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Two cosmological arguments for the existence of god: aquinas' argument from efficient causes and leibniz's argument from sufficient reason. Aquinas argues that there must be a first efficient cause, while leibniz suggests that the entire series of dependent beings requires a self-existent cause, or god.
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Typology: Summaries
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Basic idea: there has to be a reason or cause for everything, and this is God.
Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274): “There are five ways in which one can prove that there is a God.”
The second way is from the nature of efficient causes. For we find in observable things that there is an order of efficient causes. Nevertheless, we do not find—nor is it possible—that something is the efficient cause of itself; for then a thing would be prior to itself, which is impossible. However, it is not possible that efficient causes go on to infinity. This is because in any order of efficient causes, the first is the cause of the intermediate, and the intermediate is the cause of the last, whether the intermediate cause consists of many or only one. Now if the cause is removed, the effect is removed. Therefore, if there were no first efficient cause, there would not be any final or intermediate ones. But if the series of efficient causes should proceed to infinity, there would not be a first efficient cause, and so there would not be a final effect, nor intermediary efficient causes, which is clearly false. Therefore, it is necessary to posit some first efficient cause, which everyone calls God. (Aquinas, p. 48.)
Step 1: formulating the argument
Aquinas’s cosmological argument
Causal series: A series of objects in which each object causes the next
Step 2: justifying the premises
Premise 1: we know this from observation.
Premise 2: Let’s trace the causes of a forest fire (say), back as far as we can:
spark fire
How will this process end? With a self-caused thing?:
spark fire
…we never observe, nor ever could, something causing itself, for this would mean it preceded itself, and this is not possible. (Aquinas, p. 48)
Could it go back forever?:
spark fire
However, it is not possible that efficient causes go on to infinity. This is because in any order of efficient causes, the first is the cause of the intermediate, and the intermediate is the cause of the last, whether the intermediate cause consists of many or only one. Now if the cause is removed, the effect is removed. Therefore, if there were no first efficient cause, there would not be any final or intermediate ones. But if the series of efficient causes should proceed to infinity, there would not be a first efficient cause, and so there would not be a final effect, nor intermediary efficient causes, which is clearly false. (Aquinas, p. 48)
Clark’s argument
Justification of 1: a self-existent thing can’t be made of dependent parts
Justification of 2: the PSR implies that the aggregate must depend on some- thing; and that something would need to be very powerful.
Principle of Sufficient Reason (PSR) Anything that isn’t self-existent de- pends on something
Advantages over original argument:
But one can object to the PSR: all explanations end somewhere; why not stop with the whole material world, rather than with God?