#Existence of God

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

"If God existed, He would not have created atheists who question his existence." -- Periyar Ramasamy

If god existed, it would be neither necessary nor possible to question his existence.

[alevelrs]

Cosmological Argument for the Existence of God

Start with observations about how universe works and from this try to explain why it exists. also known as the first cause argument for the existence of God. Fundamentally, the argument is based on the claim that God must exist due to the fact that the existence of the universe requires an explanation, which must be God.

Aquinas’s First Way: the unmoved mover

In Aquinas’s First Way, he concentrated on the existence of change, or motion, in the world.

Everything is both in a state of actuality (how it is) and potentiality (what it might become).

All things that are moved (the potentiality becomes the new actuality) are moved by something else, things can’t move themselves.

The mover is moved by something else, which is moved by something else and then something else.

This cannot go on for infinity because there would be no first mover so nothing would have started moving at all.

So, there must be a first mover.

This first unmoved mover is God.

Aquinas’s Second Way: the uncaused causer

Aquinas’s Second Way is similar to his first, but it focuses on the concept of change.

Nothing can be its own efficient cause because it cannot have existed before itself.

Things that are causes must themselves be caused, otherwise the effect would be taken away.

We cannot go back to infinity (infinite regress is impossible) because there would be no first cause so all later effects couldn’t have happened.

Therefore, there must be a first efficient cause that is not instead caused.

The first uncaused causer is what everyone understands to be God.

Aquinas’s Third Way: contingency and necessity

Everything in nature is contingent, it relies on something to have brought it into existence.

If we trace back, nothing existed, but then nothing could have begun to exist because nothing can come from nothing (everything has to come from something)

Therefore, there needs to be a being that isn’t contingent: a necessary being.

Necessary beings could have their necessity come from another being.

But this cannot go back to infinity.

So, there must be a being that has its own necessity which causes other beings.

This is what people call God.

Gottfried Leibniz

Leibniz raised the question ‘why is there something rather than nothing?’, questioning why anything exists at all. He offered a form of the cosmological argument, based on his Principle of Sufficient Reason which states that everything which exists must have a reason or a cause for its existence. According to the Principle of Sufficient Reason:

If something exists, there must be a reason why that thing exists.

If a statement is true, there must be a reason why that statement is true.

If something happens, there must be a reason why that thing happens.

Whether or not we know the reason why something exists, or is true, or happens, there still must be a reason, known or unknown. It doesn’t matter if it’s eternal or not – we still need a reason for it.

Hume’s Criticisms of the Cosmological Argument

Can we make the jump from Aquinas’s observations to the Christian God? The effect cannot immediately point towards a particular cause because causation is a psychological concept, we cannot make links that are beyond our experience – we could imagine anything to create the universe: a stupid God, a committee of Gods, a demon etc. God is just one of a large number of possible hypotheses.

Is it plausible for anything but a transcendent God to create the universe? Aristotle, Aquinas: need a necessary being that would have to transcend the rest of the universe to exist in a unique, all-powerful way.

When we look at the world, we have only the effect to look at – the cause is hidden from us. He uses the example of a pair of scales with one end hidden from view: we can see that the other end outweighs it, but  we have no means of knowing by how much.

It isn’t necessary to suppose that everything has a cause

Just because everything in the universe has a cause or reason to exist, doesn’t mean the entire universe has a cause or reason to exist (just because you can explain the cause of 20 particles of matter doesn’t mean you can explain the cause of the group of the particles)

Bertrand Russell: just because every human being has a mother, doesn’t mean that the human species as a whole has a mother.

BUT modern science suggests there is a definite beginning to the universe

Hume: Why may not the material universe be the necessarily existent being?’ Why could we not accept that the universe is eternal and the cause of all the things in it rather than looking to God for an explanation

[liskantope]

Aaaand among all the atheist-vs.-apologetic debates I've seen (which are many), the winner for the most bizarre, annoying, and all-around ridiculous goes to... this debate between Matt Dillahunty and Sye "my Christian fundamentalist god exists because every argument that could be used against His existence depends on logical axioms which implicitly affirm His existence, by the way, everybody already knows that God exists, and also I don't explain Biblical content to anyone who doesn't already profess believing it" ten Bruggencate. It was a cheaply amusing two hours of content for me.

