Thinking to Believe

My final argument for God's existence is a version of the existential argument. I argue that our existential longings can only be explained by and fulfilled by a theistic God: the desire for meaning and purpose in life, objective morality, immortality, free will, and love. People must either (1) believe there is a God who can fulfill our deepest longings or (2) believe there is no God and that our deepest longings will never be fulfilled. 

In part 1, I argue that all human beings have a longing for the transcendent and explain why we need to make people want to believe in God before we provide the evidence for God's existence. Then, I contrast how atheism and theism account for meaning and purpose in life. 

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I wrap up my discussion of Aquinas' Five Ways by examining both his Fourth and Fifth Ways. 

The Fourth Way demonstrate that the grades of perfection we observe in the world can only be explained by the existence of a maximally perfect being. 

The Fifth Way demonstrates the existence of an intelligent being who guides everything towards their natural ends.

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For his Third Way, Thomas Aquinas argues that the existence of contingent beings can only be explained by the existence of a necessary being whose essence is identical to His existence.

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For his Second Way, Thomas Aquinas argues that a causal series can only be explained by a first, uncaused cause who is the source of all causation. In a related argument - the existential proof - Aquinas argues that things whose essence is distinct from their existence can only be explained by a being whose essence and existence are identical; i.e. a being who just is existence itself. 

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I started my exploration of Thomas Aquinas' Five Ways, beginning with his First Way - the argument from motion. Aquinas argues that only God can explain why things change. Change can only be explained by a First, Unmoved Mover; i.e. a Being who is the ultimate source of all change, but is itself not changed by anything.

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The current legal situation regarding abortion law in Arizona has revealed a strategic divide among pro-lifers. All pro-lifers want to make abortion unthinkable in this country, but disagree as to the best way of achieving that end. Abolitionists take an all-or-nothing approach, while incrementalists attempt to end abortion in a series of multiple steps. I argue that the incremental approach is the correct one, and make a case for why we need to pass an abortion law at the federal level. 

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I offer four more arguments for God's existence from human equality, free will, miracles, and the resurrection.

I argue that the notion of human equality has no place in a materialistic worldview, but can only be grounded by a transcendent source like God who.

I argue that there can be no free will in a materialistic universe. Freedom of the will requires a human soul, and the best explanation for the human soul is God.

I argue that miracles occur, and they point us to a supernatural cause whose identity can be revealed by the context of the miracle. 

Finally, I argue that the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the best explanation of the historical evidence, and that Jesus' resurrection demonstrates that the Christian God is the true God and Christianity is the one true religion. 

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I offer three more arguments for God's existence: the origin of life, the argument from human rights, and the argument from human value.

I argue that only a transcendent, intelligent mind like God could create the biological information and order required for living things. 

I argue that the notion of human rights can only be grounded in a transcendent source like God.

Finally, I argue that humans can only have real value if we are made in the image of God. 

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I am continuing my series on the evidence for God's existence with a host of additional arguments. I will not go into the same depth for each argument that I have for the previous arguments. In this episode, I spend the bulk of the time explaining the ontological argument. This is an oft-neglected argument that should be discussed more often. It is a powerful argument that gives you a maximally great being like God. I also give an argument for God from human consciousness, the existence of the laws of logic, and the existence of numbers/mathematics. 

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A 1-N-Done episode on the historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus.

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