Sample Essay On The Existence Of God
In philosophy, there are different views of the existence of God. Some of the views suggest the belief that no personal God exists. Others believe that God does exist while others believe that maybe God’s existence is based on human knowledge. There are three arguments that seek to prove the existence of God through explanations of events and proof. The arguments include ontological, cosmological and teleological all of which base their argument on different aspects that they try to explain. The paper will analyze each argument and identify its main idea.
The ontological argument tries to prove God’s existence by basing its idea on the concept of God and the perception of his existence in a non-physical state. In its main idea, it proves that God does exist. It capitalizes God’s characteristics to prove his existence rather than physical presence. In the argument, Saint Anselm acknowledges that God is a greater being than man and, for this reason, the idea of God existing justifies that indeed he does exist. Once an argument is raised concerning an unknown entity, according to Anselm, it means that the unknown does exist and after that the people will actually believe the unknown is in existence or real. The argument’s critics assume that it is greater and more real to be in existence in a physical state unlike not being in existence at all as they paint the picture of an inexistent God.
The cosmological argument argues the position of the cosmos and possibilities that could define existence, for this reason, giving the idea of God existing. In the argument, it indicates that for the cosmos system to exist there must be a beginning that gave rise to it. It is impossible that something can rise out of nothing and that whatever the explanation for the universe’s origin, for instance, has an origin from a being or something that existed before it. That is argued relatively to the description and observation of how things occur. In the argument, theists believe that there was a primitive matter that gave rise to the cosmos and this idea tends to explain the possibility of having a cause behind the existence of the primitive matter. In the second part of the argument, it is argued that every being in existence or pre-existence is either dependent or self-existing. That means there is a being that is independent and has a characteristic of self-existence. The value of self-existence itself classifies the being as exceptional; unlike the known that are dependent. The being is God.
The teleological argument is based on the mother origin. It is also based on the idea that the order that characterizes analogy has a divine origin and that the existence of the natural order in itself presupposes a divine cause behind it. Though the order of the natural things explains human thinking, the argument supposes that this is inclined similarly to that of the author of the order though it varies in wisdom and intelligence. The argument bases much on the nature and the physical characteristics that it illustrates in uniformity and uniqueness. The human development was used as an example that defines the pre-defined order of nature. Kant thought of presenting the argument as though there is a designer behind the order and the sequence. He indirectly mentions the existence of God, but all the prospects into the argument suggest that there is a greater being behind nature and beyond human intellectual capacity.
The ontological argument offers the most plausible justification for the existence of God. That is because according to the presumed nature of God, there is a stated nature that calls for consideration of God the idea and God the being. In this argument, the notion of existence solely is a matter of idea by the human beings. Similarly, it is stated that the God of Barbarians is a Barbarian, and so God who exists as an idea is an idea of human beings. Human existence has been viewed more in the context of a purpose rather than physical presence, and that is described as life. Life is an idea that has extraordinary characteristics that cannot be completely substantiated. Similarly, God is an idea rather than a physical character, and that is why his existence gets to be regarded as more of an idea. In the monotheistic hypothesis, the minimalistic definition that combines the belief of various theistic groups or movements to give a common stand is the teaching of God the idea. It achieves this by explaining the intangible characteristics and not much about the physical characteristics and attributes. In the ethics of belief, it has been argued that the evidence is what brings about arguments on the correct things or aspects. However, it is justified in some cases where the evidence cannot be tangible or definite. In that case, the existence of God is not an acceptable belief argued without tangible evidence, but on the basis of ideas best explained by the ontological argument.
The ontological argument justifies best the existence of God and to date the dominant factor in his existence is the idea. The common factor that presents in diverse human thinking, perception, and belief is that they are all inclined to having God existing as an idea greatly before physical presence (Peterson, 2014).
The arguments brought forward concerning the existence of God are inclined towards painting a picture of God as good with decent attributes. That gives rise to an assumption that classifies any other factor contrary to goodness as evil. The arguments in support of God’s existence cannot be separate from the attributes of being all-good, all-powerful, all-knowing, as the creator and the idea that evil exists. Evil is argued to be as a result of either God being not all-powerful or God’s responsibility. Since it is in existence, it raises doubts about God’s perfect nature. The first problem pointed out was that evil is the source of unhappiness pain and suffering. It is debatable defining evil as an aspect that characterizes the absence of goodness. The best response to the aspect of evil and its existence is by St. Thomas, who argued that evil is necessary for good. He categorically stated that for anything to be considered good, evil must exist. He gives an example of the idea of undergoing physical pain to obtain good health for a person with dental problems. The argument is logical considering that every judgment that human beings raise is all about good and bad with the degree of goodness reliant on the measure of evil involved. For instance, in religious matters, individuals preach against evil to bring out good. The argument sets good and evil as standard factors that evidently exist (Swinburne, 1998).
References
Peterson, G. (2014). Proof God Exists: His World is Flawless. Bloomington, IN: West Bow Press.
Swinburne, R. (1998). Providence and the Problem of Evil. New York: Oxford University Press.
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