...Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary The Existence of God; Science As Justification Submitted to Dr. michael chiavone Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary In Partial Fulfillment Of The Requirements For THEO 626 D02 By Daniel Martin Student ID: L25178504 New Orleans, LA December 12, 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page I. Introduction 1 a. Thesis and introductory explanation b. Historical development of doctrine II. Arguments for the Existence of God 3 c. Cosmological Argument d. Teleological Argument e. Anthropological III. Atheism Versus Existence of God 11 f. Evidence used to disprove God’s existence g. The believers evidence to counter IV. Conclusion 13 h. Summary of the arguments i. Applications in the church today V. Introduction The existence of an omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, immutable, monotheistic God has come up against enormous resistance from the beginning of time. Early believers such as Moses, Elijah, Paul, and Peter all had to demonstrate that their God is the one true God at times. These believers even encountered persecution and ridicule for holding on to these beliefs at times. Nevertheless the challenges to these early believers tended to be demonstrating that their God was greater than their accuser’s god or gods. At times, it was through the words of men that the God of the Bible was shown to be greater, and other...
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... Final Paper The Proof that God Exists The greatest question that man has ever asked is “Why”, as philosophers it is the only question that one asks. Since the birth of man kind, the question has been asked “where do we come from”; and since the birth of man kind the answer was simple, someone put us here, a person of higher being, a person often referred to as God. As a philosopher and thinker one can not simply believe in the existence of God, but ask the question why; why does God exist. There are many philosophers who dare to answer the “Why” including Rene Descartes, Immanuel Kant, and Thomas Aquinas. In answering this question there has developed three main arguments that focus on the proof for the existence of God; the Teleological, Cosmological, and Ontological arguments. The most difficult of the three arguments to understand is the Ontological argument, for it is purely logical proof; it attempts to argue from the idea of God to His necessary existence. Simply put the ontological argument attempts to prove the existence of God by stating God exists because he must. “While from the fact that I cannot conceive God without existence, it follows that existence is inseparable from Him, and hence that He really exists. For it is not within my power to think of God without existence.”(Descartes 135) Simply put, in the entire world there is a greatest, a number one, in every aspect of competition there is someone in which never loses. God must exist because there has to...
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...Is proof for the existence of God's necessary? Monica Carter PHI 208: Ethics and Moral Reasoning Zummuna Davis October 3, 2012 When you ask a human how the universe evolved some will say that man created the universe. Next question, how can man create something in outerspace? Now the room is silent, why is that? How can you answer a question that cannot be answered. So why do you need proof that God exist, what will that prove, that people are actually worshipping God, instead of a what people say is an inanimate object. In the beginning God created the heaven and earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters (Genesis 1:1-2). There are many traditional proofs for the existence of God, and we will look at three, the argument from design, the ontological argument and the cosmological argument. There are many ways that the universe might have been, it might have had different arrangement of planets and stars; it might have begun with a bigger or smaller big bang; the vast majority of these universes would not have existence of life. We are fortunate indeed to have a universe that does. The argument of design, picture looking at a rectangular skyscraper and examined the structure within it, you might think that this intricate structure was not the outcome of mere chance, but had been designed. Now look at the universe, is it possible that such...
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...C. S. Lewis once said, “God is not the sort of thing that one can be moderately interested in.” This implies that if God exists humanity ought to find the best way to relate with Him and if God does not exist then there is no need to be interested in God at all. Most theist and atheist philosopher like Camus and Sartre agree that the answer to the question of whether God exists makes a huge difference for man. For example, if there is no God then life ends in death, and therefore our existence is inconsequential. On the other hand, if there is a God, then there a chance/possibility of knowing and relating with Him as part of His creation. This paper therefore seeks to provide reasons that assert the claim that God exists in addition to responding to the popular atheistic theory of theodicy which claims that the problem of evil proves that God does not exist and if He does then He is not good and omnipotent. One of the arguments that theists use to prove the existence of God is the one of the origin of the universe. It relies on the widely popular assertion that the there was a time when the earth was not there. For centuries, human beings have seen themselves faced with the question of why we have everything instead of nothing. Atheists claim that the universe we live in is eternal with no beginning or end and that is all. Surely, that claim is not reasonable. If there is beginning point for the universe then the actual number of events that occurred in the past is infinite...
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...the introduction of religion. Those of religion steadfastly believe in its existence, while those of no religion argue for its nihility. Before science became advanced enough to offer valid input, debate consisted solely of historical knowledge and theory, but now is the time when science can be brought into the equation. Based on scientific evidence as well as historical knowledge and theory, the heavens of Christianity do exist. Undeniable scientific evidence has been found of the existence of God and the Heavens. The small amount of scientific evidence found is not enough to prove existence. In fact, the small amount of evidence is enough to prove existence because...
