- Feb 5, 2002
- 167,338
- 56,654
- Country
- United States
- Faith
- Catholic
- Marital Status
- Married
- Politics
- US-Others
Aristotle, Anselm, Aquinas, Liebniz, and William Lane Craig provide famous reasons to believe that God exists. Less well known is a way proposed by the African intellectual Augustine. In his fantastic book Five Proofs of the Existence of God, Edward Feser explains this argument at length. Inspired by Augustine, let’s begin with the reality that 2+2=4.
Some realities exist in matter. A house is made of wood, nails, and cement. A dog has fur, muscles, and bones. Other realities exist in a mind. My memories of seeing the Grateful Dead in concert and of running track against Harvard exist in my mind. Your beliefs about dogs and about chocolate exist in your mind.
Does the reality of 2+2=4 exist in matter or in mind? Well, material realities have a particular weight, length, and density. But the reality that 2+2=4 does not have a weight, a length, or a density. So, the reality that 2+2=4 does not exist as a material object.
Continued below.
Some realities exist in matter. A house is made of wood, nails, and cement. A dog has fur, muscles, and bones. Other realities exist in a mind. My memories of seeing the Grateful Dead in concert and of running track against Harvard exist in my mind. Your beliefs about dogs and about chocolate exist in your mind.
Does the reality of 2+2=4 exist in matter or in mind? Well, material realities have a particular weight, length, and density. But the reality that 2+2=4 does not have a weight, a length, or a density. So, the reality that 2+2=4 does not exist as a material object.
Continued below.
If 2+2=4, Then God Exists - Word on Fire
2+2=4 is a timeless reality and an unchanging truth, so it cannot depend upon minds like ours that come into and go out of existence.
www.wordonfire.org