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Mccloskey On The Cosmological Argument Essay

1353 Words6 Pages

a. McCloskey refers to the arguments as “proofs” and often implies that they can’t definitively establish the case for God, so therefore they should be abandoned. What would you say about this in light of Foreman’s comments in his “Approaching the Question of God’s Existence” presentation? Proof an argument that is rationally convincing to everyone p 76
II. On the Cosmological Argument:
a. McCloskey claims that the “mere existence of the world constitutes no reason for believing in such a being [i.e., a necessarily existing being].” Using Evans and Manis’ non-temporal form of the Cosmological argument start off by all and anything in the universe does not have to exist. The term ex nihilo, nothing comes from nothing, of everything …show more content…

McCloskey implies that evolution has displaced the need for a designer. Assuming evolution is true, for argument’s sake, how would you respond to McCloskey (see Evans and Manis pp. 82–83)? Darwin’s theory of evolution offers a scientific explanation for how an organisms can adapted to its environment. Why some organisms can survive and other do not (Beneficial Order p order-things in nature act always or nearly always in the same way value-order in nature brings out things that are good) week 6. It’ is the process. But it does not define why the organism exist in the first place. It does not provide a first cause. Looking back at the plants example, scientist believe Land plants evolved from a group of green algae around450 million years ago, Darwin’s theory of evolution does not provide proof for the cause of green algae, it just explains how green algae evolved into land plants. The process of evolution itself is so complex that it can be argued that it in itself is a complexity organized process. Unable to happen by an undirected processes, but only be intelligent …show more content…

McCloskey specifically discusses the free will argument, asking “might not God have very easily so have arranged the world and biased man to virtue that men always freely chose what is right?” God creates a world with both free will and evil in it. Planting’s argument is a free will defense. Evans and Manis says it is sufficient to know that there are possible reasons why an all-good, omnipotent being might allow evil Pgs. 166-167, without being able to know God’s actual reasons. We are given freedom. Freedom can only happen if we have free will. The greater good can only be accomplished if we take chances. These choices allow each individual's moral and spiritual development, which is the purpose God design the world

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