{"id":35501,"date":"2015-06-12T06:19:27","date_gmt":"2015-06-12T10:19:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/?p=35501"},"modified":"2015-06-11T12:42:17","modified_gmt":"2015-06-11T16:42:17","slug":"dialogue-with-the-maverick-philosopher-god-is-a-being-not-being-itself-part-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/dialogue-with-the-maverick-philosopher-god-is-a-being-not-being-itself-part-8\/","title":{"rendered":"Dialogue with the Maverick Philosopher: God is a being, not Being itself \u2013 part 8"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"tryIf God exists necessarily<\/strong>, and this not because of anything else (e.g. there’s some other necessary being which necessarily causes God to exist too), then what explains this?<\/strong> Our friend the Maverick Philosopher<\/a> urges that the only explanation is that God’s essence just is God’s existence.<\/p>\n

I disagree. I now try again<\/a><\/strong> to start with God’s existence, and a few essential divine attributes which should not be controversial, and not much else, and show why given these it is impossible that God doesn’t exist. As before, I will help myself to talk of “possible worlds”<\/strong> – although in all seriousness, I don’t believe there are such things. (Many philosophers do, of course, but there’s significant disagreement about what sorts of things they are<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Warm up:\u00a0We’re assuming that God exists in this the actual world. But does he also exist in all possible<\/em> worlds?<\/p>\n

Preliminary point: if God exists, he exists at all times.<\/strong> He can’t come into existence or go out of existence. For the argument that he can’t go out of existence, see here<\/a>. God also can’t come into to existence, because for any being\/entity that comes into existence, there is some cause for this. But there is no possible being which is metaphysically (or logically) prior to God, so as to be the cause of God’s existence. God is defined as ultimate; nothing is “before” him. Also, God is defined as existing a se<\/em>, as existing “through himself” or independently and not because of any other being. So, for more than one reason, it is impossible that God’s existence has a cause. And so, it’s impossible that God comes to exist. If God exists at any time in any possible world, he exists at all times in that world. If you “look” at any “possible world” either God’s in it at all times, or at no time.<\/p>\n

Now consider any \u00a0other, non-actual world.\u00a0If God exists in any such world, so be it. But could he fail to exist in\u00a0that\u00a0world? No – it turns out this implies a contradiction. How? Here’s my new argument<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n

    God exists in a. \u00a0 (Premise: a = the actual world, the possible world which also is actual)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  2. \n

    God’s essence implies aseity. (Premise)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  3. \n

    For any possible world and any possible sort of inhabitant of that world, there is an explanation why that world does or doesn’t contain that sort inhabitant. (Premise)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  4. \n

    Assume that God doesn’t exist in some arbitrary non-actual world w. (Assumption for reductio)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  5. \n

    There is some explanation for why God doesn’t exist in w.\u00a0(2,3)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  6. \n

    This explanation doesn’t have only to do with God. (1)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  7. \n

    This explanation must appeal to at least one other being with\u00a0the power to prevent the existence of God in w. \u00a0(5-6)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  8. \n

    There is no possible being and no possible group of beings able to prevent the existence of a being whose essence implies aseity. (Premise)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  9. \n

    There is no explanation for why God doesn’t exist in w. (1, 8)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  10. \n

    God does exist in w. (4, 5, 9)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n

  11. \n

    God exists in all possible worlds. (1, 4-10)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Some comments on the argument:<\/p>\n