Proof of God’s existence and Human error.
In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God and the word was God (John 1:1). This is an indication that there is a supreme being on the surface of the earth. As the controversy usually goes on which came first the hen or the egg? So too there has been a lot of the same controversy on how the world come in to existence. Did the world came first or God and does God really existence?
Many philosophers have tried to proof the existence of God but I am going to based on Descartes’ two proof of God’s existence; In the meditation four, Descartes proof that God does exist because we have the idea of God been a perfect being. “In fact the idea I clearly have of the human mind insofar
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He begins this hypothesis by mentioning the ideas of certain things which are outside of him, have their own truth and natures. He made us to understand that he can’t think of a mountain without a valley. And that he doesn’t say that there is a mountain or a valley anywhere but whether or not it does exist, a mountain and a valley are inseparable. The fact that he cannot think of God except as existing, follows that existence is inseparable from God. So God does exist. Since he knows these ideas clearly, he claims that they are something and are true. Descartes states that those that he can evidently and particularly perceive are the only things that totally convince him as being true. From this concept, he constructs a logic which supposedly proves his hypothesis; the clear and distinct perception of the undoubted existence of God means that existence is inseparable from God (p 89). Also, the bible also proof the existence of God when he led the Israelites out of Egypt and when they got to the red Sea, it was only by the Power of a super natural being to path the sea . That is the power of God which shows that God does exist (Exodus 14).
They are two distinct examples which try to bring out the existence of God and they both in their own aspect kindly show us various ways in which God does exist. So to me both of them are
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This proofs that even though man have a perfect God, there are some errors man do make. As humans, “we are a thing that thinks, that is to say, a thing that doubts, affirms, denies, understands a few things, is ignorant of many things, wills, refrains from willing and also imagines and senses”. Descartes brings out our short comings as humans. We are all full of these especially doubt. In mediation three, Descartes brings out mans error by evident of doubt “And certainly because I have no reason for thinking that there is a God who is a deceiver, and of course I do not yet sufficiently know whether there is even a God” (p 71). We see that he acknowledge that there is a no reason to think that God is a deceiver and at the same time, he doesn’t even adequately recognize whether there even is a God that exists. We face a lot of same situation in our daily life as to how we doubt the existence and present of the supreme God. Doubting make man to faulty thinking and imagination of who God actually is or if he exist in the first
...es me, “God should have endowed me with this idea, so that it would be like the mark of the craftsman impressed upon his work” (Descartes 34, 51). Descartes says “the whole force of the argument rest on the fact that I recognize that it would be impossible for me to exist, being of such a nature as I am (namely, having in me the idea of God), unless God did in fact exist.” (Descartes 35, 52) My nature and my existence themselves prove the existence of God, therefore, Descartes says “the mere fact of my existing and of there being in me an idea of a most perfect being, that is God, demonstrates most evidently that God too exists.” (Descartes 34, 51)
The problem of the evil deceiver leads Descartes into determining where God exists, who Descartes believes will discredit the notion of an evil deceiver. Descartes does not only have to prove the existence of God, but must attribute one essential quality to God: omnibenevolence. For God to trump this evil deceiver, God must possess the highest quality of goodness. Thus, the existence of God as an omnibenevolent entity voids the existence of an evil deceiver, for an all-good God would not deceive humans. In turn, by proving the existence of God, Descartes disproves the existence of the evil deceiver and solidifies Descartes understandings of truth. After discussing the necessity of assuring God’s existence, Descartes follows his piece with the actual argument proving the existence of God. Desecrates provides several lines of reasoning for proving God, but one of the most compelling ones revolves around the idea of formal realities versus their existence as ideas and the associated hierarchy of the finite and and the
Descartes argues that we can know the external world because of God, and God is not a deceiver. Descartes’ core foundation for understanding what is important comes from three points: our thoughts about the world and the things in it could be deceptive, our power of reasoning has found ideas that are indubitable, and certainty come by way of reasoning. Once we have a certainty of God, and ourselves then we are easily able to distinguish reality from dreams, and so on. God created us and gave us reason, which tells us that our ideas of the external world come from God. God has directly provided us with the idea of the external world. The concept of existence, the self, and doubt could not have existed on its own; therefore they had to be created by someone to have put them in our mind. That creator is God, who is omnipotent and perfect. God is not a deceiver to me; God is good, so therefore what I perceive really does exist. God without existence is like a mountain without a valley. A valley does not exist if there is no mountain, and vice versa a mountain is not a mountain with out a valley. We cannot believe or think of God without existence. We know the idea of God, and that idea inevitably contains his existence. My thought on god is clear and distinct that he is existent. Descartes’ now has ‘rebuilt’ the world, solely because of his power and reasoning. Descartes’ is only able...
If God did not exist, he would not be the greatest being imaginable. He is the greatest thing imaginable. Therefore, he does exist. From this argument, God’s existence is viewed. as necessary (Ayer. A. J. 1973).
