Does Gaunilo’s objection to the ontological argument itself presuppose God’s existence?

What is Gaunilo’s objection to the ontological argument?

In his work In Behalf of the Fool, Gaunilo contends that St Anselm’s ontological argument fails because logic of the same kind would force one to conclude many things exist which certainly do not. An empiricist, Gaunilo thought that the human intellect is only able to comprehend information provided by the senses.

What is Gaunilo’s objection to Anselm’s argument from on the existence of God?

Anselm responds to Gaunilo’s objections by contending that, if the reality in question can be thought of, it necessarily exists. For ‘that than which a greater cannot be thought’ cannot be thought save as being without a beginning.

What is the objection to ontological argument?

Abstract: The most famous objection to the ontological argument is given in Kant’s dictum that existence is not a real predicate.

What is Gaunilo’s criticism of Saint Anselm’s ontological argument for the existence of God?

Anselm responded to Gaunilo’s criticism by arguing that the argument applied only to concepts with necessary existence. He suggested that only a being with necessary existence can fulfill the remit of “that than which nothing greater can be conceived”.

What is Gaunilo’s objection to the argument how does Anselm reply quizlet?

– Anselm argues that Gaunilo does not argue that his island is the greatest conceivable island. – Therefore, it could be possible that Gaunilo’s island is greater than all other islands but this would be incoherent as we can also conceive of it not existing.

What is the point of Gaunilo’s analogy?

2. We cannot give a sound proof of the existence of a greatest conceivable island. C. Anselm’s proof for the existence of a greatest conceivable being is not sound.
1 Gaunilo’s ‘Lost Island’ argument.

Gaunilo’s ‘Lost Island’ argument
1. The Lost Island is that than which no greater island can be conceived. (Definition)

Who was responsible for the ontological argument for the existence of God?

Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury

As an “a priori” argument, the Ontological Argument tries to “prove” the existence of God by establishing the necessity of God’s existence through an explanation of the concept of existence or necessary being . Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury first set forth the Ontological Argument in the eleventh century.

Which of the following does Anselm believe about God quizlet?

What does Anselm think of God? He is the greatest conceivable being. The greatest conceivable being cannot be conceived not to exist. Therefore God, and God alone, possesses necessary existence: God cannot not exist.

What is a necessary existence?

In Christianity: The ontological argument. This hinges upon “necessary existence,” a property with even higher value than “existence.” A being that necessarily exists cannot coherently be thought not to exist. And so God, as the unsurpassably perfect being, must have necessary existence—and therefore must exist.

What are the three main arguments for the existence of God?

There is certainly no shortage of arguments that purport to establish God’s existence, but ‘Arguments for the existence of God’ focuses on three of the most influential arguments: the cosmological argument, the design argument, and the argument from religious experience.

What are the 5 arguments for the existence of God?

Aquinas’ Five Ways argued from the unmoved mover, first cause, necessary being, argument from degree, and the teleological argument.

What is the cosmological argument for the existence of God?

A cosmological argument, in natural theology, is an argument which claims that the existence of God can be inferred from facts concerning causation, explanation, change, motion, contingency, dependency, or finitude with respect to the universe or some totality of objects.

What is the difference between ontological and cosmological arguments?

The ontological argument is based around this reasoning. The basis of the argument itself depends on ones understanding of the nature of God. The argument attempts to prove Gods expistence through the meaning of the word GOD. The Cosmological argument on the other hand, is a a posteriori based argument.

What is wrong with the cosmological argument?

A flaw in the cosmological argument is in giving special exclusive status to a deity that would need no creator or origin outside of itself– a necessary being–without acknowledging that such status could be given to the basic stuff, physis, of the universe, its energy, that can take different forms..

How does the first cause argument prove the existence of God?

Scientific discoveries, eg the Big Bang theory , can be seen to support the first cause argument. If God caused the ‘Big Bang’, then God is the ‘first cause’ that brought the cosmos (universe) into existence. It confirms to the theist that there is purpose to the cosmos and a place for God as its ‘creator’.

Why is the ontological argument convincing?

The general overall argument is convincing because it is logical to think that God is the greatest thing that can be thought of and to agree with our statement, “that than which nothing greater can be conceived” he must exist in reality.

How did Thomas Aquinas prove the existence of God?

Aquinas’s first demonstration of God’s existence is the argument from motion. He drew from Aristotle’s observation that each thing in the universe that moves is moved by something else.

What is the Teleological Argument for the existence of God?

The basic premise, of all teleological arguments for the existence of God, is that the world exhibits an intelligent purpose based on experience from nature such as its order, unity, coherency, design and complexity.

How does the teleological argument prove God’s existence essay?

The teleological argument is an argument attempting to prove God’s existence based on the evidence of design and order in the universe. It works based on the belief that there must have been an intelligent designer, and the only being powerful enough to have created the universe is God.

What is wrong with the teleological argument?

Other criticisms

The teleological argument assumes that one can infer the existence of intelligent design merely by examination, and because life is reminiscent of something a human might design, it too must have been designed.