Cosmological argument

• The way of motion


  Aquinas argued that things in the universe are in motion but nothing can move unless it is moved by something else, so if things are moving, there must be a first mover, and this everyone understands to be God
• The way of causation


  Aquinas next argued that everything seems to have cause and nothing causes itself. An infinite regression of causes is impossible, so there must be a first cause to start the process and everyone would call this God
• The way of contingency


  All material things are contingent - that is, their existence is not necessary and at one time they did not exist. However, if everything is contingent, then at one time nothing existed, but things do exist, therefore there must be a non-contingent being and everyone would call this God
• Modern form of the cosmological argument


  • Cause and effect seem to be a basic feature of the world
  • Modern science has developed through looking at causes and effects, and scientific investigations seem to show that any effect has a cause and any cause has an effect
  • The universe, the world and humans must have had a cause
  • God is the only logical cause of the universe
• The cosmological argument is important for Catholics because it shows that: God is the origin of everything; he is the Unmoved Mover, the First Cause, the Non-contingent Being; God is not another thing within the universe. God is the source of all being and so has no beginning or end. God is infinite and eternal; God is a mystery. Human beings can grasp only so much about God's being and nature
• Non-religious people such as Atheists and Humanists think the cosmological argument does not prove that God exists because:


  • if everything needs a cause then God must also need a cause
  • it is possible that matter itself is eternal and so was never created-that would mean that there would be no need for a first cause because the process of causes could go back for ever
  • just because everything in the universe needs an explanation does not mean the universe itself needs an explanation- the universe could just have been there for ever
  • even if there was a First Cause, Unmoved Mover or Non-contingent Being it would not have to be the Christian God, it could be the God of any religion
• The Catholic Church responds by arguing that

  • to claim the entire universe 'just happened' is more unbelievable than claiming it was designed and created by God
  • the universe is too vast and complex, and works according to too many laws, to have appeared by chance
  • our immortal soul is a sign that the universe is more than the material and that it is much deeper than physical laws and can only be explained by God
• The Catechism says God is

  infinitely greater than his

  creation: ‘You have set your

  glory above the heavens.’

  Indeed, God’s greatness is

  unsearchable.