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Today. The Cosmological Argument A priori vs. A posteriori The Causal Cosmological Argument Aquinas’ Reductio Objections Aquinas’ Reductio God? Schopenhaeur’s Gibe. Schedule. Today: The Causal Cosmological Argument (Edwards, pp. 202-6)
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Today The Cosmological Argument • A priori vs. A posteriori • The Causal Cosmological Argument • Aquinas’ Reductio • Objections • Aquinas’ Reductio • God? • Schopenhaeur’s Gibe
Schedule Today: The Causal Cosmological Argument (Edwards, pp. 202-6) Tomorrow: Attempts to fix the Causal Argument (pp. 204-8) Monday: The Argument from Contingency (pp. 208-12)
A Priori vs. A Posteriori A Priori knowledge: • A priori knowledge is knowledge that we can have "prior to experience". We don’t need to observe how the world is to have such knowledge. • Examples: “All bachelors are unmarried.”, “All triangles have three sides.”, …
A Priori vs. A Posteriori A Posteriori knowledge: • A posteriori knowledge is knowledge that we can have only after we have certain experiences. We have to go out into the world an make some observations to gain such knowledge. • Examples: “There is a cup on this table.”, “Smoking causes cancer.”, …
The Cosmological Argument The “Cosmological Argument” actually comes in a few different forms. We will be looking at two versions: • Causal Cosmological Argument (The “First Cause” Argument) • Cosmological Argument from Contingency
The Causal Argument-Edwards • “[W]e find that the things around us come into being as the result of the activity of other things. • These causes are themselves the results of the activity of other things. • But such a causal series cannot ‘go back to infinity’. • Hence there must be a first member which is not itself caused by any preceding member—an uncaused or ‘first cause’.” -Edwards, p. 202
The Causal Argument 1. Many things have come into existence (Stuff exists.) 2.Principle of Determinism: Every event has a cause. 3.Everything that has come into existence has done so as the result of some series of causes [From 2] 4.No series of causes can “go back to infinity” --------------------------------------------------------- C.Therefore, there must be some “first cause”
Aquinas’ Reductio “It is not possible to go to infinity in a series of efficient causes. For in all ordered efficient causes the first item is the cause of the intermediate one and the intermediate is the cause of the last (whether there is only one intermediate or more than one); now if the cause is removed, so is the effect. Therefore if there has not been a first item among efficient causes there will not be a last or an intermediate. But if one goes to infinity in a series of efficient causes, there will not be a first efficient cause, and so there will not be a last effect…”
Aquinas’ Reductio (Proof for 4) 1. Assume, toward a contradiction, that the universe is the result of an infinite series of causes. 2.If a series of causes is infinite, then no first cause occured. 3. No first cause occured. [From 1,2] 4.Ifthe first cause didn’t occur, then the present universe doesn’t exist. 5. The present universe doesn’t exist. [From 3,4] 6. The present universe does exist. --------------------------------------------------------- C.Contradiction (5 & 6)! The universe cannot be the result of an infinite series of causes.
Objection to Aquinas’ Reductio • The problem is with the move from premise 2 to premise 4. • By denying the existence of a first necessary event, we are not leaving the rest of the universe without a cause. On the contrary, we have an infinite chain to appeal to.
Further Objections There are a number of other ways that we might object to the Causal Cosmological Argument, including: • Has it shown the existence of a God? • “Schopenhauer's Gibe”.
God? • Doesn't prove that the first causeis God. • Doesn't provesinglefirst cause. • Doesn't provepresently existingGod.
Schopenhauer’s Gibe Supporters of the Causal Cosmological Argument treat the principle of determinism “like a hired cab which we dismiss when we have reached our destination”.
The Causal Argument 1. Many things have come into existence (Stuff exists.) 2.Principle of Determinism: Every event has a cause. 3.Everything that has come into existence has done so as the result of some series of causes [From 2] 4.No series of causes can “go back to infinity” --------------------------------------------------------- C.Therefore, there must be some “first cause”
