CRITICISM ON DESCARTES’ PROOF OF GOD

➢ 1ST CRITICISM

○ 1. Descartes assumes that the idea of a perfect being can only be created by

an entity rather than an imperfect being.

○ Philosophers claim that it’s possible for an imperfect being to create a perfect

entity.

○ The idea of perfection = mere negation of finite.

■ Feuerbach - Atheistic German philosopher

● The idea of perfect = mere projection of a man’s finite traits to

a superlative degree.

■ Nietzsche

● Postmodernists & existentialists say that - our judgments of

imperfection & perfection are not caused by the innate ideas of

God but by social conditioning.

● Judgements of imperfection & perfection are caused by social

conditioning.

○ NOTE: Descartes used certainty of cogito for his test of truth, not
mathematics itself.

○ Later he restores the validity & dynamics of math through the existence of

God

○ ** Idea of God is innate in so far as the human and is concerned, but if you see

it from a bigger picture it has a causal format.

➢ 2ND CRITICISM

○ Descartes assumes that the innate idea of God is a universal truth;

○ Depicted as the Judeo Christian concept of God.

■ ^Not True^
● The idea of God is relative.

● Determined by one’s cultural & sociological upbringings.

○ Ex. North American Indian gods

■ Sees God in the form of trees, animals & other

aspects of the wilderness.

○ Ancient Greek

■ Gods are not peace loving & serene .

■ Gods are powerful pleasure seeking deities such

as Zeus, Poseidon & Hades.

○ Egyptians

■ Worships gods that are half human & half animal

like Anubis. Worships Pharaohs that are human

beings.

○ Buddhists

■ Don’t believe in God.

■ Believes in spirituality which assumes the form of

goodness & camaraderie among society.

➢ 3RD CRITICISM

○ Arnauld - French Philosopher

■ Descartes’ 1st proof is flawed (cartesian circle).

● Cartesian Circle
○ Circular type of reasoning + element of redundancy.

○ Form of invalid & unacceptable reasoning within the

domain of logic.

○ Linked to fallacy - arguing in circles.

■ Descartes used the innate idea of God to prove

God.

■ What is the question of the innate God? -

Descartes answers that it came from God.

➢ DESCARTES’ 1ST & 2ND ARGUMENTS FOR GOD’S EXISTENCE

○ Aware that the 1st was shaky = provided 2 arguments to reaffirm his

contention on the existence of God.

➢ DESCARTES’ 2ND PROOF

○ Process of elimination.

○ Goes back to the existence of “I” or “mind” and tries to examine all possible

causes that could justify the existence of the “I” & cancels them out

accordingly to arrive at its true cause.

■ Can the self be the cause of its own existence?

● No - because if it were true, then “I” can create life & personal

identity in a perfect way & become God.

● The self is imperfect * subject to error beyond control = self

cannot be the creator of his own life.

 ■ Can other selves & parents be the true cause of the self?

● No - If true = will lead to infinite regress - infinite series of

causes which stretch back time without any beginning.

● A never-ending process of prior causes.

● If parents = true causes of the “I” then what caused the

existence of our parents? - what caused their grandparents to

exist? - so on, and so forth.

○ Infinite Regress

■ Never ending process, no beginning.

■ No beginning = cannot c reate anything into

existence.

■ Existence cannot come from a point of nothing

➢ DESCARTES’ 3RD PROOF: ONTOLOGICAL ARGUMENT

○ Proves God starting from the idea of definition of God to God as an existent.

○ Abstract theistic proof for God on the being or idea of God.

■ ST. Anselm

● Created ontological argument = comprehensive

■ Descartes

● Ontological argument = shorter & simplistic

○ Right Triangle
■ 3 sides, 3 angles, sum of 180 degrees interior angles.

■ If one attribute is missing = not a right triangle anymore.

 ○ God by definition is perfect, and must have existence.

■ If God does not exist then He is an imperfect entity.

■ Existence = necessary attribute & defining feature of the concept of a

perfect being.

● **a physical imperfect thing exists. This argument is only for the

existence of God not the existence of physical objects.

○ God = eternal and will continue to exist ad infinitum.

○ Objects = changing & perishable + temporary existence.

➢ 1ST POINT

○ God is the ultimate cause of the existence of “I” or the mind.

○ “I” and the mind exist because of God’s Existence.

➢ 2ND POINT

○ Errors do not come from God but from a man’s finite nature which is the

misuse of free will.

○ Finite beings tend to choose the false over the true.

➢ 3RD POINT

○ God is the basis for our ideas of mathematics which the mind can employ in

proving & reconstructing knowledge of material bodies.

 CRITICISMS

1ST CRITICISM - Idea of perfection is a mere negation

of finite.

- Imperfection & perfection are

caused by social conditioning.

2ND CRITICISM - Descartes assumes that the innate

idea of God is a universal truth &
depicted as the judeo Christian
concept of God.