Saint Anslem was a Catholic philosopher who wrote a proof through deduction for the existence of the Christian God.
Ontology is the study of what there is, more specifically in this case, the entities that exist and the logic encompassing such thought. Therefore, an ontological argument is an argument that appeals to a being or an essence of a thing. Often, ontological arguments are unclear as to what the answer, or even, question is exactly; thus leaving the arguments open to thought, reflection, discussion and debate for centuries to follow.
Anslem’s ontological argument for the existence of God can be summarized in five points. The first statement is that God is a being in which nothing greater can be conceived. Secondly, we can conceive …show more content…
If an ontological argument is executed properly, it becomes as much of a contradiction to suppose that God doesn’t exist as it is to suppose he does, by doing so, philosophers allow for deep intellectual thought when struggling to reach your own personal conclusion. This level of reasoning is achieved by deducing the existence of God from the very definition of the same God, which, in turn opens the argument up to two main criticisms.
There are two main objections to Anslem’s ontological argument. The first is that Anslem is essentially defining God into existence, and that is simply not feasible. Second, just because something exists in our understanding doesn’t automatically make it exist in …show more content…
An example to this objection is when children are young, they understand and believe in Santa Claus. The children understand Santa exists and shimmies down their chimney on Christmas Eve. Along with an understanding, they also hold a genuine belief that this is true. Although children both understand Santa and believe in his existence, we all know he is nothing more than fiction, residing in the realm of unicorns. What makes God any different, what removes him from the realm of fiction and allows God to be the only being to exist in reality? Anslem cannot just argue God into existence, reality doesn’t work that
Ontology is the study of what there is, more specifically in this case, the entities that exist and the logic encompassing such thought. Therefore, an ontological argument is an argument that appeals to a being or an essence of a thing. Often, ontological arguments are unclear as to what the answer, or even, question is exactly; thus leaving the arguments open to thought, reflection, discussion and debate for centuries to follow.
Anslem’s ontological argument for the existence of God can be summarized in five points. The first statement is that God is a being in which nothing greater can be conceived. Secondly, we can conceive …show more content…
If an ontological argument is executed properly, it becomes as much of a contradiction to suppose that God doesn’t exist as it is to suppose he does, by doing so, philosophers allow for deep intellectual thought when struggling to reach your own personal conclusion. This level of reasoning is achieved by deducing the existence of God from the very definition of the same God, which, in turn opens the argument up to two main criticisms.
There are two main objections to Anslem’s ontological argument. The first is that Anslem is essentially defining God into existence, and that is simply not feasible. Second, just because something exists in our understanding doesn’t automatically make it exist in …show more content…
An example to this objection is when children are young, they understand and believe in Santa Claus. The children understand Santa exists and shimmies down their chimney on Christmas Eve. Along with an understanding, they also hold a genuine belief that this is true. Although children both understand Santa and believe in his existence, we all know he is nothing more than fiction, residing in the realm of unicorns. What makes God any different, what removes him from the realm of fiction and allows God to be the only being to exist in reality? Anslem cannot just argue God into existence, reality doesn’t work that