Unit 5 AS: Understand and Evaluate Arguments for and Against the Existence of God

Question

Unit 5 AS: Understand and Evaluate Arguments for and Against the Existence of God

This assignment tests the student’s ability to articulate and evaluate arguments for and against the existence of God.

AS Instructions:

Write a 1000-word, double-spaced paper (approximately 3-4pages) explaining the major arguments for the existence of God. Explain which argument you find the most convincing and why. Then explain the problem of evil proposed by J.L. Mackie. Do you find the problem convincing? Explain in detail your answer.

Upload as a word document. You may use any style that you prefer, i.e., APA, MLA, Chicago.

Unit 6 DQ: Is Knowledge Innate or Impossible? (Graded)

Consider the following scenario:

Farmer Joe is concerned about his cow, Daisy. In fact, he is so concerned that when his wife tells him that Daisy is happily grazing on the field, Farmer Joe wants to see for himself. He doesn't want merely to have a 99 percent probability that Daisy is safe, he wants to be able to say that he
knows
that Daisy is safe. Farmer Joe then goes out to the field and, standing by the gate, sees in the distance, behind some trees, a white and black shape that he recognizes as his Daisy. He goes back home and tells his wife that he knows that Daisy is safe on the field. Yet, at this point, does Farmer Joe really know it?

Discuss why or why not you think that Farmer Joe has knowledge or his cow’s whereabouts.

What do you think is required of Joe to be able to say that he knows that Daisy is on the field?

Unit 7 DQ: Abortion: Pro Choice or Pro Life? (Graded)

By now you have realized that abortion is not a simple black-or-white issue. However, those in favor of abortion ("pro-choice")argue that the question of the morality of abortion rests on the question of whether a fetus is a person.

On the other hand,"pro-life" argue that abortion destroy a human life, and thus it is an immoral act.

First, explain the difference between a person and a human being. Why is this difference relevant in the discussion of abortion? Do you regard the human/person distinction relevant in the discussion or do you think there are more important factors to consider. Which ones?

Unit 8 DQ: What are our moral obligations toward animals? (Graded)

In the previous unit (Unit 7) we have discussed the morality of abortion. Two of the main moral considerations were the status of the fetus and the right of the pregnant woman to make decisions that affect her own body. Regarding the status of the fetus, the question is whether a fetus is a person. For many this is an important question because if the fetus is a person, then it is immoral to kill it; if it isn’t, then abortion is morally permissible. Regarding the rights of the pregnant woman, it is argued that the morality of abortion stems from whether a woman can make any decision she wishes about her own body, including whether or not to terminate a pregnancy.

Having considered these points, what are the similarities and differences between the questions of abortion and animal ethics? What is the connection between personhood and rights? Do you think some animals are moral persons? If not, do you agree that some animals have at least the right to life. On what principle can that right be based?

Dilpreet · Accepted Answer

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Unit 5
Existence of God has been a matter of controversy in philosophy of religion. Over the decades, varied scholars have put forward their views and opinions relating to the subject matter whether God exists or not. According to reports, 60 to 70 percent of the people all around the globe believe in supernatural forces including God, Angels, Devils and Satan. In order to support the opinion that God exists, philosophers have presented varied arguments which include the Cosmological Argument, the Ontological Argument, The Argument from Design, The Argument from Big Bang, and so on. 
The Cosmological Argument states that every living or non living being that exists on the surface of the earth has a particular cause to live (Copan et al., 2017). Based on the above opinion it can be deduced that the universe should also have a particular cause. The argument also states that the cause that something exists cannot be itself. And so the universe does not exist for itself. On the basis of the aforementioned ideas, it can be assumed that something apart from itself is the reason who created the universe. And since God is the sole thing outside the universe, so it can be deduced that God is the one creating the universe, thus proving the existence of God. 
The Ontological Argument was framed by Saint Anselm who was the Archbishop of Canterbury. St. Anselm professes to determine the existence of God from the idea of a being than which no more prominent can be imagined (Rushby, 2018). St. Anselm contemplated that, in the event that such a being neglects to exist, at that point a more noteworthy being—in particular, a being than which no more prominent can be considered, and which exists—can be imagined. Yet, this would be ridiculous: nothing can be more prominent than a being than which no more noteworthy can be imagined. So a being than which no more noteworthy can be imagined, hence proving the existence of God.
The Argument from Design states that the mere existence of trees, animals, planets and so on indicate towards the fact that someone might have designed them in such a way so that they can contain life, hence proving the existence of God as the designer.
As per the scientists, Big Bang is considered to be the origin of the physical universe that encompasses matter, energy, space, time and laws of physics. The argument states that the universe is Ex Nihilo so something else is responsible for the creation of the universe. The only thing that exists apart from the universe is God and hence God had created the universe, thus proving the existence of God.
Amongst all the arguments that propagate the idea of existence of God, I think that the Cosmological Argument explains the idea based on simple common sense.

Unit 5 AS: Understand and Evaluate Arguments for and Against the Existence of God This assignment tests the student’s ability to articulate and evaluate arguments for and against the existence of God....