Quiz on Thomas Aquinas's Cosmological Argument

What is the main goal of Thomas Aquinas's cosmological argument?

• To demonstrate the existence of God through observation of the natural world

• To refute the idea of an infinite universe

• To prove the existence of multiple gods

• To explain the origin of the universe

Match the following

• Explanation of deductive arguments

• An argument in which true premises guarantee a true conclusion. In other words, it is impossible for the premises to be true but the conclusion false.

• Example of a deductive argument

• 1. Socrates was Greek (premise).

  2. Most Greeks eat fish (premise).

  3. Socrates ate fish (conclusion).

• Explanation of inductive arguments

• An argument in which premises offer strong support for a conclusion, but one that is not a certainty.

• Example of a inductive argument

• 1. Socrates was a man (premise)

  2. All men are mortal (premise).

  3. Socrates was mortal (conclusion)

Which of the following is NOT one of the three ways Aquinas focuses on in his cosmological argument?

• Motion

• Causation

• Contingency

• Design

Drag these statements to the correct category

Groups:

(a) A priori

,

(b) A posteriori

• Dave's gran is older than Dave

• Dubai is warmer than Edinburgh

• 1 + 1 = 2

• The speed of light is 299 792 458 m/s

In the Argument from Motion, what does Aquinas mean by 'motion'?

• Any kind of change

• Change in time

• Physical movement only

• Change in position

According to the Argument from Motion, why is an infinite regress of movers impossible?

• Because it is not supported by scientific evidence

• Because it is a logical fallacy

• Because it doesn't fit the theistic narrative

• Because it would not explain the motion we observe

In the Argument from Causation, why can't something be the cause of itself?

• Because it would require too many further explanations

• Because it would have to exist before itself to cause itself

• Because it hasn't been observed in a laboratory setting

• Because it would have to cause to many other things too

What is the conclusion of the Argument from Causation?

• There must be a first mover, identified as God

• There must be a necessary being, identified as God

• There must be a first uncaused cause, identified as God

• There must be a designer, identified as God

In the Argument from Contingency, what does Aquinas observe about things in the world?

• They are all in motion

• They are all self-caused

• They come into existence and go out of existence

• They are all necessary beings

According to the Argument from Contingency, why can't all beings be contingent?

• Because that would be too simple

• Because it wouldn't account for things in motion

• Because all beings are caused by something

• Because there would have been a time with nothing in existence