Anselm's Argument For The Existence Of God

The question of God has always seemed like an easy answer to me. God is something I nor any other human could possibly conceive. I thought that if there truly was a God he would have to be far beyond the human mind and therefore, people would never actually understand who or what he is. Anselm’s argument for the existence of God struck me hard because in a way he is arguing something which I believe but, he uses the line of thought as a way to prove the existence of God rather than using it to shut the door as I had done. By looking at Anselm’s first argument for the existence of God I felt lost as to a rebuttal to his claims. However, by looking at Darwin’s explanation of the origin of human reason and the complication brought on by imprinting …show more content…
Most people, even fools who claim God doesn’t exist have an understanding of the term God. That which nothing greater can exist cannot exist in the understanding alone, he must exist in reality because reality is greater than the understanding. Because of Anselm’s premises he is able to argue that it isn’t possible that God would exist in understanding alone. Reality is a greater existence than the existence of understanding. If God is a being which nothing greater can be conceived, then it wouldn’t be possible for reality to be greater than him. He must exist in reality because he is greater than …show more content…
Darwin claims that we must not, “overlook the probability of the constant inculcation in a belief in God on the minds of children producing so strong and perhaps an inherited effect on their brains not yet fully developed” (75). Darwin’s point is important in refuting Anselm’s argument. The idea of God has existed for a long time and most people have the idea. On that point Anselm is correct. However, when determining an origin to the idea, our minds cannot draw a solid conclusion on where it came from. Human reason isn’t fully understood, that is true. But being as such, is it not possible that the strong feeling of God which people come to agree upon is based on an idea implanted onto our minds from the time that we are young. The reason that people feel they have a clear idea of God is because God is taught to children as soon as they are able to conceive. For most children the first idea fully taught to them is God. However, is it really their mind that conceives of a being which nothing greater can exist? I argue that the idea of God isn’t something which is actually conceived by human mind. It’s something placed in our mind from a young age and as such becomes one of the strongest thoughts that we know. I argue that people cannot actually conceive of a being which nothing greater can exist because we have no baseline. We don’t know and can’t possibly know maxim’s. The human mind isn’t capable of