2. Thomas Aquinas and the Existence of God

3. * The Five Ways (or Proofs) of St. Thomas Aquinas. * We can come to know God through reason. * Consistent with an understanding of truth and God being accessible by both faith and reason. * St Thomas Aquinas St Thomas Aquinas * He wrote these within his Summa Theologica * The Five Ways The Five Ways

4. * The universe is in motion, it is expanding. * That motion must have commenced somewhere - a ‘mover’ was needed. * Everything starts from a state of potentiality and moves into a state of actuality. * Something had to start in the state of actuality to be the ‘first mover’. * Something is an ‘unmoved mover’. * That thing is God.

5. * All things in the universe are caused. * Something must have caused all other causes. * Given nothing we know is the cause of itself – the universe must have been caused by an ‘uncaused causer’. * The universe cannot be infinite – it has to be caused. * The causer is God.

6. * Everything in the universe either exists or it does not. * To exist it must be contingent upon another being. If everything was contingent, the universe would not exist. Why? * Because everything is finite. * Something must not be contingent. Something must exist outside of this pattern of contingency. A being that is necessary. * That is God.

7. * In the universe, there are varying degrees of perfection. * Eg something is good and something else is better. * If we evaluate all things on a scale, there must exist an ultimate perfection. * The pinnacle of perfection is God.

8. * The universe is designed in such a way that natural bodies have intelligent ends. * These are not sentient, intelligent beings. * However, acting towards an end is a sign of intelligence. * Something must guide these bodies towards an end. * This is God.