The Cosmological Argument
(Causation or ‘first cause’ theory)
Learning Objectives:
 To explain the argument for causation
 To evaluate whether this argument
proves God exists.
Aquinas’ Cosmological Arguments
If something unexpected happens we
always try to see what caused it.
Science teaches us that things do not
happen by themselves.
St Thomas Aquinas was a well respected
philosopher and a theologian (religious
authority) He argued that the cause of
everything was God.
Aquinas’s five ways
Aquinas presented FIVE WAYS
which he believed showed that God
existed.
The Uncaused Cause
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Everything has a cause
That cause must be caused by something else.
BUT you cannot have an infinite chain of
causes it must all begin somewhere or there
would be no reason for movement to get
started at all.
Therefore there must be something or
someone that does not need to be caused by
something else.
The only thing powerful enough to not need a
cause would be God.
Therefore God must exist.
The Uncaused Cause in simple
talk means…
Everything/everyone is caused by something.
Nothing is caused on its own.
BUT
Something has to start ALL of this. That
something is what people understand as ‘God’.
Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Who was St Thomas Aquinas?
What question did Aquinas say we
should begin thinking about?
What is another name for the causation
argument?
How would Aquinas explain the big bang
theory?
Do you think this proves God exists?
Explain your answer.
Task 1
Create a flow chart to explain the argument
of causation.
Everything must
have a cause
?
Task 2
1.
Come up with your own analogy to
explain the first cause argument,
e.g., my pen was thrown, this was caused
by ….
Task 3

What are some of the strengths of the
cosmological argument?
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In pairs write down what you think are the
strengths of this argument.
Strengths
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To say that God is uncaused even though
everything needs a cause is not a
contradiction because God is a special
case.
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Suggests meaning and purpose for human
life and suggests the existence of a
creator who cares for us
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Gives a simple and understandable
account of the origin of the universe
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What are some of the difficulties of the
cosmological argument?
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beginning of the universe according to
family guy
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Beginning of the universe for rednecks
Task 4

What are some of the weaknesses of the
cosmological argument?

In pairs write down what you think are the
weaknesses of this argument.
Weaknesses
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It goes against the idea of infinity
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It is based on belief only with no scientific
support
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Uses biblical texts and philosophical
arguments which are all open to a variety
of interpretations
Weaknesses
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It is not logical to say that everything
needs a cause then to say God doesn’t‘uncaused cause’ is an oxymoron!
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Even if you argue successfully that all
causes require a cause, you can not prove
that the first cause was a being called
God. Maybe there was a committee of
gods.
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Maybe the first cause was the Christian
God, but Him being the 1st cause does not
prove he’s still around. Maybe he’s not the
loving God Aquinas made out and decided
to have nothing to do with the world after
he made it. (maybe this is why suffering
exists?)
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Quantum physics disagrees with the First
Cause concept as it argues that things DO
spontaneously appear and disappear
without any cause
Richard Dawkins
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the argument
shouldn’t assume that
God is an exception
to the rule
David Hume
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why does the universe
need a beginning? If God
can be self-caused why
can’t this be true of the
universe itself?
we are trying to prove
things beyond our
experience by using our
own limited experience.
how can we know what
happened at the beginning
of the universe when none
of us was there?
Bertrand Russell
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‘the universe is just there and that’s all.
We should just accept that it exists.’
Stephen Hawking
even if there was a first
cause, there is no
evidence to prove it
was a monotheistic
God. It could have
been anything.