The Five Ways Of Proving God s Existence - 790 Words

Edward Tajchman Intro to Philosophy 29 October 2014 Reflections on The Essay, The Five Ways of Proving God s Existence, by Thomas Aquinas Aquinas proposes that there are five ways of proving the existence of god. The first way is motion. Things in motion are not put in motion of their own accord, so they must have been put in motion by another force. This takes a thing from potentiality into the realm of actuality. Because this thing cannot be the mover and also the thing being moved, another force must be responsible for this. Like heat making water boil for example, transforming it into a gas. Aquinas proposes that God must be this external force acting on things and putting them into motion. The second thing that is put forward as proof of the existence of god is the nature of the efficient cause. There must be an order of efficient causes in a world of sense. There is the greatest cause, mid-level cause, etc. One causes the other, but this cannot go on forever. There must be an original cause. When you take away the cause of something you take away the effect. Therefore the first efficient cause must be god. Possib ility and necessity, or rather the possible or the not possible, is the third proof we are presented with that god exists. In nature we have the possible and the not possible. It is impossible for a thing to have never existed, so at some point it did not exist. If nothing ever existed, It would be impossible for something to come into existence on it sShow MoreRelatedDiscourse On Method And Meditations On First Philosophy945 Words   |  4 Pagesdecide if God was real or not and if God created him or not. In Meditation Five, Descarte states that God existed because he has prior knowledge of materialistic things. He states that he recalls objects without prior knowledge of them, and that everyone perceives all the objects in the same type of manner. In the end of the mediation he closes it out by stating that, we all can think of non existent things with the same idea of what they are without them existing, thus proving that God exists inRead MoreThe Five Ways Of The Existence Of God1557 Words   |  7 Pagesshort paper will analyze â€Å"The Five Ways†, from Summa Theologica, by Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). We cannot prove that God exists, merely by considering the word God, for that strategy work, we would have to presume to know God s essence. According to Aquinas, the existence of God can be proved. This paper will discuss what each of the five ways are that Thomas Aquinas introduced to show the existence of God. The Argument from Change: To begin with, one way to prove that God exists is to contemplate theRead MoreThe Existence Of God : Ontological Argument Essay1696 Words   |  7 PagesThe question of the existence of God has troubled mankind for thousands of years. 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One day as he was meditating, he saw a light and felt sequesteredRead MoreAnselm And Aquinas On How God Exists1277 Words   |  6 Pagesviews on how God exists, these important philosophers spent much of their time looking and searching for the idea that God actually exists. Therefore, of course there would be some mishaps along the way and people would try to argue against their idea of God’s existence. In this paper will be explained the proof of God and of course some objections against them that will make you wonder. With Anselm s ontological argument and Aquinas’ ways, we can use that to help prove God’s existence. It would beRead MoreKant And Sir William David Ross Essay1011 Words   |  5 PagesWhat Christians Believe Lewis’ â€Å"What Christians Believe† is divided into five distinct parts, each attempting to defend the existence of God. The Rival Conceptions of God: Lewis explains Christian’s insistence of God existence and rejection of God being beyond good and evil. They insist He is â€Å"good† and â€Å"righteous† and an essential and distinct part of the universe. Those who object that notion of God because a good God would not allow evil are on faulty ground since their objection rests on appealingRead MoreThe Natural Law Theory Essay examples1037 Words   |  5 Pagesmoral way to live life; especially a life lived in God’s image. God’s presence is a guiding factor to obtaining a moral and virtuous life, which can only be obtained by following the natural law theory. God created a set of laws as a supreme guide for humans to live life, like any law these laws were created to ensure wellbeing for everyone. The laws he created are the civil law, the natural law and the divine law God created them from a law much superior than the rest, one which only God himselfRead MoreDesca rtes Belief in God Essay1503 Words   |  7 PagesDescartes and God In his groundbreaking work, Meditations on First Philosophy, the French philosopher Rene Descartes lays the groundwork for many philosophical principles by attempting to â€Å"establish a bold and lasting knowledge† (171)1. The foundations for knowledge Descartes established would go on to influence a plethora of other philosophers and philosophical works. Descartes argues in his meditations first from the point of view of complete skepticism, using skepticism as a tool in order toRead MoreThomas Aquinas And His Views On The Existence Of God1527 Words   |  7 Pagesfrom the 1200’s who dedicated his life to praising and explaining the existence of a higher being, God. Aquinas presents his evidence for the existence of a higher being through five distinct ways in the Summa Theologica. These ways give reason for God’s existence through the cause, existence and final cause of different events and objects. The two first ways made by Aquinas are the most influential sources I found that provide good evidence for the existence of God and are the ways I will be analyzingRead MoreThe Bible Is The Best Gift God Essay1225 Words   |  5 PagesThe Bible, although written by man is God s word to the world. The unity showed in the bible over such a long period of time, and over multiple continents is proof that it was written by something more than just a mere human, and that it was instead written by someone with divine power. The bible’s timeline spans centuries, but the impact that the bible has will continue indefinitely. Although there are millions of believers there is also almost an equal amount of skeptics. Because no physical evidence