Descartes" Proof of the Existence of God.
Rene Descartes, the father of philosophy, used his writings in Meditations on First Philosophy to delve into the pit of skepticism. In the first two Meditations one is fascinated by his proofs and his finding the version of the cogito, or his nature, only to find their selves confused and not fully satisfied when it comes to his proof of the existence of God in Meditation III. Two factors cause this sudden change in the view of Descartes" argument; one is that the proof is more complicated than in the earlier meditations. The second reason is that we live in an age where people are skeptical about giving proofs on the existence of God because then faith would be useless.
The intention of this paper will be to examine Descartes" proof of the existence of God and to critique his argument, pointing out some of the difficulties and problems that arise from his theories. .
Using his methods of doubt and analysis, he has examined all his beliefs and set aside those which he could call into to doubt until he reached a belief that he could not doubt. That belief is that the evil genius could not trick him into thinking that he did not exist when in fact he did. Descartes has also determined that he is a thinking thing and he knows for certain that various ideas appear before him. He builds his entire argument upon his proof that in order for him to think, he must exist. From this single observation, Descartes notices that the idea of his existence is very clear and distant in his mind and that all things that he sees as clear and distinct are true.
Descartes starts his proof by dividing thought into categories, namely ideas, volitions, and judgments. Having making this distinction between different levels of thought, Descartes attempts to figure out which of these thoughts can have errors. Descartes believed that an idea could not have error and that error could only occur in judgment on whether or not the idea is true or false.
Proving the Existence of God Does God Exist? ... Aquinas" best argument is his second proof saying that God exist through the theory of causality. ... Finally, he brings his proof to a close by claiming God must exist. ... "Does God exist?" ... It also makes me doubt his premises and second proof of why God exist. ...
Existence of God God exists or he doesn't. ... In my belief system, God does exist. ... The question is not whether or not God exists. ... God exists in one's belief or self-conscious. ... What would a logical person accept as proof of God? ...
Does God Exist? When the question of God's existence arises, there are basically two answers, He exists(on some level or another) or he doesn't. ... Saint Thomas Aquinas also argued for God's existence and I found his Five Proofs for God's Existence quite compelling. ... The proof of efficient cause states that there is nothing that exists that caused its own existence. ... The proof of design explained by Aquinas and later William Paley is a very enchanting way to try to prove God's existence. ...
What Descartes means is that if the idea of God exists, God must exist, because God causes the idea of God. God must cause everything, therefore He exists. To attack this statement, one must ask "then how does God just exist?" ... The only argument against this is that there is no proof that God was/is the Great Causer of all things, and not something else. ... So, Descartes" mathematical, faithless proof that God exists is flawed. ...
Does God Exist? ... There are many different proofs to the existence of God, and the type of proof used depends on the person being spoken to. ... Jesus used miracles to prove himself because they are such a good proof to God's existence. ... This proof gives a person no other choice then believing in God. ... There are many proofs to the existence of God, but the proof used in different situations with different people is important to turning them into believers. ...
He had five different proofs (also knowsn as the five different ways) to prove for the existence of God. ... The second proof is causation, meaning that something can't exist without a decent reason for its existence and that every effect must have a cause (Rice, 1983), and in return, the cause must be the effect of another cause, and so on. ... He said, "Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. ... Good and evil exist in the world. Thus God must also exist. ...
Proof of God as a first cause, proof of God through conscience, and proof of a God through religious people of history are the three best to use. ... I have come to find that these proofs do prove God exists and are very hard to argue against. ... A first cause must exist for the universe to exist. Therefore, God does exist. ... The three best proofs to use are proof of God through people of history, proof of God through conscience, and proof of God through the creation of the universe. ...
Does God Exist? ... Descartes outlines a process in order to come to the conclusion that God does necessarily exist. ... And lastly he says that God exists because he clearly and distinctly perceives it to be true. ... Again, Descartes uses this same defense for a proof of God stating that you can't reason about God's existence because it, too, will be circular. ... There exists an infinite amount of ways to think of God, thus we can conclude from this they are all interrelated. ...
However, rigorous proof can also be explored in other ways of knowing. ... Rigorous proof in mathematics is often derived from deductive and inductive reasoning. ... Furthermore, history is also a way of knowing that uses rigorous proofs. ... However, beyond our planet, exists an immaterial realm of ideal forms (Lamb). ... After rigorous proof is used to verify accepted knowledge, then if it is to be challenged, rigorous proof is crucial. ...
