Descartes Proofs of God/Deception and Error Essay

Descartes: Proofs of God/Deception and Error Instructions: First: Analyze and evaluate the two proofs of Gods existence. How are they different? Is one more convincing than the other? Why did Descartes think he needed two proofs? Do they do different work for him? And secondly: Does Descartes give a satisfactory account of human error, given a perfect and divine creator? Are Descartes arguments convincing, or does it still seem unnecessary and less than perfect that God created us with flaws? Attachments Submission: Name: Augustina Ossimetha Danny Brown Phil 1301 Nov 10, 2010. Descartes: Proofs of God / Deception and Error From the beginning of the third meditation, Descartes seeks to establish the existence of God†¦show more content†¦Secondly, to come up with the second proof of Gods existence, Descartes thought that the power and action that is needed to preserve something is capable of creating something new. He argued that there must be as much power in the cause just as it is in the effect. According to the philosophical writings of Descartes, upon knowing that he did not have power to preserve his own existence because he was just a thinking thing; Descartes concluded that the power must have come from outside him (Descartes, Cottingham and Murdoch 26) And since he is a thinking thing, he claims that the one who created him must also be a thinking thing, possessing all the ideas and attributes of god. In addition, he observed that his parents could not be responsible for creating and preserving his life. Descartes therefore concludes that the one who created him and gave him ideas of a perfect God must be God, therefore God exists. The difference between the two proofs is that the first proof is based on the premise of objective reality and the consideration that the source of an idea must be as real as the content of the idea itself. The second prove is based on causality; that the power and action that preserves lives is capable of creating something new. Both of these proofs of God’s existence are not convincing since they are founded on arguments that can be challenged. The method used by Descartes toShow MoreRelatedDescartes Meditations On First Philosophy1264 Words   |  6 PagesDescartes’ Meditations on First Philosophy is a first-person record of Descartes’ descent into the bowels of disbelief, in order to eradicate all flawed belief from his life. In his first meditation, Descartes explains his argument for universal doubt, which leads him to doubt every truth he has ever established. 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