For a long time, the question of whether God exists or not has been the focus of several disputes in the domains of popular culture and philosophy of religion (Swinburne, 2004). There are several arguments for God's existence that can be classified into distinct classifications based on the arguments' proponents. There are western philosophers who believe in the classical case for God's existence. These include Plato and Aristotle, whose arguments are considered cosmic. There are also others who employ scientific methods to argue for God's existence. This paper argues for the existence of God highlighting specific evidence from scholarly works that justifies His existence.
There are a number of philosophical issues that suggest the existence of God such as the problem of the supernatural (Spitzer, 2010). Traditional beliefs have always ascribed to God’s various supernatural powers that make Him reveal or conceal Himself in his own purpose. This belief considers God as the ultimate creator rather than part of the natural order. He is the creator of all scientific laws and nature and this is clearly captured in the Aristotelian philosophy. Aristotle, further argues that God should be viewed as a part of the explanatory structure that is needed when supporting scientific conclusions. Either, any powers that God has been in strict conformity with the natural order that is only derived from His place as the originator of nature.
Karl Popper developed a scientific philosophy with the argument that a belief in a supernatural God is always outside the natural domain of any scientific investigation (Spitzer, 2010). His argument is based on the fact that all scientific hypothesis is falsifiable when it comes to the natural world. Stephen Jay Gould also developed a philosophy referred to as the non-overlapping magisterial which holds the argument that God’s existence is beyond scientific domain thus irrelevant to science itself.
There are those philosophers referred to as logical positivists like Rudolf Carnap and A.J Ayer who believe that arguments on the existence of God border on literal nonsense (Stearn, 2017). These philosophers hold the view that religious statements or transcendent experiences do not have any truth value in them thus deemed to have no meaning. These statements or transcendent experiences do not have any form of verification criteria that can be clearly understood. Scott C. Todd, a Christian biologist, argues that even if all data were to point to a certain intelligent designer, the hypothesis of such a nature would automatically be excluded from science itself since it is not naturalistic. Such arguments limit the domain of science thus limiting God’s domain to the unprovable.
A deeper analysis on the existence of God reveals a number of arguments in support of God’s existence. The first is the empirical arguments which start from the beauty perspective especially the elegance of the laws of physics (Pasquini, 2010). These laws are considered empirical just like the laws of mathematics which are abstract but still useful in our daily lives. These laws are considered as evidence for the existence of a creator deity who arranged them in the order they are. The argument of human consciousness also acts as evidence of the existence of God. Human consciousness can never be explained merely by physical mechanisms of human brain or body but by a non-physical aspect. The non-physical aspect, in this case, is considered supernatural and thus can only be God.
There is also the Aquinas’ five ways argument to the existence of God even though they are pegged on the Aristotelian ontology and relies on infinite regression argument to develop its case (Overman, 2010). Aquinas proposed five stages towards proving the existence of God which is an unmoved mover, necessary being, first cause, teleological argument and argument from degree. His unmoved mover argument asserts that from different experiences of motion within the universe, we can observe that there must have been a mover at some point. Anything that is currently moving must have been put in motion at some point in time. Thus, the being that put all things into motion is referred to as the unmoved mover. Aquinas first cause argument claims that at no time can a being cause itself and that there cannot be an infinite chain of causes. Such a scenario would lead to an infinite regression. Therefore, there has to be a first cause which in itself is uncaused.
The necessary being argument asserts that all beings are contingent, therefore, there is a possibility of them not existing (Stearn, 2017). Aquinas argues that since there is a possibility of all this not existing then there is a time when nothing existed. There must also exist a being, whose necessary existence, caused other beings to exist. This being is what is regarded as God. His argument from the degree perspective relies heavily on the degree of goodness. He argues that anything regarded as good must have been regarded so in relation to some standards of goodness. This standard of goodness must be the maximum anything good can achieve and it points to the existence of God.
