Comparing The Cosmological Argument For The Existence Of God

When it comes to the position of the existence of God, several arguments are debated. The cosmological argument, according to the text, holds the position that the universe exists and that something outside of the universe is required to explain its existence; that something being God (Pojman, 57). William Paley presented an inductive, teleological argument in which he believes that we complex beings didn’t occur naturally, thus, the universe must have an intelligent designer (class notes). An opposing position, argued by Hume (Cleanthes), presented several arguments to discredit Paley’s position on the existence of God. Though both men held unique points of views from their arguments, I believe that Hume did a better job at discrediting Paley’s teleological argument and showing exactly where it failed. …show more content…
The teleological argument infers that because the world is formed of intelligent, complex purpose or order, which we must conclude that the designer is of extreme intelligent and responsible for its creation (Pojman, 58). In order to prove his position, Paley’s analogical argument included the comparison of a watch vs. nature. Paley also believed that the designer was intelligent based on the important function of the watch, which is the fact that it works towards the ends of telling time. As compared to nature, Paley believed that because the universe also consisted of complex parts, that we don’t have to necessarily see be created, but understands its complexity as well as works towards the end of supporting life, that it should also have an intelligent designer (class