René Descartes Argument on the Existence of God Essay

Renà © Descartes Argument on the Existence of God The problem with Renà © Descartes argument about the existence of God has to do with his rationalist deductive reasoning. Descartes deduces that truth about the existence of God lies within his idea of a perfect God and Gods essence (as a perfect being who must exist in order to be perfect). A rationalist philosopher, Descartes discounts human knowledge as a product of our sensory data (our senses) but supports the epistemological stance that our knowledge is obtained through the reasoning processes of our own minds. Because Descartes believes deductive inference is the only path to absolute certainty, he endeavors to use logical arguments and principles (a mathematically natured†¦show more content†¦or exist. He writes, ?What about thinking? Here I make my discovery: thought exists; it alone cannot be separated from me? (65). Descartes deductive arguments about his own existence seem valid and convincing. Once Descartes proves his own existence, he attempts to prove Gods divine attributes by looking at his own creation and origin. Descartes discounts the idea that he created himself by writing, ?if I got my being from myself, . . . I would have given myself all the perfections of which I have some idea; in so doing, I myself would be God? (78). But if Descartes was not responsible for his own creation, who was? He writes, ?because I am a thinking thing and have within me a certain idea of God, it must be granted that what caused me is also a thinking thing and it too has an idea of all the perfections which I attribute to God? (79). He makes this assumption on the basis that ?there must be at least as much in the cause as there is in the effect? (79). This cause-and-effect principle is similar to laws of energy in Chemistry or equal and opposite reactions in Physics. Energy never totally vanishes; it just transforms from one form to another (like kinetic energy to heat energy, etc.). If Descartes parents created Descartes through sexual reproduction, some thinking being must have created them and so on and so on until there is no other being than God, the ?supreme deity, . . . creator of all things other than himself? (73). This logicShow MoreRelatedThomas Aquinas vs. Descarates Essays673 Words   |  3 Pagesphilosophers Thomas Aquinas’s and Rene Descartes used the method of ontological argument for the existence of God and used intuition and reason alone to get to each other’s theory. Rene Descartes wrote out several mediations, but the one we’re going to touch base on is meditation III that he wrote in the 1600’s; While Thomas Aquinas’s wrote his five proofs of God in 1270 that specifies God’s existence in each proof; the one that gives the best argument is the existence of God in his III proof. While bothRead MoreA Brief Look at Rene Descartes829 Words   |  3 Pages Rene Descartes was a brilliant man who came up with many inventions and thoughts to put in people’s minds and let them ponder off and question life in itself. In one of the many things Rene Descartes created, he wrote a book called Discourse on the Method and Meditations. Descartes discusses how there are two main proofs of God’s existence, the casual argument in meditation three and the ontological argument in meditation five. There are a few differences between these two meditations and one isRead MorePropelling Rational Thought Over Compelling Empiricism1459 Words   |  6 Pages In this paper I intend to examine the rationalist philosophy of Rene Descartes and fundamental empiricism of John Locke’s philosophical arguments, in particular their ideas relating to the science of man, his identity and attempt to explain distinctions between the two. 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In order to truly, exist, to be a thinking entity, a person or organism must utilize the abilityRead More Descartes Essay1269 Words   |  6 Pages In the early 17th century a philosopher named Descartes, questioned his existence. His life was dedicated to the founding of a philosophical and mathematical system in which all sciences were logical. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Descartes was born in 1596 in Touraine, France. His education consisted of attendance to a Jesuit school of La Fleche. He studied a liberal arts program that emphasized philosophy, the humanities, science, and math. He then went on to the University of Poitiers whereRead MoreDescartes and God Essay820 Words   |  4 PagesDescartes and God Everywhere in this world there are debates on many things. Logic is often employed in order to understand and come to an agreement on these debated topics. One such topic, which is arguably the greatest topic of debate occurring in modern day, is the existence of God. Sure, many people believe in some sort of higher being, but how many of them try and use logic and rational thought to prove the existence of God. Many probably, however we will only look at one such person.Read MoreDescartes Mind and Body1480 Words   |  6 PagesDescartes’ Mind Body Dualism Rene Descartes’ main purpose is to attempt to prove that the mind that is the soul or the thinking thing is distinct and is separate from the body. This thinking thing was the core of himself, which doubts, believes, reasons, feels and thinks. Descartes considers the body to be an extended unthinking thing; therefore it is possible that one may exist without the other. This view is known as mind-body dualism. He believes that what he is thinking in his mind is what GodRead MoreProposed Seven Philosophers On The Existence Of God And Their Development Of These Ideas1413 Words   |  6 Pagesand (7) Rene DesCartes. The specific three I want to focus on being; St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas and Rene Descartes. Lastly, I will proceed to relate their ideas on the existence of God and their development of these ideas. St. Augustine s epistemology is rationalization. In his argument for the existence of God, he is referring to varying degrees of perfection otherwise know as, an Ontological argument. He believed that in pursuing truth, it would lead to the epicenter of all truth, God. Upon