Aquinas’ teleological argument dictates that anything without intelligence is always ordered towards a purpose (Pasquini, 2010). Any object that is not intelligent cannot be ordered unless an intelligent being does so. This means that there exists an intelligent being that makes objects move towards their desired end. That intelligent being is what we refer to as God since He alone can order other objects. From a deductive argument perspective, ontologism is one philosophical argument that tries to justify the existence of God. This argument was propagated by St Anselm and Rene Descartes who argued that God’s existence is evident in itself.
They further argue that for something to be contained in an idea that is clear and distinct then the whole idea must be a predicate of the thing itself (Geis, 2010). This should also be the idea of a clear and distinct being that is perfect and absolute. Such an idea, must therefore, be an actual being that must be in existence thus the actual being has to be God himself. There are scholars who argue the existence of God from an inductive perspective whereby they rely heavily on conclusions through inductive reasoning. This argument relies heavily on the probability that is not certainly absolute. The argument lives behind a number of obscure points that only requires faith for one to dismiss.
Historical events can also be used to justify the existence of God just like in the subjective arguments (Yaran, 2003). There are scholars referred to as sincere seekers who advanced the argument that all individuals who follow a formula like a path towards attaining some guidance to arrive at the same destination. The same destination is that of the conviction of God and found within monotheistic tenets and the Islamic laws. These assertions can only be true in the event that the supplications and formula are answered by a divine entity that is same.
Christian and Judaism teachings hold that God intervened in a number of historical moments (Turner, 2004). This is evident in Exodus and when the ten commandments were given. There are those witnesses who ascertained that God himself intervened during these periods thus demonstrating his existence. Christological arguments also hold the view that there are certain events within the new testament teachings that are a testimony to God’s existence. A good example is the event of the resurrection of Jesus Christ which clearly illustrates the existence of God. Jesus also claimed to be the son of God and as a morally upstanding person, his words were construed to be correct. Therefore, by claiming to be the son of God is a clear indication that God existed. Jesus also had a strong belief that God existed. Since he was considered one of the wisest person during his time, this belief is taken to be true. Therefore, by Jesus believing that God existed is a clear indication of God’s existence.
In conclusion, therefore, the existence of God is found to have generated a number of debates across different spheres of life. Even though there are still those who question the existence of God, there are a number of factors that point to his existence. Some of these factors are derived from our day to day lives. These are considered scientific and are used to ascertain whether God truly exists or not. There are also scholars who have developed a number of arguments in a bid to justify the existence of God. There are also past events within the new testament teachings that point to the fact that God truly exists. All these factors cannot just point to the fact that God truly exists just by sheer coincidence. They show clear indications that God truly exists and that He is the creator of everything in the universe. Therefore, it can conclusively be stated that God truly exists since there is sufficient evidence to show his existence.
Reference List
Yaran, C. S. (2003). Islamic Thought On The Existence Of God: Contributions And Contrasts With Contemporary Western Philosophy Of Religion. Washington, D.C., Council For Research In Values And Philosophy.
Swinburne, R. (2004). The Existence Of God. Oxford, Clarendon Press.
Spitzer, R. J. (2010). New Proofs For The Existence Of God: Contributions Of Contemporary Physics And Philosophy. Grand Rapids, Mich, William B. Eerdmans Pub.
Turner, D. (2004). Faith, Reason And The Existence Of God. Cambridge [U.A.], Cambridge Univ. Press.
Geis, R. J. (2010). On The Existence Of God. Plymouth, U.K., University Press Of America.
Pasquini, J. J. (2010). The Existence Of God: Convincing And Converging Arguments. Lanham, Md, University Press Of America.
Stearn, M. E. (2017). If God Exists The Theory Of Omnideism: An Atheistic Argument For The Existence Of God. Eugene, Wipf And Stock Publishers.
Overman, D. L. (2010). A Case For The Existence Of God. Lanham, Md, Rowman & Littlefield.
