Arguments For and Against God's Existence

Outline 

Introduction 

The first paragraphs provide a background for this descriptive paper and the history of the arguments. There are many questions directly related to the question of God's existence without a specific answer to show for it. However, there are two groups of people that exist regarding this argument on the essence of religion: the believers and atheists 

Evidence for God's existence 

Augustine 

Augustine stated that God's presence is immutable in the sense that his eternity is an apriority. 

Anslem 

In proslogion, Anselm presented proof that God exists using the ontological argument. His argument involves applying the law of logic to know that God is real. 

Aquinas 

Thomas Aquinas used cosmological and teleological arguments to prove the existence of God. He presented five proofs to show God exists that include motion, efficient cause, necessary being, gradation of goodness, and design. 

Arguments against God's existence 

Secular humanism 

The secular humanism worldview believes people can be moral without believing in God since it comes from human experiences 

Scientific naturalism 

Scientific naturalism also argues that the universe originated from science through the Big Bang Theory as opposed to being created by God. According to this argument, human beings develop their form of happiness and life without any foundation or justification, 

Postmodernism 

The postmodern worldview argues that society is in a state of constant change, and there is no version of reality or truth. The reason is considered sovereign in the postmodern worldview, where people are expected to use theological and moral absolute. 

Conclusion 

This is the concluding part that summarizes arguments from both sides of the issue. People will always have divergent opinions and will try to prove their belief in a phenomenon based on their understanding of the topic. 

Rough draft 

Both philosophy and theology have been the basis of arguing for or against God's existence, with theology using biblical authority to teach God's presence while philosophy using reasons. Believers who argue for the existence of God use several religious doctrines and reasonable evidence. 

Thomas Aquinas gave five proofs for God's existence, which includes a claim that there can never be an uncaused cause, and therefore the universe could not have created itself. This means there was a primary mover as the first cause for all things in motion. He believes the world could not have come from anything, and God is the only one who could have set things in motion. 

The ontological argument for God's existence is one of the fascinating aspects you will come across in literature. This is based on an all-percent God notion that purports to show how denying God's existence is self-contradictory. According to this argument, a perfect being must exist, because it is possible to imagine a classic. God could not be complete unless his essence included existence, which he does. In the last few years, scientists have discovered that the presence of intelligent life on earth depends upon a complex balance of initial conditions. 

The causal argument to God's existence claims everything that begins to exist must have a cause. As such, it is impossible to continue backward to infinity with reasons. Therefore, God existed to be the first cause, which was not conditioned by any other purpose. 

The argument is that the universe could have existed out of nothing unless something was causing it to happen. It is unreasonable to say that a universe did not have a beginning, and it is eternal, with mathematicians recognizing that the existence of an infinite number of things causes self-contradictions. 

This is another crucial argument to God's existence that claims all things, whether plants, animals, and planets, show signs of being designed for specific ends. This means there was a designer somewhere who made them happen. Therefore, God first existed and created the universe, among other things that exist today. The world could not have caused itself. From the very nature of the case, the cause must be an uncaused, changeless and timeless being to have created the world, with the 

The moral arguments for God's existence are an exciting take towards this topic. This argument states that the presence of evil in the world contradicts any chances of God being real since there wouldn't be much suffering and evil in the world. Other arguments have claimed that the injustices, pain, and evil present in the world denies the existence of God as an all-powerful and all-knowing being. 

Arguments against God's existence comes from people who claim to have religious experiences with God. In essence, life would be meaningless without God, with people claiming to have encountered God whenever they felt hopeless. 

At the same time, since God is considered to exist out of space and time, atheists argue that he could only create things that are outside of space and time, and therefore not possible to create human beings. The argument is that human beings live in the realm with space and time, and thus the cosmological argument fails to make sense of his existence as the first cause of things. 

Therefore, atheists believe most of the theological arguments lack empirical evidence to prove that God is real. They claim that even if God is the first cause, it does not necessarily have to be the Christian God who is all-knowing as other gods would have set things in motion. 

Introduction 

The question of whether God is real is as old as a civilization, with every culture believing in some form of deity or afterlife. This argument on the existence of God has continued to the 21st century with several religions, philosophies, and worldviews emerging with their views. Science and faith are particularly interlocked over the origin of the universe. While Christianity elucidates a divide foundation for God's existence and universe origin, other worldviews such as science have their rendition of their take on God's existence and make the Christian take appear fallacious ( Moreland, 2010) . Recent reports have shown that Americans are continuing to lack religious affiliation as they ascribe to the secular worldviews and not believe in God. 

