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Essay / Cosmological Argument: Saint Thomas Aquinas
There have been various arguments in philosophy that address the existence of God. The cosmological argument is one of those arguments that discusses the existence of God based on certain evidence that verifies the existence of God. The cosmological argument gives an explanation for the existence of God and is built around this explanation and experience, as opposed to the ontological argument which is based on an a priori argument according to which when one believes in the notion of God, he begins to believe. on Its existence independent of experience. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The cosmological argument draws its basis from St. Thomas Aquinas, who in his book “Summa Theologica” proved the existence of God in five ways. However, it is the first three proofs that are cosmological and explain the existence of God. These three cosmological proofs are: a) the theory of the Prime Mover, b) the theory of the First Effective Cause, and c) the theory of the First Existence. The cosmological argument is also presented by another philosopher Samuel Clarke who takes a slightly different route than Aquinas to prove the existence of God. Clarke based his argument on the existence of dependent and independent beings, proving that the infinite chain of dependent beings must start from an independent being. This article will give a brief explanation about cosmological arguments and analyze the argument to give a position on the cosmological argument.Cosmological Argument: Saint Thomas AquinasSt. Thomas Aquinas gave an a posteriori argument for the existence of God and gives five reasons that prove his existence. His argument to prove the existence of God is based on explanation and experience. The first three arguments put forward by Thomas Aquinas are the cosmological arguments and have been discussed here. The first argument, i.e. the first mover, is based on motion and states that for something to be moved it must be moved by someone, and the mover can be moved at the same time so that the motor itself is moved, it must be moved. by someone else. He gives logic to this argument by saying that a virtuality and a reality cannot coexist, and that for virtuality to become reality, it must be brought about by an existing reality. Like a fire is actually hot and the wood is potentially hot. So the current fire changes the wood from potentially hot to actually hot. Likewise, for the moved, there must be a motor, and if the motors in turn are themselves moved, then it goes to infinity. So there must be a prime mover, and that prime mover is God. Aquinas' second argument is the first efficient cause which states that for everything there must be an efficient cause and that nothing can be an efficient cause for itself like that. the thing would have to exist before itself, which would not be possible. Thus, each cause is an intermediate cause that was caused by another cause. But this efficient cause cannot go to infinity. Therefore, there must be the first efficient cause which set in motion the intermediate causes, and this first efficient cause is called God. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay The third argument put forward by Thomas Aquinas is the theory of first existence. In this argument, Aquinas states that there is a possibility that some things exist and some things do not exist. There must also have been a time when nothing existed; however, it is not possible that..