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...argument, which is the original version, states various facts and statements about the greatest possible being, which is God. The fact is it is a conceptual truth, meaning true and respective to the definition, that God is a being than which non greater can be imagined, being that God is the greatest possible being that can be imagined. God not only exists as a conscious thought but also as an idea in the mind. Leading to the point that a being that exists as an idea in the mind and in reality is, with respect to other things being equal, greater than a being that exists only as an idea in the mind. Thus, if God exists only as an idea in the mind, then we can imagine something that is greater than God that is if a greatest possible being does exist. But we cannot imagine something that is greater than God because it is a contradiction to suppose that we can imagine a being greater than the greatest possible being that can be imagined. Therefore, God does exist....
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...Based on professor Glynn’s lectures the arguments for the existence of God includes the cosmological, Design, and Ignorance and the argument against the existence of God includes the Empirical, Rational, etc. The Cosmological argument shows that you got to keep going backk.It is constantly looking for a source/explaination for everything. Scientist have came to the conclusion of the Big Bang Theory, but where/ who created the Big band? where did th invisible force come from? Is it from the all powerful but invinsible God? Or did it just come out of thin air? This then carries into the next argument where people may just call it pure ignorance. That is when people try to explain an already difficult concept with a more abstract concept with...
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...Three Cases for the Existence of God Whether one is religious or a non-believer, theist or atheist, there are certain things in nature that even scientists can’t seem to definitively explain. In Dr. Bert Thompson’s study, he gives three very arguable cases of proof for the existence of God. The author delves into the three main arguments for the existence of God, which scientists have not been able to completely explain away with logic or reasoning, being able to present the views of both sides without necessarily becoming hostile towards the one or the other. The three cases that are presented for argument are the Cosmological Argument, the Teleological Argument, and the Anthropological Argument. In this paper, I will examine the cases and explain the benefits each gives towards the belief of a Supreme Being. The first case presented was the Cosmological Argument. It is explained that the Cosmological Argument addresses the fact that the Universe is here and therefore must be explained. In the book, Dr. Thompson explains that the Universe is a contingent entity, one that is dependent upon something outside of itself to explain its existence. For scientists, and atheists alike, there is the belief of cause and effect, or rather the Law of Casualty. This law states that every material effect must have an adequate antecedent cause. For scientists, and philosophers alike, this is the foundation of their core beliefs. There can be no effects without an adequate cause...
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...the possibility of an existence of a God. The question most of us don't “know” the answer to is how did the human race come to be? Who or what created it all? Most atheists use scientific facts, and “logical” reasoning to back up their beliefs. If their thinking is so “logical” why is it that Professor Richard Dawkins, a high profile atheist, believes and quoted “nothing created everything”. It isn’t logical to state that something came into existence without an origin or creator of some sort. Atheists will argue that it all began with evolution. They believe the big bang...
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...Does the existence of evil shows God does not exist? Most folks in the world are disheartened by the bitter fact that evil happens. People are astonishment as to why God can exist and at the same time allow the evil we see and experience each and every day in our environs to prevail (Braine 1-10). They fail to fathom the reason why the capable God would by genuine reasons agree to the notion that the power of choice should be bestowed in humans. They claim that if God is really a loving God he ought to allow his creations to decide if he really hopes to see a world where utmost love can subsists at all and they think man may misuse the ability bestowed in him to select acts in a very fierce way that does not concur with the morality principles. The byproduct of a universe where the power to inculcate love in our humanly actions is an option is the widespread ethical evil that is witnessed. Evils of various kinds exit in the world. Most of these evils are referred to as natural evil. Innocent souls die day by day because of natural calamities and tragedies. The effects of maladies, epidemics and pandemics can also not be overlooked. These widespread of natural evil seemingly has no bearing to the actions of the human beings and the types of resolutions that they make in their life time. How then can all these evils that happen be accounted for? Why would God allow such misfortunes to befall His innocent and blameless creation on earth? These burning questions that touch on the...
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...Got Questions What is the Teleological argument for the existence of God? Subscribe to our Question of the Week: Teleological argument Question: "What is the Teleological argument for the existence of God?" Answer: The word teleology comes from telos, which means "purpose" or "goal." The idea is that it takes a "purposer" to have purpose, and so, where we see things obviously intended for a purpose, we can assume that those things were made for a reason. In other words, a design implies a designer. We instinctively make these connections all the time. The difference between the Grand Canyon and Mount Rushmore is obvious—one is designed, one is not. The Grand Canyon was clearly formed by non-rational, natural processes, whereas Mount Rushmore was clearly created by an intelligent being—a designer. When we are walking on a beach and find a wristwatch, we do not assume that time and random chance produced the watch from blowing sand. Why? Because it has the clear marks of design—it has a purpose, it conveys information, it is specifically complex, etc. In no scientific field is design considered to be spontaneous; it always implies a designer, and the greater the design, the greater the designer. Thus, taking the assumptions of science, the universe would require a designer beyond itself (i.e., a supernatural designer). The teleological argument applies this principle to the whole universe. If designs imply a designer...
