Aquinas cosmological argument essay. St. Thomas Aquinas' Cosmological Argument: [Essay Example], 893 words GradesFixer 2022-10-14

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The cosmological argument, also known as the argument from causation, is a philosophical argument that seeks to prove the existence of God based on the concept of causality. One of the most famous proponents of the cosmological argument is the 13th-century Catholic philosopher and theologian Thomas Aquinas. In this essay, we will examine Aquinas's version of the cosmological argument and evaluate its strengths and weaknesses.

Aquinas's cosmological argument can be found in his work "Summa Theologica," where he presents five ways to prove the existence of God. The first three ways are versions of the cosmological argument, and the fourth and fifth ways are versions of the teleological argument (the argument from design). The first way, which is the subject of this essay, is based on the concept of motion.

According to Aquinas, everything in the universe is in motion. He argues that every motion must have a cause, and that this cause must itself have a cause, and so on. Eventually, we must reach a "first cause," or a cause that is not itself caused by anything else. Aquinas asserts that this first cause must be God, since God is the only being that exists independently of anything else.

Aquinas's cosmological argument has several strengths. One of the main strengths is its simplicity. The argument is based on the basic concept of causality, which is something that most people can understand and relate to. Additionally, the argument is logically sound, as it follows a logical chain of reasoning from the observed fact of motion to the conclusion of a first cause.

However, Aquinas's cosmological argument also has some weaknesses. One of the main criticisms is that it relies on the assumption that every motion must have a cause. This assumption is not necessarily true, as it is possible that some things may be self-caused or uncaused. Additionally, the argument does not prove that the first cause is necessarily God, as other philosophers have suggested alternative explanations for the first cause, such as an eternal, self-existent universe or a multiverse.

In conclusion, Aquinas's cosmological argument is a classic example of a philosophical argument that seeks to prove the existence of God based on the concept of causality. While the argument has some strengths, such as its simplicity and logical structure, it also has some weaknesses, such as its reliance on assumptions and its inability to prove that the first cause is necessarily God.

Aquinas’ Cosmological Arguments Essay

aquinas cosmological argument essay

The argument contends that it is not just coincidental, but in fact designed that way, by an omnibenevolent God who fine tuned these values to suite us. As an a posteriori argument which is based on human experience, it satisfies human assumptions. This piece of writing is known to talk about the relationship between God and man along with questions and articles to show that God truly exists. Therefore, since there had to be a beginning, the first mover is God. Therefore, a necessary being is required to bring the universe in to existence — where all things are contingent and in turn unnecessary, God is by contrast a necessary being as he is not contingent upon anything else.

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Cosmological Argument Essay

aquinas cosmological argument essay

The regular order is: the first causes the intermediate and the intermediate causes the last. Everything that exists on earth is a contingent being. However, our observations tell us that something does exist, therefore there is something that must exist, and Aquinas says that something is God. These are the two most known objections to the Cosmological Argument. For this to follow Aquinas has to exclude the possibility of infinite regression; i. It is only logical to assume someone with extraordinary abilities including omnipotence, omnipotent, and omnipresent, could have caused the universe to exist. Aquinas reasoned that since there are things in the world that are more perfect than others, there must be something that is the most perfect being imaginable.

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St. Thomas Aquinas Cosmological Argument

aquinas cosmological argument essay

The arguments, however, do not prove the Christian God as described by the Bible. The first three arguments given by Aquinas are the Cosmological arguments and have been discussed here. Like a fire is actually hot, and the wood is potentially hot. Movement is the act of transforming potentiality to actuality. The argument also ascertains, the use of potentiality to actuality, because if not for the first occurence there would not be second occurrence. If there was no initial cause then, there would be no first effect. This type of casual relationship is what Aquinas had in mind.


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Argument Against Aquinas ' Cosmological Argument

aquinas cosmological argument essay

He would do the same in which to examine the physical world around him in order to gain his knowledge or understanding of the world. If so many people believe in these religions, God must exist and must be the first cause. Seeing as the argument is hinged upon the assumption that this is impossible, disregarding this assumption therefore dramatically reduces the strength of the argument. The only thing that could cause the universe is an uncaused, powerful, and intelligent being that we call God. Cosmological arguments focus on the idea that because there is this vast universe with an infinite amount of galaxies, God or a higher being, must have had a hand in creating the world and universe we live in.

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Aquinas Cosmological Argument

aquinas cosmological argument essay

P1 Everything in the universe is contingent on something else. Thomas Aquinas has given a posteriori argument on the existence of God and provides five reasons that prove His existence. Some proofs explaining the existence of God should be dismissed because they are not valid. So, it is verified that the first cause does exist and it is God. Therefore if there is an infinite regress of creators, then there is no first creator or cause which ultimately results in there being no God.

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Aquinas Cosmological Argument Essay

aquinas cosmological argument essay

Once wood turns into fire, it has passed its potentiality and became into existence, an actuality. Although all these arguments make strong cases for the existence of God, I will focus on the first three. Furthermore, every necessary being is either necessary in itself or caused to be necessary by another necessary being. In this case the wind is the prime mover. The first argument from change is built of eight premises. Therefore, the world could not have simply appeared out of nowhere.

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Aquinas Cosmological Argument for Existence of God Free Essay Sample on webapi.bu.edu

aquinas cosmological argument essay

I think this was of his most powerful arguments because it makes the most sense logically. In the same thinking one could say that based on his arguments he is not allowed to assume there is no God. To further substantiate, another reason for believing that God is the first mover is that the first mover cannot move itself. In accordance with human logic, things in existence are indeed caused by other things; we are made by our parents, mountains are made by tectonic plate movement etc. Although it can be argued this fallacy of composition does not always apply in every circumstance, there is no way of ensuring that it does not apply in terms of the whole universe, and in turn the soundness of the cosmological argument cannot be ensured. The rationale behind this school of thought The Cosmological Argument Or First Cause 440 Words 2 Pages The Cosmological Argument or First Cause Argument is a philosophical contention for the presence of God which clarifies that everything has a cause, that there more likely than not been a first cause and that this first cause was itself not caused.

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St. Thomas Aquinas' Cosmological Argument: [Essay Example], 893 words GradesFixer

aquinas cosmological argument essay

There are three main types of arguments that explain the existence of God. It is true that, by human, a posteriori logic, things must indeed have a cause which exists outside its own essence or self. C There must be a First Cause the source of all causes and this we call God Aquinas argues that nothing can cause itself because if something were the cause of itself it would have to be prior to itself, which is impossible. One clear strength of the arguments is its appeal to human logic and reason. Evaluate the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Cosmological Argument for Proving God Exists.

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