Craig, W. L. “The Existence of God” Chap.3 Reasonable Faith Crossway Books, Wheaten , Il. 2008 Prof. of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology La Miranda, CA. http://www.reasonablefaith.org/site/PageServer
He has authored or edited over thirty books, including The Kalam Cosmological Argument; Assessing the New Testament Evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus; Divine Foreknowledge and Human Freedom; Theism, Atheism and Big Bang Cosmology; and God, Time and Eternity, as well as over a hundred articles in professional journals of philosophy and theology, including The Journal of Philosophy, New Testament Studies, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, American Philosophical Quarterly, Philosophical Studies, Philosophy, and British Journal for Philosophy of Science.
Atheism and Agnosticism are widespread in Europe and have become influential in the U. S, particularly in the universities p.78 Magazines include The Humanist, or The Skeptical Inquirer, Prometheus Books. Time article
Ontological Argument: If God is conceivable he must exist. Formulated by Anselm and defended by Scotus, Descartes, Spinoza, Leibniz. God is the greatest conceivable being, so nothing greater than God can be conceived. So he must exist. P.79
Cosmological Argument: The existence of a first cause or reason for the universe. Can be broken into 3 arguments: Al-Ghazali- the Kalam cosmological argument: Every being which begins has a cause for is beginning; now the world is a being which begins; therefore, it possesses a cause for its beginning. A series of events going to infinity in the past and ending today is not possible, as it is not possible to cross the infinite to get to today. P.80 If today is the end of and infinite series, we could add more days to it which not logical. Thomas Aquinas: He seeks a cause that is first. 1. The Unmoved mover. Things in motion need something to start them moving. A watch could not run without and spring and someone to wind it. 2. No being can be self caused and cause its own existence. 3. Some beings and things are possible and some necessary. We see life. Heavenly bodies and matter is necessary for these to exist. Where do these things get their necessity form themselves for form another? Things and beings have an essence and existence? Its essence is its nature and properties which can be described. Its existence is more complex and has essence also. Some things can be conceived which have essence but don’t exist. There must be a first being, where essence and being are not distinct, which is absolute necessity in itself. This is God which gives the source of being to everything. WF Leibniz sufficient reason argument: Why is there something rather nothing at all? Imagine a series of geometry books being copied for eternity. This does still not explain the reason for their existence. Nothing happens without a sufficient reason and explanation. God is the uncaused reason. P.82
Teleological Argument: The argument from design and means to and end; Plato and Aristotle used the argument; there is an order that pervades the cosmos, and the order of the stars and source of the soul. A design implies a designer. Aristotle mentions it On Philosophy, an in Metaphysics. Thisargument was extended by Thomas Aquinas: All things work towards a plan and goal. Acorns grow into Oaks. He stated that nothing moves toward a goal lacking consciousness, and God has programmed the Oak.(Craig 85) Wm. Paley: Natural Theology: He used the watch maker argument and continued it by a lengthy catalogue of things in nature that show design. He also reasons that just because an error is found in the watch, done not prove there was not an intelligent designer. It is also not enough to say that the watch was produced from another watch and so on. Design is still involved. The many contrivances and unique design in nature did not occur by chance. Craig P.85
Moral Argument: Aquinas: There is a gradation in values; some things are more good and more noble. There must exist the best and most noble and that is God. Wm. Sorley:
In The Ethics of Naturalism he refuted the historical evolutionary approach to ethics. There is a difference between subjective and objective morals. Our moral judgments are fallible. The objective and true moral must reside somewhere. Moral purpose is often confused with personal happiness which is elusive. Morals in action involve personal choice and free will. Bad morals involve bad choices. Craig P.89
The cosmological argument from Craig in his book The Kalam Cosmological Argument
Both philosophical reasoning and scientific evidence show that the universe began to exist. 3 Steps: 1. Whatever begins to exist has a cuase,2. The universe began to exist, 3. Therefore the universe has a cause. One atheistic defense is that the universe sprang into existence uncaused out of nothing.(Craig P.93-4) They say it is only one step more than God did it from nothing. This leaves out a cause however. God existed in undifferentiated time before the creation of the universe. An actual infinite number of things cannot exist and a beginningless series of events in time entails this. There can be a potentially large list approaching infinity as a limit. The actual mathematical infinity is a unique number. Inconsistencies in reasoning from the axiom “the whole is grater than the parts” occur when we tie and infinite series to a specific day like the creation or big bang. .p 97 This occurs when we say the universe existed for ever and never had a beginning. You cannot get an infinite number by adding one event at a time to a finite list. P.98 P.100 Scientific Confirmation of creation in time: The big bang model occurring 15 billion yrs. ago from a state of infinite density and creating space and time (Davies). Hubble discovered the red shifts which indicated all parts of the universe are growing apart and expanding. The theory is that it started from a singularity which is almost nothing and defies logic (p.102).
The alternate models are also not very convincing: The steady state models say it never has a beginning and existed forever. They have little experimental justification. The evidence of cosmic background radiation indicates that the universe was once in a very hot and dense state(Wilson and Penzias). A second model is the oscillating one. Its like a spring expanding and contracting for ever. Many scientists believe this is physically impossible (Tinsley). P.103 There is no know physics to reverse a collapse. As the universe contracted, black holes would suck everything up in a heat death. There are 2 possibilities: the universe will at some future time recontract, or it will continue expanding forever in a cold death. In order for it to recontract, 99% of the matter in the universe would have to be invisible, which is unlikely. P.105 There is not much evidential support of invisible dark mater. The COBE satellite measurements of Cosmic Background radiation argue against dark matter. Another class of models are the vacuum fluctuation ones that appeal to quantum effects. With this the whole universe is only an expansion of a part of it in a vacuum. There is not much support for these models p.107 one model the has been more cited is the quantum gravitational model by S. Hawking, of Cambridge in his Brief History of Time. He eliminates the singularity at 10-43 Sec. of time after the big bang by using imaginary and negative numbers. Then the distinction between time and space disappears. The model has been criticized as not depicting actual reality because of the use of imaginary terms and because of the philosophical problems of using imaginary time. It also defies elementary quadratic equation solutions with two answers: a real number and an imaginary one; the real one is always accepted. Hawking admits when you use real numbers the singularity reappears. p.112 These quantum models have space-time originate in a quantum mechanical region which is a 4-dimensional space involving imaginary time(p113). These models defy what we know about space and time in the present.