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...Conversion experience are the strongest evidence for the existence of god William James argued that conversion was “the habitual centre of personal energy” in a person taken over by religious aims but never stated what the habitual centre was. The person who had such an experience was the “undergoer of an outstanding process performed upon him from above. There is too much evidence if this for any doubt of it to be possible”. Despite this he does acknowledge that other factors may be at work. He points out that dramatic emotions show themselves which can feel similar to conversion experiences. There are people with temporary inhibitions which make them refuse to believe but they may change their minds later in life. He believes that it is impossible for some people to ever be converted as religion never comes the centre of their spiritual energy there can be a number of different reasons for this. James maintained one common feature of conversions is the struggle between the personal will and the imperfect sinful self. He sees the in some people the struggle between will and sinful never takes place this but for the people that do experience this whether volitional or involuntary a conversation can only lead to a loss of worry, truths not known before ,and a sense that the world has objectively changed. Even when James saw conversion as a being natural process is still maintained that it was inspired by the divine. Another scholar that studied conversion is Edwin Starbuck,...
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...Examine how the Teleological Argument for the existence of God has developed. The teleological argument is the design argument for the existence of God. The name is derived from the Greek word ‘telos’ which means “end” or “purpose”. This theory speaks about things in the universe that appear to fulfil a purpose. Such design could not have occurred by chance, the only explanation has to do with references to an intelligent, personal being. This makes it an ‘a posteriori’ argument. The origin of the teleological argument dates back to the ancient Greek philosopher Plato (424-348 BCE) who believed in a pre-existent universe. He believed that the universe wasn’t created by an intelligent being which he referred to as the ‘demi-urge’. Instead his theory stated that the demi-urge did not create the universe ex nihilo, he simply developed a universe which he already existed in. For Plato, this was a rational explanation as to why there’s order in the world rather than chaos. Aristotle (384-322 BCE) who was a student of Plato also contributed to this theory. He considered that based on all that can be observed in the world and the stars above, the only explanation for all the complexity and beauty that the world contains was a divine intelligence. He believed that there was a first unmoved mover who is responsible for all order that exists. Such a God was also viewed as possessing intelligence, goodness, eternity yet remained incorporeal. St. Thomas Aquinas (13th century) adapted...
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...must be a designer. The word telos from teleological means purpose and purpose links in with Aristotle’s ideas of causality. The argument has two sides one being Aquinas’s on an argument to design and Paley’s being an argument from design. Aquinas 1224-1274 argument comes from the fifth of his five ways which is him pointing out the fact that there is evidence in the world around us of the existence of God therefore showing his Empirical knowledge. Furthermore Aquinas holds the belief that humans are always working towards something, such as knowledge (act for an end), as we strive to achieve the best outcome; meaning we do not achieve that end or outcome intentionally, instead it is for a reason. Aquinas reinforced the view that something which lacks knowledge cannot move towards an end, unless guided by a being ‘endowed with knowledge and intelligence’, therefore, this shows that there must be some intelligent being that exists, pushing humans towards a goal or an end. Aquinas concluded that this being is God. Much like Aquinas William Paley made the argument about the existence of God through an argument from design. Paley, a theologian thought of the analogy through the use of a stone and a watch. He said that if you came across a stone never having seen it before you would conclude it had always been there whereas if you came across a watch he would arrive at a very different outcome that due to the intricate workmanship it had been put together for a purpose and hadn’t...
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...Descartes’ Meditation 3 is a proof which attempts to provide evidence for the existence of God. Descartes gives this evidence through reasoning, starting out by describing how he comes to this conclusion of the existence of God. He does this by closing himself off mentally from the outside world, ignoring sight, hearing, and his other senses and looking deeply in himself (Cahn 496). This allows him to make an introspective look at God’s existence without the influences of another person. From this state, he organizes his thoughts and from his collective thoughts and reasoning, he deduces that God does exist due to his finite existence, a mere substance that is “not sufficient to explain my [Descartes] having the idea of an infinite substance, since I am finite, unless this idea proceeded from some substance which really was infinite” (Cahn 500) and the understanding that God is a substance that “is infinite, independent, supremely intelligent and supremely powerful” (Cahn 500). This basically means that since he should not be able to have the ability to think the way he does without either being an infinite being or having an infinite being put the thoughts into his head. This explanation appears to be extremely logical, but once it is analyzed several flaws in reasoning are picked up from the reading. I agree with most of Descartes reasoning on the existence of God, which I will clarify further, along with an explanation of the biggest...
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