The Cosmological Argument
AQA requirements:
1. The basis of Aquinas’ argument in observation
2. Aquinas way 3
3. Criticisms of Hume and Russell
4. The strengths and weaknesses of Aquinas’ third way
5. The status of Aquinas’ argument as a ‘proof’
6. The value of Aquinas’ argument for religious faith
Key Intro Points:
• Comes from the Greek word Cosmos - meaning universe.
• Key question - why is there something rather than nothing?
• It is a posteriori - looks at evidence in the world - knowledge is gained through experience.
• Argument = inductive - built upon evidence to reach its conclusion - probability not proof.
• The cosmological argument claims that from examining the fact that the universe exists, you can
work out the cause of the universe’s existence.
• An important consideration for the argument = Ockham’s razor - always choose the simplest ex-
planation.
• Key term = infinite regression - a chain of events that goes back forever.
• Most famous for argument - St Thomas Aquinas.
• Wrote about it in book Summa Theologica - written for Christians not atheists.
• Greatly influenced by Aristotle - puts Aristotle’s ideas into the context of being a Christian - he at-
tempts to apply the philosophy of Aristotle to Christianity.
• In his book he provided 5 ways - the first 3 = the Cosmological Argument.
• All 5 ways = a posteriori - all have as their starting point some observation or experience of the
universe.
• 3 ways of cosmological argument = unmoved mover, uncaused cause, possibility and necessity.
1. The basis of Aquinas’ argument in observation
• Aquinas’ observation of the Cosmos (universe) convinced him that its basic processes did not
explain themselves.
• Galaxies, stars, planets, moons; all things in the universe move and are changed, and those
changes are the result of cause and effect.
• Aquinas’ Third Way = a posteriori and inductive, so it’s based in observation, in Aquinas’ case
the observation that the universe exists.
• Sense experience can verify the universes existence and its properties.
• Way 3 is the observation that all things that we see in the universe are contingent - they are
moved, changed and caused: they need not exist but they do - this applies to everything in the
universe.
• Since the big bang the universe as a whole has been a relentless process of expansion and
change. Nothing stays the same - everything is contingent.
• From the observation that all things are contingent - Aquinas concluded that something must ex-
ist necessarily.
• If everything is contingent then the explanation for the existence of the universe must exist out-
side of it.
• There seems to be nothing in what we observe that can explain why contingent things exist. The
Cosmological Argument therefore deduces from this that this external reason must itself be nec-
essary.
2. Aquinas way 3
AQA requirements:
1. The basis of Aquinas’ argument in observation
2. Aquinas way 3
3. Criticisms of Hume and Russell
4. The strengths and weaknesses of Aquinas’ third way
5. The status of Aquinas’ argument as a ‘proof’
6. The value of Aquinas’ argument for religious faith
Key Intro Points:
• Comes from the Greek word Cosmos - meaning universe.
• Key question - why is there something rather than nothing?
• It is a posteriori - looks at evidence in the world - knowledge is gained through experience.
• Argument = inductive - built upon evidence to reach its conclusion - probability not proof.
• The cosmological argument claims that from examining the fact that the universe exists, you can
work out the cause of the universe’s existence.
• An important consideration for the argument = Ockham’s razor - always choose the simplest ex-
planation.
• Key term = infinite regression - a chain of events that goes back forever.
• Most famous for argument - St Thomas Aquinas.
• Wrote about it in book Summa Theologica - written for Christians not atheists.
• Greatly influenced by Aristotle - puts Aristotle’s ideas into the context of being a Christian - he at-
tempts to apply the philosophy of Aristotle to Christianity.
• In his book he provided 5 ways - the first 3 = the Cosmological Argument.
• All 5 ways = a posteriori - all have as their starting point some observation or experience of the
universe.
• 3 ways of cosmological argument = unmoved mover, uncaused cause, possibility and necessity.
1. The basis of Aquinas’ argument in observation
• Aquinas’ observation of the Cosmos (universe) convinced him that its basic processes did not
explain themselves.
• Galaxies, stars, planets, moons; all things in the universe move and are changed, and those
changes are the result of cause and effect.
• Aquinas’ Third Way = a posteriori and inductive, so it’s based in observation, in Aquinas’ case
the observation that the universe exists.
• Sense experience can verify the universes existence and its properties.
• Way 3 is the observation that all things that we see in the universe are contingent - they are
moved, changed and caused: they need not exist but they do - this applies to everything in the
universe.
• Since the big bang the universe as a whole has been a relentless process of expansion and
change. Nothing stays the same - everything is contingent.
• From the observation that all things are contingent - Aquinas concluded that something must ex-
ist necessarily.
• If everything is contingent then the explanation for the existence of the universe must exist out-
side of it.
• There seems to be nothing in what we observe that can explain why contingent things exist. The
Cosmological Argument therefore deduces from this that this external reason must itself be nec-
essary.
2. Aquinas way 3
