In This Article Edwards Attacks the Cosmological Argument, Specifically Aquinas's

question 8

True/False

In this article Edwards attacks the cosmological argument, specifically Aquinas's causal and contingency versions, holding that the argument fails at several points. Against the causal argument, he argues that the premise asserting the impossibility of an infinite series is false. Even if the argument were sound, he says, it would not prove the existence of a single first cause because a plurality of causes cannot be ruled out. Furthermore, the argument is not helped by the theist's distinction between causes that bring something into existence (causes in fieri) and causes that sustain something in existence (causes in esse). Some defend the causal argument by insisting that even if there were an infinite series of causes, there still must be an ultimate cause of the series as a whole. Edwards counters that such notions rest on the "erroneous assumption that the series is something over and above the members of which it is composed." Against the contingency argument, Edwards maintains that to explain a contingent phenomenon, we do not need to posit a necessary being and that those who make such a demand beg the question at issue.
-Paley says that a machine must be perfect to provide evidence that it had a designer.

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Definitions:

Without Adult Supervision

Situations or activities that occur in the absence of oversight, guidance, or control by individuals of legal adult age.

Self-Control

The ability to regulate one's emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in the face of temptations and impulses.

Nontraditional Family Structure

Family configurations that differ from the traditional nuclear family, including single-parent families, blended families, and families with same-sex parents.

Grandparent-Headed Families

Family units where grandparents are the primary caretakers of their grandchildren, often due to various family circumstances.