[emperornorton47]

[problemnyatic]

when will we talk about the willful helplessness epidemic on here. So many people on this god forsaken website demand to have any and all things that exist outside their personal experiences directly, personally pre-chewed and spoonfed to them. And when you do, they'll then ask for you to swallow for them, too, because, you see, in THEIR experience..,

[mediciunicorn]

Why the Existence of God is not provable

What does it mean to possess the  ability to prove God's existence as if his reality was as simple as finding the right experiments? Assume, for the sake of argument ( and, yes, I know it is asking a lot for philosophers to assume anything. Even asking them to assume their own existence is a bit much.) that we could prove, scientifically, the existence of God. If humanity could prove the existence of God like proving 1+2+3 is equal to 6, where does that leave us? What glory is there in knowing the truth of God like you know the solidity of a table.  God created  the world so that humanity has God's law inscribed into their very being (this is why the conscience of every person is convicted of similar things, and why it is so dangerous to sear it), and so his creation bears witness to him, yet he was not physically present as matter.  The hearts of the stars bear witness to him, but he is not in them. Until he came incarnated in the life of Jesus, he was unknowable. Impersonal, yet ruler of all. A judge to all men, yet no one could approach his high seat.  This world, where humanity must have faith in the love of a God, who they must seek as if for hidden gold provides a greater opportunity for adventure. Here, the struggle for virtue, and the heroic desire to attain to God mean something.  Life is not as simple as adding the sum of your actions and tallying whether you come out ahead. Each day your mind and should are engaged in seeking for something you must've faith to find. This is why I think that Anselm's argument for the ontological existence for God is neat, but ultimately irrelevant.  The assumption, that the existence of God could be proved, is simply not true because he created this world on a different paradigm. 

[insightfultake]

The Existence of God: A Journey Through Faith and Reason

In the dim glow of evening, as the sun dips below the horizon and casts long shadows across the earth, we find ourselves grappling with an age-old question: Does God exist? This inquiry, as ancient as humanity itself, transcends time and culture, urging us to delve deeper into the very fabric of our existence. It invites us to reflect not only on abstract metaphysical concepts but also on the core of our being—our sense of morality, our struggles, and the intricate tapestry of life that connects us all.....Click here to read more

[hotpinkandlimegreenlovinfangirl]

https://theautisticcatholic.mystrikingly.com/blog/fragment-of-papyrus-scroll-documenting-jesus-s-childhood-discovered

One of my more recent blog posts on The Autistic Catholic.

[xpurplepiex]

found out about the existence of this pairing like a month ago and im already in love with these two <33

[linusjf]

Bertrand Russell: Cocksureness and doubt

Bertrand Russell (Photo credit: Wikipedia) “The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. ” —Bertrand Russell.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

"Atheism is not a religion. It doesn't mean I lack morals. It doesn't mean I worship Satan.

It doesn't mean your god failed to grant my wishes. It isn't a reaction to being hurt by religion. It doesn't mean my life is empty.

It just means I don't believe in the existence of gods."

-- Jacqueline Hadley

And there’s no reason I should.

[egophiliac]

2025 is the year of the DRAGON SLIPPERS

[somerandomcockroach]

I I MEAN... Wanted something for the soul again and MOMU has a great affect on me by slowly feeding me the ideas for animations... I'm sure Ricochet is Jazz, change my mind, I have no idea how it will turn out but MHMM I HAVE SO MUCH GOOD VIBES FOR MY BRAIN FROM THEM

Song <- clickable link

[slowtumbling]

The Question of Odoacer

In the twilight's hush, a dying king lay,Odoacer, ruler of a realm's decay.His empire crumbled, his strength did wane,And in his heart, there echoed a refrain:"Where is God?" he whispered low,As shadows danced in the fire's glow.In the silence of his chamber dim,He sought solace in a distant hymn.From distant lands, from far and wide,Came tales of gods and deities defied.But in his soul, a…

[flagellant]

yeah we might be brothers in christ but so were cain and abel so shut the fuck up before i decide to find a rock about it