Gödel’s ontological proof for the existence of God
In: Mathematics
In the history of Western thought there have been various attempts to prove the existence of a Supreme Being. Mr. Godel’s proof is a version of a very old argument, called the ontological argument, and it is usually traced to the writings of St. Anselm (1033-1109 AD). A sophisticated version of it has been promoted in the 20th century by an American philosopher named Alvin Plantinga. Most philosophers dismiss this argument because they believe, following Kant, that existence is not a predicate. The crux of the ontological argument is that a truly Supreme Being would, by definition, exist, since existence is a feature of many billions of lesser beings – this is common knowledge. Thus a Supreme Being would have many different traits, but existence would surely be one of them.
*Note: The young Bertrand Russell was thinking about the ontological proof while biking back to Cambridge from his tobacconist and he concluded that this proof was irrefutable (he tossed his tobacco can into the air in his excitement). He later changed his mind.*
Latest Answers