WorksheetsAH Cosmological Argument
Total questions: 67
Worksheet time: 34mins
How many 'ways' does Aquinas present as proofs of God?
5
3
2
6
The Cosmological argument was famously first presented by...
St Thomas Aquinas
St Anselm of Canterbury
Aristotle
St Augustine of Hippo
How many of Aquinas' ways are cosmological arguments?
3
2
1
5
What type of argument is Aquinas' third way? (select multiple options then press submit at the bottom)
a priori
a posteriori
inductive
deductive
A contingent thing...
doesn't have to exist
has to exist
is caused by God
is moved by God
The universe is therefore also contingent, so at one point nothing existed. This means there must be a...
necessary being
contingent being
uncaused causer
unmoved mover
Leibniz argued that...
we require full explanations for why things exist
God must have created the world
the Big Bang explains how the universe started
the reason for the universe's existence is within the universe itself
Leibniz called this need for full explanations as the:
"Principle of sufficient reason"
"Rejection of infinite regress"
"Product of perfect explanation"
"Need for proper reasons"
For Swinburne, the most surprising thing about the existence of the universe is...
that it exists
how complex it seems
how it follows regular laws of nature
that God created it
Bertrand Russell argued that the universe...
is just 'there' and doesn't need an explanation
doesn't have enough evidence in it to prove God
needs an explanation but God is not it
was caused by scientific processes
Russell says that, if the universe as a whole has one explanation...
then humans would have one overall mother
then people would disagree with it
then there could be other universes with explanations
then it would be a scientific explanation
When Bertrand Russell argues that just because humans have a mother doesn't mean the human race has a mother - this is essentially called:
the fallacy of composition
the fallacy of causation
the ad hominem fallacy
the fallacy of equivocation
Hume criticises the fact that Aquinas has gone from a necessary being to God. He calls this...
an inductive leap
an a posteriori argument
a knowledge gap
a premise error
The Islamic version of the CA is called the...
Kalam Cosmological Argument
Salah Cosmological Argument
Ghazali Cosmological Argument
Koran Cosmological Argument
The cosmological argument is written in Aquinas' book...
Summa Theologica
Proslogion
Fear and Trembling
The Republic
What type of statements does the cosmological argument use?
synthetic
analytic
Hume also argues that ___________________ could be necessary.
the universe
humans
parents
planet earth
Cosmological loosely derives from which word.
World
Universe
Humanity
Aquinas accepted infinite regress as part of his argument.
True
False
Aquinas' uncaused cause. is....?
God
Universe
Human spirit
The world
What fallacy is the fallacy of inferring that something is true of the whole from the fact that it is true of part of the whole?
Design
Natural
Composition
Who said "The universe is just brute fact!" ?
Aquinas
Russell
Copleston
Kant
Flew
Aquinas believes that God is logically necessary. Who else thought that God was logically necessary?
Hume
Anselm
Russell
P1 -
P2 – nothing is its own cause
P3 – a chain of causes cannot be infinite
P4 – there must be a first cause
C – the first cause is God
What is the missing premise?
Everything causes something
Everything is aware of its own cause
There has always been a first cause
Everything has a cause
Define omniscient
all loving
all knowing
all powerful
A sound argument is...
Good and true
Has true premises and a fallacy
Has false premises and valid logic.
Has true premises and valid logic
An argument is...
a series of questions that aims to convince or persuade
A series of statements that aims to sell something
A series of orders that aims to sell something
A series of statements that aims to convince or persuade
Who is the main critic of the Cosmological argument?
Aquinas
Anselm
Hume
Swimburne
Who did Aquinas get many of his ideas on causation from?
Plato
Kant
Himself
Aristotle
What is causation going back without a first cause called?
Infinite doubt
Infinite regression
Infinite monkey cage
Definite reprehension
Who was Copleston's opponent in the 1948 radio debate?
Russell
Mill
Nietszche
Hobbes
Inductive arguments use ________ evidence?
Deductive
Impirical
Impiricist
Empirical
Hume's work was called....?
Summa Theologica
Natural Theology
Language, truth & logic
Concerning natural religion
Which of these is NOT a traditional argument for the existence of God?
The Design Argument
The Cosmological Argument
The Order Argument
The Ontological Argument
What is a theist?
Someone who is not sure if God exists
Someone who believes in God or gods
Someone who believes in Jesus
Someone who does not believe in many gods
The Cosmological Argument claims that the universe
Goes back into infinity
Contains more than one intelligent life form
Has to have had a first cause
Is not yet understood
This argument supports the Design Argument.
Ontological Argument
Cosmological Argument
What term is used to describe God as All Powerful
Omniscient
Transcendent
Omnibenevolent
Omnipotent
How does the Red Shift help prove the Cosmological Argument?
It uses thermal energy to prove the first cause
It is part of the process of evolution
It shows how the galaxy is expanding from a single point
It is a rocket used by NASA to learn more about the universe
Sense experience is ...?
A priori
A posteriori
What does ex nihilo mean?
The universe
Out of nothing
Unlimited power
Unlimited love
Aquinas
Hume
Al Ghazali
William Lane Craig
What analogy did Aquinas use to illustrate an intelligent mind behind the universe?
A sculptor
An architect
A beehive
An archer
Aquinas' second Way argues that there has to be
An Unmoved Mover
A Prime Mover
An Uncaused Cause
A necessary being
Which are criticisms of the cosmological argument put forward by Hume? (2)
We cannot assume that just because everything in the universe has a cause then the entire collective universe has a cause
We cannot recognise any causation or motion in the universe
Is it necessary to suppose that everything has a cause?
The ontological argument is better
Does the Cosmological argument try to prove only the Christian God?
yes
no
If the Cosmological proves the start of the universe through God, who or what created God?
The universe
God is uncreated
We do no know
himself
Aquinas ties to use what method to prove that the alternative suggestion is absurd (specifically infinite regress in this instance)
Reductio ad hominem
Reductio ad quoque
Reductio ad absurdum
Reductio ad infinitum
Reductio ad regression
1- whatever begins to exist has a cause
2- the universe began to exist
3- therefore, the universe has a cause
4- if the universe has a cause, it must be God
CONCLUSION- therefore, God exists
Which formulation is this?
First Cause
Kalam
Principle of sufficient reason
Select all that are STRENGTHS of the cosmological argument.
Aquinas did not intend to demonstrate a perfect God but rather that there can be an uncaused cause
Even if infinite regress was impossible, we would still require an external explanation, which could still point to God
It's supported by science (Big Bang Theory), scientific arguments are most persuasive, as they use empirical evidence to support their conclusions
The inductive argument proves that the existence of God is LIKELY
It's a big inductive leap from what we observe to god as the first cause.
Select all that are CRITICISMS of the cosmological argument.
1- inductive arguments provide probable, not certain conclusions
2- there could be infinite regress, which Aquinas rejects
3- an uncaused cause contradicts the basis of the argument that says there must be an uncaused cause
4. It fits with our observation of cause and effect.
Which of these ar Russell's criticisms?
God must have a cause- the argument is self contradictory
infinite regress could be possible
the world may have always existed
there is no such thing as a necessary being as necessity only applies to analytic statements
the universe is a brute fact
Which are HUME's criticisms?
1- rejects necessary existence
2- we cannot assume empirically that everything has a cause
3- the world could exist necessarily without God
4- just because parts of the world appear to be caused, does not mean that the whole world was caused- fallacy of composition
5. The universe is a brute fact.
