Theme C - Existence of God and Revelation

• The Teleological Argument


  A.K.A. The Design Argument
• Paley's Analogy of the Watch


  If you came across a watch in the middle of a heath, its intricacy and purpose would lead you to assume that there is an intelligent designer
• Strengths of the Design Argument


  • The universe is ordered
  • e.g. seasons
  • The universe has a purpose
  • Earth is perfectly suited for human life
  • The anthropic principle
  • God is the simplest answer
  • Occham's razor
  • The Bible says it
  • Christian argument
  • Human evolution
  • Newton - "The thumb alone would convince me of God''s existence"
• Weakenesses of the Design Arument


  • What created God?
  • The universe isn't perfect
  • events like solar eclipses aren't perfectly regular
  • We know for a fact that there are billions of planets, humans just got lucky
  • Fallacy of composiition - can't compare an object in the universe to the entire universe
  • The universe doesn't have a clear purpose
• David Hume's criticism of the design argument


  • The world is not perfect, suggesting an incompetent designer
  • No proof that this "designer" is the one Christian God, so there could be a team of gods for all we know
• Darwinism


  • The appearance of design is explained by evolution
  • Natural selection - the best and fittest members of a species survive and dominant traits get passed on
  • e.g. finches in the Galapagos Islands
• Evidence of design in the world and universe

  • The way the seasons are organisied into "cycles of life"
  • The way the ozone layer protects people from the harmful rays of the sun
  • The way gravity on earth is strong enough so as to keep us flying off it into space, but also weak enough to prevent other planets from crashing into us
  • The complexity of eyes and ears
• Quotes for the design argument

  • "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the Earth" - Genesis 1.1.
  • "He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate" - Psalm 104: 14
  • "In the absence of any other proof, the thumb alone would convince me of God's existence" - Isaac Newton
• The First Cause Argument


  • Everything in the universe has a cause
  • The chain of cause and effect cannot go on forever
  • Therefore, there must be a first cause that is uncaused
  • This must be God
• John Stuart-Mill - "Either there is no God or there exists an incompetent or immoral God"
• Strengths of the First Cause argument


  • It is logical at first glance
  • It is rational - it appeals to reasoning rather than faith or scripture
• Weakenesses of the First Cause argument


  • The idea that everything has a cause directly contradicts the idea of an "uncaused cause"
  • The arguments that there must be an "uncaused cause" and that it must be the Christian God are assumptions with no solid proof
  • Bias - Aquinas, the thinker behind this theory, was Christian
• Miracle


  An unexplained event that is often attributed to divine intervention, that cannot be explained by science
• The two types of miracles in the Bible

  • Healing
  • Show that God is omnibenevolent
  • Supernatural
  • Show that God is omnipotent
  • e.g. the feeding of the 5000
• Arguments that miracles are real


  • No scientific explanation - they must be supernatural
  • Occham's razor
  • Many have witnesses
  • Children that experience miracles have no reason to lie about them
  • They are described in old religious texts
• Arguments that miracles are not real


  • Just because there isn't an explanation now doesn't mean that there won't be in the future
  • Supernatural things don't exist
  • Talking about concepts doesn't make them real
  • No proof that these "miracles" are caused by the Christian god
  • God isn't a simple answer (argument against Occham's razor)
  • Why do some people get healed and some don't?
  • Does God have favourites?
• Arguments for the existence of God

  • The Teleological (design) argument
  • The Cosmological (first cause) argument
  • Miracles - proof of divine intervention
  • Many religions and cultures have believed in God over the years
  • People believe in holy books and scriptures that say God exists
  • Might as well believe for the benefits (Pascal's wager)
• Arguments against the existence of God

  • Scientific explanation for everything
  • Made up as a means to keep the poor in line (Marx)
  • Just wishful thinking
  • "Religion is the opium of the people" - Sigmund Freud
  • The problem of evil
  • The inconsistent triad
• The inconsistent triad

  These three statements cannot coexist:

  • God is omnipotent
  • God is omnibenevolent
  • Evil and suffering exist
• Explanations for the Problem of Evil:


  • Suffering is a punishment for original sin
  • Suffering is a test (Job)
  • Suffering is needed as balance
  • We cannot appreciate good without being able to recognise evil
  • Suffering should be accepted as something we will never understand
  • (God's ineffable plan)
  • Free Will defence
• Arguments against God's existence using the Problem of Evil


  • A loving God wouldn't allow suffering to continue
  • Why do good people suffer?
  • If God exists, they are either incompetent or unloving
• Free Will defence


  • John Hick - God allows suffering in order to lead to the higher goal of moral development
  • Richard Swinburne - if God intervened to stop suffering, it would compromise humanity's free will
• Revalation

  God's communication to mankind
• General revelation


  • Seeing God's existence in a way accessible to all
  • e.g. nature or the Bible
• Special revalation


  God making himself known through direct personal experience or an unusual specific event
• Enlightenment


  Gaining true knowledge about God or the self, usually through mediation or self discipline
• Value of revalation


  • Provides theists with proof of God's existence
  • Helps start religions
  • Enables believers to have a relationship with the divine
  • Helps people to know what God wants
• General revalation

  • The Bible
  • The primary scource of information about God
  • "All scripture is God-breathed" - 2 Timothy 3:16
  • Humanity would know little about God without it
  • Nature
  • An indirect source of knowledge about God
  • Revalation found when believers consider where everything came from and how everything fits together
  • "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands" - Psalm 19.1
• Literalist view of the Bible's authority


  • Protestant and evangelical groups
  • View the Bible literally
  • See it as God's actual words
  • The Bible cannot be challenged, questioned, or changed
  • There can be no error, as it is the Word of God
• Liberal view of the Bible's authority


  • Anglicans, liberal Christians
  • The Bible is inspired by God but can be interpreted for people today
  • Provides insights into God but needs to be seen in its historical context