Hermela WMariame

Professor Alexander
Philosophy 1000-19
7 December 2015
1

Thomas Aquinas was born in circa 1225 in roccasecca, Italy. He had eight siblings and
he was the youngest child. his family were a very strict Catholic and his father wanted him to
have a very important position in a young age therefore he enrolled him in
the Benedictines Abbey School when he was just five years old and he was considered as a
"witty child" who had a good soul at his school. The Benedictines was a Roman Catholic monks
hook which it included labor and discipline. The monks taught at school through the
bible scripture, writing and reading. At a young age Thomas Learned basic religious habit and
good studying skills. in 1239 at the age of fourteen he began to attend the university
of Nepal's where he joined the Dominicans and continued his studies in Nepal's, Paris and
Germany. In 1252 he received his master's degree from the University of Paris where he was also
a teacher since then he was an active teacher for the following twenty years of his life. He taught
theology in Rome and Paris as well. He was named the scholar which the
term scholasticism means Christian philosophy in the medieval Europe.
As a man who grew up in a very religious family, his philosophy was about "God and
nature reason. He wanted to prove God's existence in a natural way so that everybody
can understand him. He saw this problem from
naturalist position and he proved God's existence in five different arguments. Even though
he believed in God. He thought he could demonstrate it as well by natural reasoning. He came up
with some arguments that show God's existence. The first three arguments are the natural ways

Hermela WMariame
Professor Alexander
Philosophy 1000-19
7 December 2015
2

that god does indeed exist. We see these three arguments every single day in our lives. With this
three arguments we can conclude that he's a very magnificent God with a power greater than
anything and anyone's. As it says on the bible he's "Alpha and Omega" which means he
the beginning and the end. Even though these arguments are quite enough it didnt stop him to go
above and beyond to prove God exists. The last two arguments talks about how perfect God is
and his qualities.
The first argument of Thomas philosophy is that argument of motion. He started we
the assists one to understand and the things we can see. In this argument he said that there must
be a first mover to make other things move. If there wasnt a first mover we all would be not be
moving at all and we wouldnt be able to do the things we do because we would be waiting
for another being to move us. For example our parents gave us life and their parents gave them
life and so on if we continue to count all our ancestors we would end up with the first people
on earth ado and eve who were created by the most superior being the first mover. If there wasnt
a first mover there would be a never ending life of people or objects waiting to be moved by
something more powerful than them. God is unmoved mover thinks said" therefore whatever is
moved must be moved by another. if that by which it is moved be itself moved, then this also
needs to be moved by another, and on infinity, because then there would be no first movers
move only as much as they are moved by the first mover. As the staff movers only because it is
moved by the hand. Therefore it is necessary to arrive at the first mover, moved by no other and
this everyone understand to be God". It makes perfect sense how he explained his
first argument.

Hermela WMariame
Professor Alexander
Philosophy 1000-19
7 December 2015
3

The second way of proving God's existence is called the argument of cause. Its also
known as the cosmological argument. The word comes from a Greek word cosmos meaning
"world" "universe" or "orderly" structure. This argument has a similar point as the first way. He
based this argument In Aristotelian concept of cause. This argument talks about the main cause
of the existence of the universe. There must be an existing powerful being to make and cause the
universe. Therefore without the creator we would have not existed. If we take the same example
we said in the first argument we again would end up with Adam and eve. This is
what Thomas said about this argument in the world of sensible things we find there is an order
of not possible to go to infinity, because in all efficient causes following in order, the first is the
cause of the intermediate cause be several or one only. Now to take always the cause is to take
away the effect. Therefore, if there be no first cause among efficient causes, there will be
no ultimate nor any intermediate, cause...... therefore it is necessary to admit a first. To which
everyone gives the name of god". He tells us that there is a cause for everything and the cause of
the universe is God. For any particular thing to happen it needs a cause.
The third argument is necessity. This argument talks about the necessity of God. In order
for us to be live. Also it tells us that we are not knackery for this universe to go on because we
just happened to exist. As we talked in the second argument the creator is the one
who caused the universe this tells us that if it wasnt for God this universe would not have
happened and thats proves his necessity. This is what Thomas says about this argument it is not
possible to conceive of a time in which nothing whatsoever existed. thus if nothing had ever
existed, nothing would always had exist but all around us we see things in existence.

Hermela WMariame
Professor Alexander
Philosophy 1000-19
7 December 2015
4

We find in nature things that are possible to be and not be, since they are found to be gated and to
be corrupted and consequently, it is possible for them to be and not be. But it is impossible for
them always to exist, for that which cannot be at some time is not. Therefore.
If everything cannot be then at one time there was nothing in existence. now if this were true,
even now there would be nothing in existence, because that which does not exist begins to exist
only through something already existing therefore we cannot but admit the existence of some
being having of itself its own necessity and not receiving it from another, but rather causing in
others their necessity". Gods existence is very important and knackery because the universe is
the result of God. The universe did not exist before and in the future might not exist anymore.
These are the most neutral ways Thomas used to prove the existence of god. As
a Christian its very easy for me to believe and agree with his arguments but he explains it to the
point where gods existence is true. on the first argument he told us that he is the unmoved mover
which is true even for the wind to wind from one direction to another one it needs Gods word
and power and on the second argument its proved that he is the cause of the universe since
there wont be a result without a cause, on third one it shows hes the knackery being in
the universe because he is the creator of all without him nothing would have been possible.

Hermela WMariame
Professor Alexander
Philosophy 1000-19
7 December 2015
5
Reference
Archetypes of wisdom