Arguments for the existence of God: the Design Argument

• Paley's argument is a posterori, inductive and analogical
• a posteriori are arguements that depend on sense experience
• empirical is an arguement that is based on the experience of sense
• inductive refers to those arguments based on probability
• analogical is an attempt to explain the meaning of something which is difficult to understand by comparing it with something that is more securely within our reference-frame
• natural theology is the view that questions about God's existence, nature and attributes can be answered by reasoning, science and observation rather than appeal to special revelation
• special revelation refers to scripture or some form of religious experience
• paleys arguement uses the approach of natural theology
• Paley's arguement is based on three observations of the world: complexity, purpose and regularity.
• One weakness of Paley's argument is that claims made by theism about the nature of a designer go way beyond the evidence
• Paley's analogy is: when walking across rough ground, stubbing one's toe against a stone would not raise questions of how the stone came to be there. However, coming across a watch, it would be reasonable to ask questions as to how that watch came to be there.
• observation would point to the watch's complexity and to the exact suitability of its parts and of their arrangement to serve its purpose


  this could not have occurred by chance. A complete explanation requires reference to its purpose giver. An intelligent watchmaker must have designed it.
• the universe is complex and shows the same suitability of parts and arrangement to serve its purpose. This could not have occurred by chance, there must have been a creator


  the far greater complexity, etc of the world requires an infinitely greater designer, the universe designer is God.
• Supporting statements for Paley's argument:

  The eye is superbly adapted for vision

  The fins and gills of fish are perfect for living in water
• Key quote for Paley's analogy

  'The marks of design are too strong to be gotten over. Design must have had a designer. That designer must have been a person. That person is God'
• Hume made a number or arguments in his challenge to design theory
• Mechanistic analogies are inappropriate

  • Such analogies are deliberately chosen because they encourage the idea of a designer
  • Living organisms would be more appropriate, such as a vegetable, which does not require explanation in terms of a designer
• The apparent order could be due to chance

  • Hume suggested that given the constantly changing arrangements of its atoms over an infinite period of time, it was inevitable that order would eventually change
  • He also suggested that the possibility that the universe alternates between periods of chaos and periods of order and by sheer chance existence it currently in a period of order
• the mechanistic analogy is anthropomorphic
• anthropomorphic language that attibutes human charecteristics or ideas to non-human entities
• the mechanistic analogy is anthropomorphic:

  • humans have no idea how universes are made
  • this means that we can know nothing about the capacities or nature of any universe designer
  • the mechanistic analogy is in effect creating a universe designer in our image
• the designer is not necessarily the God of Christian theism:

  • A cause must be proposed to its effects
  • the traditional christian understanding of God is not required by what is known of the universe
  • intellegent minds are attached to physical bodies, so the designer could be moral and may be long dead
  • teamwork is often behind design, so a number of deteites could be responsible for creation
• the problem of evil

  the existence of so much natural and moral evil in the world is evidence of a flawed design

  • Hume considered God's omnipotence and omnibenevolence to be incompatible with the existence of evil.
• weaknesses of Paley's arguments:

  • Existence of evil suggests an incompetent, indifferent or malevolent designer - or no designer at all
  • apparent order, purpose and design are just chance, Support for this from Darwin and Dawkins
  • Universe could have 'designed itself' by chance. Support for this from multiverse theories
• strengths of Paley's argument

  • Swinburne argued that the existence of a single omnipotent God is the simplest explanation
  • Paley said that evil might be unavoidable for God to bring about good.
  • Evolution itself requires explanation. It is not compatible with theism
  • Paley's claim that 'nature shows intention' is supported by the Anthropic Principle. The multiverse theory is incapable of proof.
• Paley's argument cannot offer proof of God

  • Only deductive arguments can give absolute proof. The design argument is inductive, so can never be absolutely certain.
  • Paley's observations to support his argument can be explained naturally, for example the regular rotation of the planets due to gravity
• Paley's argument does offer proof of God

  • Most things we accept as true in life are based on inductive arguments. They are accepted as 'true beyond reasonable doubt'
  • Some would argue that the laws of nature require explanation and that we cannot be sure that the multiverse theory is true. This means that the challenges do not diminish the probability that Paley's argument is true.
• The value of Paley's argument for religious faith - positive

  • it is rationally and empirically based
  • It is consistent with biblical teaching that there is a guiding hand
  • Theists cannot prove God's existence but nor can atheists prove God's non- existence, as both rely on reasoning and empirical evidence to create inductive arguments
  • According to Price, religious faith should include both 'belief that' and 'belief in' Paley does both through his evidence and description of the universe's design
• The value of Paley's argument for religious faith - negative

  • For Fideists rational arguments play no part in faith as they do not lead to commitment
  • Paley's argument does not successfully address the issues of evil.
• The Anthropic Principle related to the view that the boundary conditions of the universe had to be precisely what there are for intelligent life to develop; the belief is that we are not here by chance and that God 'fine tuned' these conditions.
• Fideism is the view that religion is a matter of pure faith in the sense of commitment. Rational argument has no role to play.
• H.H. Price distinguished between 'belief that' and 'belief in'

  • 'Belief that' is acceptance of propositions about something
  • 'Belief in' is an attitude of commitment and trust
• 'Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth' Pope John Paul II
• The rationalist approach empathises the role of reason in any consideration of God's existence. Without it, faith is unscientific, irrational and meaningless.
• The fidest approach claims that the use of reason to justify religion is inappropriate. Only faith gives certainty.