Rene Descartes meditations on the existence of God are very profound, thought-provoking, and engaging. From the meditations focused specifically on the existence of God, Descartes uses the argument that based on his clear and distinct perception that cannot be treated with doubt, God does exist. In the beginning of the third meditation, Descartes proclaims that he is certain he is a thinking thing based on his clear and distinct perception, and he couldn’t be certain unless all clear and distinct perceptions are true. Before diving into the existence of God, Descartes introduces smaller arguments to prove the existence of God. For example, Descartes introduces in his argument that there are ideas in which he possess that exists outside of him. Utilizing the objective versus formal reality, Descartes states “If the objective reality of any of my ideas turns out to be so great that I am sure the same reality does not reside in me, either formally or eminently, and hence that I myself cannot be its cause, it will necessarily follow that I am not alone in the world, but that some other thing which is the cause of this idea exists” (29). In other words, the ideas of objective reality that resides in Descartes can potentially only come from a supreme being, which is God; God possess more objective reality than he does formal reality. We as humans, as Descartes states, are finite substance, and God is the only infinite substance. The only way for us as a finite substance to think of an infinite substance is possible if, and only if, there is an infinite substance that grants us the idea of substance in first place. After these smaller arguments, Descartes states that while we can doubt the existence of many things, due to the fact that ...
Descartes believes “it is clear enough from this that he cannot be a deceiver, since it is manifest by the natural light that all fraud and deception depend on some defect” (89). In addition, to the third Meditation, Descartes further explains God’s existence as a non – deceiving entity of natural light in Meditation IV. Descartes stands with his position that God is perfection by saying “it is impossible that God should deceive me”. For in every case of trickery or deception some imperfection is found.
In order to prove an argument or premise Descartes states, “we must be able to conceive clearly and distinctly of the cause in order to truly believe the argument.” Descartes clearly and distinctly believes the existence of God stating that, “all things are dependent on God’s existence, and God is not a deceiver.” Due to this premise we must than conclude that without a Supreme Being to incite knowledge than it is not possible to ever know anything perfectly.
Descartes begins his Second Mediation by stating that in the previous day during his “Project” he had been coming across much doubt “… ones that are too serious to be ignored.” But in results of this he ponders upon many questions like whether or not he himself his “something” and that if he is indeed thinking that he must be something. What is one person that can 't think? But a thing that can indeed think must be existing or else it would not be able to think. Even though he had previously convinced himself that nothing exists not even the Earth, the sky nor himself. But if he is having these thoughts of doubt he is saying that he must exist if he himself is able to think. He later states that there may be an almighty power above him and he may be the one deceiving him. But again he stumbles across the thought that he must exist in order to be deceived. So if there is someone above him that someone cannot deceive nothing. So if that almighty power is deceiving what Descartes believes is him then Descartes, Himself, does undoubtedly
... God alone remains; and, given the truth of the principle that whatever exists has a cause, it follows, Descartes declares, that God exists we must of necessity conclude from the fact alone that I exist, or that the idea of a supremely perfect – that is of God – is in me, that the proof of God’s existence is grounded in the highest evidence” Descartes concludes that God must be the cause of him, and that God innately implanted the idea of infinite perfection in him.
He concludes he did not create the idea of God. A finite being is incapable of creating an idea of an infinite possibility. Therefore, God must have created the idea already in him when he was created. Concluding that God exists. He also touches upon the idea in which he resolves that it cannot be a deceiver.
According to Descartes, “because our senses sometimes deceive us, I wanted to suppose that nothing was exactly as they led us to imagine (Descartes 18).” In order to extinguish his uncertainty and find incontrovertible truth, he chooses to “raze everything to the ground and begin again from the original foundations (Descartes 59).” This foundation, which Descartes is certain to be the absolute truth, is “I think, therefore I am (Descartes 18).” Descartes argues that truth and proof of reality lies in the human mind, rather than the senses. In other words, he claims that the existence of material objects are not based on the senses because of human imperfection. In fact, he argues that humans, similarly to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, are incapable of sensing the true essence or existence of material objects. However, what makes an object real is human thought and the idea of that object, thus paving the way for Descartes’ proof of God’s existence. Because the senses are easily deceived and because Descartes understands that the senses can be deceived, Descartes is aware of his own imperfection. He
Descartes believes that by proving that God is perfect in every way and in doing so God is no deceiver. God is also the reason that we humans have a clear and distinct perception. Descartes argument for God’s existence is that our idea of God is of a perfect being therefore is more perfect to exist than to not exist, so God must exist. Descartes claim that we all have an idea of God as an infinite being is quite controversial because he believes that that our idea of God cannot fail because to him this idea is innate. Descartes appeals to an innate logical principle: something cannot come from nothing.
Descartes proof of the existence of God is derived from his establishment that something cannot come from nothing. Because God is a perfect being, the idea of God can be found from exploring the different notions of ideas. Descartes uses negation to come to the conclusion that ideas do not come from the world or imagination; because the world contains material objects, perfection does not exist.
Firstly, Descartes made the mistake of supporting a conclusion with premises that can only be true if the conclusion was a premise for the other premises that were supporting it. To clarify, Descartes basically stated that the clarity of his reasoning and perceptions are only possible through the existence of a non-deceiving God and that the non-deceiving God can only be proved through the clear reasoning and perceptions that the non-deceiving God bestowed upon him (51, 52). This is clearly a...
Through the philosopher’s arguments covered in this paper, there is legitimate proof for and against the existence of God. In my opinion, a God can only exist if one wants Him to. Although one can always rely on he arguments to help support his views.