(Caper? Arguments or a ie Realty Aristotelian Rational Theology om The Works ef rite 3. A. Sith nd W,D. Ross, eos, 908 + From Proc: ‘The Elements of Theology. E.R. Dodds, asa, 1933 » Fom The Metaphyics of Avicenna), Paz Morewedg, translator, 1973 What seems tobe the ods argent Western rational holy bed on ‘away the fs caseagumet Me see at anf! aries fom a ase Dt {sala fet arising rm anther cause , whieh barn effet ca ‘Ther cannot be aint backed ere becouse there word be natin eet the seyls tart Ths itwould appear thee has ob aft ease tere foe ny fetal. Tis fir cans, conc is God (presmaythe bs caida) who isuncanse, hing sey ois secase, as we flu i some Padang ‘The argument is adonbratedin Pato (Laws 10884-8894). Aristo ives t clearer copes, expen i the fst part of on slot tcee God at ‘the nla ina (or motvaing) case (the nme Move) as wl ashe fr! ina sees of ace o efile cases (recall he drive of fr type of ese a the Avice selection in the prvius section). On ine of Aree’ arguments for "ated by Neopet, Procls (4107-485 c)—se the cond part ofthe eet ‘nl thn given classi ormuton by several sate pilosophers aKa (01-8737), ol-Favob (c.950) and the get Ascein, fom whose Metagysicn @ Final paragraph eds excerpted rites have sully responded) by alleging therein ify in ating on Inte eres of causes nd fet andor (0) by lang tha Without nate sae of ‘nfomation about theft ase such posting is wore. “Acenna’s version of he first-te argument ser he notions of veces and con ingen fain, se ase the selection fom Avicenna ander Divine Realy} Anything ‘that doesnot exis necessity (Le hea Be Image nol 0 ei) hast have rea son for existing (hs alm comes ob ealled the Princip of Sint Reason), An {ite backward series would mean tha there would be n enon (or cas) origiate ‘the seis of contingencies, and 2 there would be nthing at al Of there is supposed ‘bean inte nasal oop or cic, thar would mean tet ho eles would hve 0 ‘both ease and eft wih respect io each theron impo, Avicenna says. Thus thou a neestary Being, there would be no veson for theft contingency to come info Ding; sina there wou be no reason fra enive casa chan itself cnt. gency} Ths the char of easans (cases us termite na neers esting Ding, Gd Thre cant be an nit series of comtingencer, Avicenna plein the ‘rte selection funder Divine Rel) since something exists ‘A varitionof i lst argent ha come Yo be lan as he cosmeogical ag nent (na lferent usage lof the argon x poster are conmoogla!: see the CGiossary.) Neshing that x bough about eves necessary bt rhe contingent. The liver ara hole isa effec ad thet comingents, Suche contingeney could‘Arson Rati Thslgy ene abot only by being caused or created by God who ext necessary, Why is there someting rather thn nothing? (Since the word exits coungenty sere coud ‘have been nahin, it seems) Answer: God, who ests neces creates a ier tha didnt have tobe. Pusher vviaton appear the Mstory of religions pilesophy as des fre re ection on whether everthing eas ob ineligible hat is egued forint, ‘andthe relevance o selene. Thames Aquinas, probably the mat inportont rational ‘heolgian within Christian, wor Aristo’ arunent in theft oof his ive Ways” and Avicenna’ into hs hind way tthe selection noel following "ition Lane Craig reworks fst-cause agement nthe ih of Big Bans cosmology se the selection fom Cru ltr is seton Chis have nesponded ote argument about contingency as they have the rat ‘use argent (a) lift seres of eonngecies prevents no cy, andor (©) thou information rom another sowes abou the supposedly cena ing, sch ‘smppeson is woes. FROM THE WORKS OF ARISTOTLE ident theres st piel, and th est of things are nei an nite seis oft vaios in kind For, onthe one had, oe thing ent proceed fan ae, 1 from mate, ad iftun, Desh rom et, enh fom at, fof nd 90 witout stopping: nor on the eer hand can the ein euses form en ean serie, tan fr instance ting acted on bya iby thes, the a by Sie, and 3 on thot Hi, Simial he inal eases canot go ona ini —walking forth sake health, iis for the sake of happiness, appnes or he make of someting ele, and 0 ne thing slays fo the sae of anoter A the cat ofthe fxm casei simia or inthe cane ofan intermediate, which as ast erm anda pir term outside it the prior mst be the ‘se oft ter ems. For if we ha 1 ay Wich af the thei th cane, we sould sy ‘heist; surely nt thea, forth inal wera sth ene of von; even the termed te, for tis thease only of one. Ksnkes no difsence wether thee lo inertia or more, or wheter Tey ae infinite ot in mabe. tof eres which oie Jn this wa, ano he infinite in genera al he prs dwt tht now preset ae alte intermediates so hat thre 0 frst thee no case a al FROM PROCLUS: THE ELEMENTS OF THEOLOGY ALL THAT EXISTS PROCEEDS FROM A SINGLE FIRST CAUSE. orotherws al hngs are usemsed els the sum of existence i imi, here sa cenit of easton within the suo le here wl ergs oni, coure yng be Find aus, otha the posting fpr cases wll ever cee$20 Chace? Arment ore Die Rely ‘Bt if al things wero uncaused, there would be no sequence of primary and sec: ondary, pertesting nd perfected, regulative sad egulated, generative and generated, ‘sive and passive; andl hings wobld be unkownble, Forth ask of scence the {ecognton of nus, only when werecgnze the cases of things do wey that we ro them, “ices transit themselves in ici the sme things wl be atone peor and consequent th ine every prodative ease Is spear tits product, each will, teat once moc efficent tha te ret and les efficent, 1 nifereat wheter we rake the conexion f ease ad effects derive he oe fate oe hough eter fess numberof intermedi ess; or the cause ofl thes intermediaries will be "petior fo ll of them andthe pear their umber, the greater the efficiency ofthat ‘entse) ‘And if th accumulation of causes may be continued to infinity, cause behind cause forever, thus again ll things il be unknowable. For nothing ftnite can be ppretiendod; andthe causes being unknown, there ean be no knowledge ofthe consequent ‘Since, then, dhings cannot be uncause, and case isnot convertible with effet sud infinite regres senso, i remains that there is a fst euse ofall existing things, whence they severally proceed as branches from x root, some nea (oi and thers more remote, For thit there isnot more than one such frst principle has tlre been esaised,Inaunach asthe subsistence of any manifold i posterior vo the One FROM THE METAPHYSICS OF AVICENNA (BN SINA) FINDING THAT THE NECESSARY EXISTENT IS A UNITY IN REALITY AND THAT THE EXISTENCE OF ALL THINGS IS DUE To IT [As we have stated, the Necessary Eisen isin fac a unity, and all other things ae ron-nscessary beings Thus, they are contingent beings. All have s caso, and causes teint series. Acorns ha eter atiemp to return to aprinary cause, the Neces- fry Eisen, they return to themselves (the chan of eaustan i eel). For trample if Ais the cause of , B the cause of J, and J the enue of then will be The cause of A. Taken totes, teofre, thi prop il be a proup of effects. Hens, it ha become event that hee ast be an exteca ens oe hem, The abi of the a ume forth culty of cases i alo ape in anther prot IFD wees teense [fA then the eet ofthe eet ofA and he efecto he effec the eet ofA woul bethe ffx of A. Fr the one thing, nother hing Would ave 1st buh ease an f= fect, which i imposible Therefore, each effect mst ret tothe Necessary sent ‘which is unig, Consequently all fests md contngenles eur ote one Necessary sistent.