observation (Cosmological)

• Cosmological argument argues for god's existence through three ways. Motion, causality and necessity.
• The first way is motion. Everything is in motion and is in the process of changing from a potential state, to an actual state.
• The second way is causality. All events are caused by another chain of events, like a domino effect. However, someone of something must have pushed the first domino to start the chain of events. If not, there is infinite regress.
• The third way is necessity. Everything is dependant on something else for existence, for example, a flower depends on sunlight and water to grow. Therefore, the world must be dependant on something to exist.
• Aquinas adopts Aristotle's prime mover that started the chain of events. This force must be unchanging yet inflict change to other things. This is done by attracting.
• Strengths of the cosmological argument: Coppleston argues there must be a necessary being that created the universe
• Strengths of the cosmological argument: Newton agrees that something must cause a change. Something cannot move itself
• Strengths of the cosmological argument: Mackie also rejects infinite regress and argues there must be a being that started the chain of events.
• Weakness of the cosmological argument: Kant argues the argument is bases on reasoning and the idea of necessity is only applied to a thought.
• Weakness of the cosmological argument: The fallacy of composition argues that just because everything we see has a creator, doesn't mean the world does.
• Weakness of the cosmological argument: Russell agrees with Hume's fallacy of composition and argues that "every human has a mother, it is a leap to assume that the universe has a mother"
• Weakness of the cosmological argument: Infinite regress is possible in reality, for example maths. However, modern physics argue that there is evidence that the universe is 13.7 billion years old.
• Weakness of the cosmological argument: Hume argues that an effect is not necessarily from a cause. Bus stop analogy.