
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what does immutability mean?
unchanging
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what does eternal mean?
God exists outside of time, is timeless, atemporal, has no past, present or future.
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what does everlasting mean and what are the problems?
God exists within time, so allowing a God who interacts with his creation. (then the implication is that he must change and therefore cannot know everything)
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what is Aquinas' take on Gods immutability?
that everything is in the chain of causation, in motion towards its final purpose, in a state of potentiality. God is outside this chain,and is pure actuality! things in movement are in parts, and God is perfect not made up of parts
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are omniscience and immutability compatible according to Aquinas?
yes, because God is outside the chain of causation, he cannot gain or lose knowledge because he is immutable. being outside time, God doesn't see things in a linear way, he sees all things at once
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who criticises Gods immutability and omniscience?
Norman Kretzmann
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what does Kretzmann say?
a perfect being is immutable and omniscient, a omniscient being always knows what time it is, this being is then subject to change. therefore there is no perfect being.
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what are the objections to Kretzmann?
that Gods knowledge is not changing, he knows everything at once.
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what is free will and why is free will important for the theist?
it is the freedom to choose our actions. it is important
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what does Aquinas say on Gods omniscience and free will?
1. that necessarily, if God knows it, it is true. 2.if God knows it, it is necessarily true.
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what does necessarily true mean?
it could not have been otherwise-independant
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what does a contingent truth mean?
dependant on other things
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in conclusion of Aquinas:
God doesn't see in past, present or future. it is just fact for him, and he is timeless
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What does Kenny do?
rephrases Aquinas
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what does Kenny say?
Gods knowledge is necessarily true, not the preposition. God has knowledge of contingent truths, they are separate.
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

what does contingent mean?

Back

reliant upon other things

Card 3

Front

what are Gods divine attributes?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

what does Descartes believe about Gods omnipotence?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What does Aquinas believe about God?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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