There are many questions directly related to the question of God's existence without a specific answer to show for it. However, there are two groups of people that exist regarding this argument on the essence of religion: the believers and atheists. Believers have used evidence to prove the existence of God using religion, while atheists equally argue against his presence based on science. In essence, this argument is not necessary, considering no one needs proof to show that God is real. Whether he exists or not depends on the faith of a person and what they chose to believe. 

Different philosophers have tried to provide rational proofs to show or deny the existence of God, which goes beyond the dogmatic assertions. Most arguments for God's existence rely on empirical evidence of intelligent design, as presented by the theologians. Other philosophers have raised their opinions regarding God's presence using the philosophy of human consciousness, evolutionary biology, history of religion, and theology, among different philosophies. Aquinas, Augustine, and Anselm are among the ancient theologians who contributed to this argument about God's existence using faith and reason. 

Augustine argument  

Christians have used several opinions and reasons to argue for the existence of God, including theological and philosophical beliefs. Augustine was among the first philosophers who used philosophical aspects to explain the presence of God. He stated that no one could investigate the person of God with a tabula rasa since the more universal and idea, the higher its reality and casual efficiency ( Holder, 2017) . Augustine stated that God's existence is immutable in the sense that his eternity is an apriority. This means the very concept of a supreme being is evident without mistake and implies his life. Therefore, according to Augustine, God exists because his presence is immutable and cannot be compared with nature. 

Anselm ontological argument 

Anselm used ontological arguments to present his idea of God's existence with the concept of being a supreme being. This argument uses the law of logic to prove the existence of God in the sense that without him, there could be no life ( Fastiggi, 2014) . As such, he argues that logically God existed to create human beings and everything they need to survive. 

According to Anselm, God exists in reality based on the fact that the human brain cannot conceive anything higher than a supreme being. This means God does not just exist in imagination as some people state since he is the most magnificent conceivable being, and the human mind cannot imagine any other higher thing ( Nnaeme, 2015) . Anselm said that arguments of God only existing in the human mind contradicts logic. His philosophy is based on faith before reason by stating that people have to accept the invisible to see the visible. 

Thomas Aquinas theological argument  

Thomas Aquinas is another philosopher who used theistic arguments as opposed to investigations to provide evidence for God's existence. He presented five proofs to show God exists that include motion, efficient cause, necessary being, gradation of goodness, and design ( Fastiggi, 2014) . His logic for the existence of God entails an explanation of why human beings have free will. 

Aquinas’ arguments for God's existence are based on the presence of motion and the universe, stating that there must have been God as the first mover before things got into action. He believes God is the unmoved mover as the first being who sets everything in motion because everything must have a beginning. At the same Aquinas arguments for God's existence is that the universe could not have existed by itself, and God causes all things by his knowledge and being ( Holder, 2017) . He also introduced the concept of contingent beings, which depend on necessary humans to exist. 

According to Aquinas, human beings can only acquire rational knowledge through sensory experience and not a study of the world. His arguments thus revolve around the relationship between philosophy and science to understand the nature of God. Aquinas focused on the law of casualty while seeing the perfection of God as the source of all things ( Fastiggi, 2014) . He claimed God is at par with excellence, which makes him a necessary supernatural being. As a result, we do not know God's monastery, but we know him a posterior, which is the concept of starting with this world before moving to the next. 

Arguments against God's existence 

Several heresies have also emerged arguing against the presence of God by denying the truth around Christianity. These arguments are mostly based on the worldviews that oppose statements by Christianity. Different worldviews have been around since the beginning of history, arguing against the existence of God, including secular humanism, scientific naturalism, and postmodernism. 

Secular Humanism 

The secular humanism worldview believes people can be moral without believing in God since it comes from human experiences. Their argument is centered upon social interests while rejecting supernaturalism or deities. According to this worldview, man is a natural object and can achieve self-realization through reason and science as opposed to religion ( Felderhof, 2012) . They argue that every beliefs and reality are only valid if they adhere to the tests of scientific theory, which means the supernatural and cosmic guarantees of human values are not viable. 

The secular worldview maintains many aspects of other worldviews that believes the truth of God's experience is a fabrication of human minds. They, therefore, argue that evolution explains the origin of life and has nothing to do with God. Evolution is a contentious subject in American public life that determines the whole issue of God's existence ( Felderhof, 2012) . The source of authority for the secularist humanist worldview is the individual human being, which means the consequence of their actions judges their morality. 

