cosmological argument

• Aquinas gives false logic by stating God is a necessary being
• Hughes believes the Cosmological Argument acts as conclusive proof for God's existence
• All sensory experiences are called synthetic propositions rather than analytical propositions
• The universe itself could be a necessary being
• There are logical arguments against Aquinas' argument, particularly the problem of evil
• Russell questions why the universe cannot just exist as a brute fact similar to theists accepting God's existence
• Aquinas describes the universe as contingent based on observation
• If it is possible for God to not exist


  Then God cannot be a necessary being
• Hume argued that necessary existence is a meaningless term as existence is not based on logic but on sensory experience
• Aquinas' argument from possibility shows a logical contradiction
• Physics argues that unobservable entities like sub-atomic particles (Quarks) must exist based on overwhelming probability
• There is no scientific evidence for Aquinas' argument
• Bertrand Russell explains that the universe is a brute fact that needs no explanation
• Aquinas commits a fallacy of composition in his argument
• Conclusion: there is a being which caused the universe to exist (God)
• Brute fact that either caused itself to exist or doesn't need a cause
• Aquinas observed the Cosmos and concluded that the processes of the universe could not be explained by themselves
• Aquinas observed the universe and saw that everything has a limited lifespan, concluding that there is no contingent being that is everlasting
• Nothing can come from nothing, so the fact that beings exist suggests that they came from a different kind of being, an uncaused being
• Aquinas embraced many aspects of Aristotle's thought in his works, calling him "The Philosopher"
• God is defined as the First Cause who started the chain reaction that caused the universe to exist
• God does not rely on other beings for his existence and is necessary for there to be existence in the universe
• In the Summa Theologica, Aquinas presents 5 different Ways that prove the existence of God
• If it is possible that there was a time where nothing existed, it is because nothing truly existed at this time
• Atheists cannot accept the existence of the universe as a brute necessary explanation for why anything at all exists
• Aquinas argued that every part of the universe: galaxies, planets, seasons, demonstrated the law of cause and effect
• Aquinas' chief work is the Summa Theologica
• Aquinas uses evidence of the world around him to prove the universe is contingent but must have a non-contingent cause
• Aquinas is a proponent of Natural Moral Law and believes in the conscience
• Ex nihilo nihil fit - Latin for out of nothing, nothing will come
• Aquinas argued that something can only be possible because it has happened
• Aquinas uses inductive reasoning to prove the existence of God
• St. Thomas Aquinas was an Italian Roman Catholic Priest who lived from 1225-1274 CE
• God is the Uncaused Caused, eternal, and a non-contingent being