Argument from the 2nd law of thermodynamics. A closed system tend toward equilibrium, were process will run down and quit in an expanding cold death. Dr. Tinsley stated that and expanding universe at 1030 yrs. Would be 90% dead stars, 9% super massive black holes and 1% atomic matter manly hydrogen.p.115 This argues against a universe with no beginning as it would now be at equilibrium. Some scientists thus say the universe was started and wound up with energy and it is decaying. Both the expansion of the universe and the 2nd law argue that the universe had a beginning.
It follows that the universe had a cause. It is possible that an intelligent personal agent, God, created the universe and he is eternal. By definition he is eternal, changeless and all powerful. The great fine tuning of the universe argues for and intelligent designer. Barrow and Tipler estimate that the odds against the assembly of the human genome are astronomical(P.118). God must be immaterial, space-less and timeless, since matter changes with time. Methods of arguing: the arguments are mainly philosophical and the scientific evidence show the universe had a beginning and an intelligent designer. We can use world view also. Like physical laws there are spiritual laws.
Chap. 2. The Absurdity of life without God p. 51 Shows the disastrous consequences of human existence, society, and culture if God is false. B Pascal states this in his Penses. Man is largely immoral and selfish. His knowledge is small in comparison to all knowledge of the universe. I am a mere speck in the universe and in time. I know that I soon must die, as all do. Man flounders untethered in uncertainty is his attempt at meaningful life. Many occupy their time with trivialities and distractions to keep their mind of this. Man’s mind is his one asset that can lead him to a higher search. He is like a “thinking reed”. He ends with his wager argument. P.54 Dostoyevsky and others have stated that if God is denied one is left with complete moral relativism, In some cultures then, almost any bad act goes and is difficult to condemn. He also discussed the problems of evil and suffering. Some suffering may perfect our character. And some evil is the result of man’s bad decisions. P.55
S. Kierkegaard described life can be lived on 3 different planes: 1. The aesthetic plane which is the sensual level and pleasure centered- here one finds no ultimate meaning to life and no true satisfaction; 2. the ethical plane in which man lives by objective moral standards, may also lead to guilt and despair, as it is difficult to achieve.; 3. The religious Plane is one in which one finds forgiveness of sins and a personal relationship with God. P56
F. Schaffer (1912-84) drafted the modern predicament and the western culture of despair. He believes the root of the problem is in the Hegelian philosophy and its denial of absolute truths. He believes once God is denied, human life become worthless and we see these fruits in relative morals, drugs and songs of despair. (Pink Floyd) p.56
L. Eiseley describes man as a cosmic orphan, since he is the only one who asks “Who am I? and Why?” However since enlightenment, when he threw off the shackles of religion, he tried to answer these questions without God. The answers are not exhilarating but dark and terrible; You are an accidental byproduct of nature, a result of matter, plus time, plus chance. There is no reason for your existence. All you face is death. Then man’s life becomes absurd. Compared the universe and time we are but a speck. P. 57 JP Sartre said death is not threatening as long as it is of another remote 3rd person, but it becomes so when it is for us or close. Life without god and immortality is absurd. Life without ultimate significance, value or purpose: Scientists say the universe will end and also the human race. Then it makes no difference whether we exist or not. We are no more significant than a swarm of mosquitoes. Our lives are then ultimately meaningless. Absent God there are also no objective moral standards. Who is to judge that Hitler’s standards were wrong for his culture? Morals then become relative to the maker preference. My self interest and that of the herd do not always correspond. Freud says our actions are the result of repressed sexual tendencies. Feminists have raised a storm over his sexual psychology because it is chauvinistic and degrading to women. Some psychologists have modified their theory because of this. However, if naturalism is true this is inconsistent and nature should determine what sex is dominant (p.69). Skinner says our actions are all conditioned responses with no free will. Skinners behaviorism can lead to a society envisioned by G. Orwell in the 1984 movie, where the government controls and programs the thoughts of everyone. Nietzsche said that atheism would usher in Nihilism and the destruction of all meaning and value in life.p.64 It is difficult for Atheist to truly live by that philosophy. They tend to jump to some constructed upper standard for value and meaning. P.65 Just because I chose some meaning and you choose another makes nether true. They are both pretend constructions. Humanists are inconsistent in affirming the values of love and brotherhood. P.66 Without God the problem occurs of their being no punishment for unproven evil acts and no reward for good deeds and life giving sacrifices. Torture of war prisoners becomes Ok. Oppression of women in some cultures also becomes OK. The slaughter of innocent children in war becomes OK. Medical experimentation and torture that the Nazi Dr’s did becomes OK, as does elimination of the weak and sick. There is the present Indian Hindu practice of burning the widow at the funeral of their husband.p.73. The lack of objective morals is a good argument for college students. Help them to the logical conclusion of their morals, without criticizing their morals. They may assert that values are social conventions pragmatically adopted to ensure survival. Ethnic cleansings, apartheid, child abuse, and the Holocaust are good examples