Scientific Naturalism 

Scientific naturalism is another argument against the existence of God, using science to explain the origin of life. Naturalists focus on factual adequacy on the inner reality of humans while holding to a code of moral objectivity. They affirm that moral values derive their source from human experience and does not require any theological sanction to be true ( Stenger, 2010) . According to this argument, human beings develop their form of happiness and life without any foundation or justification. This worldview also argues that the universe originated from science through the Big Bang Theory as opposed to being created by God. 

Technology has offered more joyful delights, including medical breakthroughs, helping people to live longer while inventing electronic gadgets offering personal comforts. As a result of this advancement, people have grown to dismiss the existence of God or any supernatural deity. The scientific naturalism worldview argues that the natural world is responsible for human wellbeing, while evolution explains the origin of life ( Stenger, 2010) . This worldview states that ultimate reality can be reduced to what is observed in the natural world. This argument is broad enough to dismiss the existence of God 

The secular humanism and scientific naturalism do not believe in the presence of God or the life after death narrative. In their arguments, human beings are in control of their lives and destiny without reverence to God, and they can choose to live; however, they want. At the same time, these worldviews do not believe in the existence of a Holy Book or the son of God Jesus Christ. Scientific naturalism, among other worldviews, have denied the absolute truth in the authority of Jesus Christ as the son of God ( Stenger, 2010) . As a result of their beliefs, they do not look up to any deity or supernatural being to guide their lives since he does not exist. Their idea is to use education and science in improving the world, with human beings as the ultimate authority of the world who are solely responsible for their lives. 

Postmodernism 

The postmodern worldview argues that society is in a state of constant change, and there is no version of reality or truth. This worldview strengthens the perspective of an individual while disparaging religions. As a result, proponents of this worldview believe there is no universal truth, and the society is shaped by social, historical, and cultural contexts ( Moreland, 2010) . As a result, this worldview accommodates all views of God's existence, including science and the natural man. The reason is considered sovereign in the postmodern worldview, where people are expected to use theological and moral absolutes. The postmodern argument against God's existence is based on the anthropic cosmological principle ( Holder, 2017).  This principle states that the laws of a universe are framed in such a way that planets and stars will form, and life will emerge 

Conclusion 

Here are a variety of arguments attempted to prove that God is real divided between faith and science. The evidence for the existence of God centers around the theories developed by philosophers and theologians. Religion plays a significant role in determining the belief of a person towards this debate on the existence of God. According to these arguments, everything that begins to exist must have a cause, since it is impossible to continue backward to infinity with causes ( Nnaeme, 2015) . Therefore, God existed to be the first cause, which was not conditioned by any other cause. The argument is that the universe could have existed out of nothing unless something was causing it to happen. 

On the other hand, arguments against God's existence claim there is no enough empirical evidence form the philosophers and theologians to prove their theories. According to the scientific naturalists, just because God exists in understanding does not mean he exists in reality. They believe even superheroes and unicorns exist in thoughts, books, and films, but they do not live in the actual world. Therefore, the argument is that God only exists in the bible and not in reality. Atheists have argued that God exists only in a storybook, with the bible mentioning unicorns and a beast with seven heads, which are not valid in reality. They also believe there is no actual conclusive physical evidence to show that God is real. Arguments against God's existence have also stated that being omnipresent, he should never be wrong, and there would not be evil in the world. Those mocking Christian beliefs in God claim he would be saving his people from sickness and poverty. 

References

Fastiggi, R. (2014). Suárez in Relation to Anselm, Aquinas and Scotus on Proving God’s Existence.  Suárez's Metaphysics in Its Historical and Systematic Context Berlin: De Gruyter , 309-323. 

Felderhof, M. (2012). Secular humanism.  Debates in religious education , 146-156. 

Holder, R. D. (2017).  God, the multiverse, and everything: Modern cosmology and the argument from design . Routledge. 

Moreland, J. P. (2010).  Consciousness and the existence of God: A theistic argument . Routledge. 

Nnaeme, C. C. (2015). How can we know the existence of God: Anselm and Aquinas?.  Verbum et Ecclesia ,  36 (1), 1-6. 

Schumacher, L. (2011). The Lost Legacy of Anselm's Argument: Re‐Thinking the Purpose of Proofs for the Existence of God.  Modern Theology ,  27 (1), 87-101. 

Stenger, V. J. (2010).  God: The failed hypothesis: How science shows that God does not exist . Prometheus Books.