Essay about St. Anselm of Canterbury - 1110 Words

In the following I intend to prove that the ontological argument is in and of itself, insufficient in proving that God exists. There are a few problems with the argument that I will be discussing in detail in an attempt to illustrate exactly why ‘The Ontological Argument’ is unsatisfactory. The Definition of ‘Greater’ St. Anselm of Canterbury defined God as â€Å"that-than-which-a-greater-cannot-be-thought† (Bailey, 2002). The problem with this definition is that the term ‘greater’ is surely up for interpretation. The term ‘greater’ requires a comparison between itself and one or more things, which could pose a problem for Anselm’s argument; however Professor Thorp states that the only difference between these two things is that one exists†¦show more content†¦One person may perceive their ‘real beer’ as a Corona, a Molson or other, and still their ‘real beer’ is better than their ‘imaginary’ Corona or Molson or other. Whose beer is better is merely a preference and no amount of reasoning can safely or conclusively determine a ‘greater’ between the two. This is exactly the problem with Anslem’s ‘Ontological Argument’ and is sufficient in itself to prove that even with the accept ed definition of God, â€Å"that-than-which-none-greater-can-be-thought† (Bailey, 2002), Anselm cannot prove that a God exists, but rather, that each individuals perceptions of their own God in their mind must exist. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; With regards to the above objection, I do admit that I have not disproved Anselm’s argument to the point where I could say that his first two premises of his argument being true, that God doesn’t have to exist. My objection only stands to establish that Anselm has failed only to prove the existence of a single and only God in existence. He has not proved the existence of a God but of everyone’s personal view of God in their own minds. I believe my next objection causes more serious problems for Anselm’s Ontological argument. My second problem with Anselm’s Ontological argument resides once again in Anselm’s use of the word ‘Greater’ but this time in a very different context. In Anselm’s Argument, ‘Greater’ implies infinity. ForShow MoreRelatedSt. Anselm Of Canterbury2376 Words   |  10 Pagesphilosophers have been concerned with proving the existence of god, and from this has sprouted many arguments attempting to prove or disprove god’s existence from a wide variety of different perspectives. St. Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury has proved a true pioneer in the study of the philosophy of religion. Anselm provided one of the most crucial and influential solutions to solving the mystery of god’s existence, the Ontological Argument. While there were many different arguments (along with their originators)Read MoreThe Cathedral Of Canterbury Cathedral1209 Words   |  5 PagesGreek ‘Kathedra’ meaning seat. The Canterbury Cathedral is located in England, United Kingdom. The Cathedral is one of the most famous and oldest Christian structures in England. 597 AD was the founding of Canterbury Cathedral. The cathedral’s physical context is located in a sprawl area meaning ther e is low density residential, there are many other attractions around such as the theatre,hotel and museum. Saint Augustine was the first ever Archbishop of Canterbury. The style of the Cathedral is Gothic;Read MoreAssess the Ontological Argument818 Words   |  4 Pagesargument demonstrates the existence of God. (30 marks) The ontological argument was first formulated by St. Anselm in the 11th century. It argues the existence of God from a deductive and a priori stance. God is a being than which none greater can be conceived. This is the response given by St Anselm to the fool in the psalm who believed there was no God. St Anselm the Archbishop of Canterbury and of the Benedictine Order explained that for God to exist in the mind he would not be the greatest beingRead MoreSummary and Analysis of Various Documents1852 Words   |  7 Pageswrite an essay analyzing separately each of the texts in the attached documents. I would like each analysis to start with a summary followed by a transition to analysis of the document. From the Prosologion, Anselm of Canterbury 1077, Hopkins and Richardson trans. (Chaps. 2-5) Summary: St. Anselm argues the existence of God based on the following premises: God exists in our understanding which means that the concept of God exists as an idea in our mind. Anything that exists in our understanding hasRead MoreEssay on The Ontological Argument for the Existence of God1545 Words   |  7 Pagesintroduced by Anselm of Canterbury in his book Proslogion. Anselms classical argument was based on two principals and the two most involved in this is St Anselm of Canterbury as previously mentioned and Rene Descartes. The ontological argument argues that if you understand what it means to talk about God, you will see His existence is necessarily true. Anselm defined God as that than which nothing greater can be conceived, hence God must exist. Anselm also believedRead MoreQueen Matilda Of England And The Marriage Table A Dowry Of Estates1168 Words   |  5 PagesPope supported William in his invasion of England in 1066. William claimed he was going to revive the Anglo-Saxon church and bring it back in line with religious orthodoxy. Additionally, the Archbishop of Canterbury at the time, was a pluralist, holding the sees of Worcester and Canterbury concurrently, and, per Duke William, King Harold supported the sins of the Archbishop. The Church was eager to see Duke William return the Kingdom of England to the Churches authority. William fulfilled theRead MoreThe Arguments For The Existence Of God1056 Words   |  5 Pagesthat he s a perfect being meaning He is flawless, ideal and he has all the required or desirable elements, qualities, and characteristics. The ontological argument was first concocted by St Anselm in the eleventh century, his book Proslogium, Chapter 2. Anselm was a Benedictine monk, Archbishop of Canterbury, and one of the great medieval philosopher-theologians. In his argument, he derives the existence of god from his concept, which is being than which no greater can be conceived. He reasonedRead MoreThe s Ontological Proof For The Existence Of God Essay1134 Words   |  5 Pages1077-1078, St. Anselm of Canterbury, introduced the first formulation of his ontological proof for the existence of God. In an effort to gain a deeper knowledge and acquaintance with his creator, Anselm set out to logically deduce God’s existence from the very definition of God. In the Proslogion he writes, â€Å"God is that which a greater cannot be thought. Whoever understands this properly, understands that this being exists in such a way that he cannot, even in thought, fail to exist† (Anselm, 101). Read MoreAnshelm ¬Ã‚ ¥s Proof of God ¬Ã‚ ¥s Existence1466 Words   |  6 Pagesissue to this day! In the following I will commit myself to the ab ove-mentioned question by firstly reconstructing Anselm ´s proof of God ´s existence and secondly considering his position in the light of the critique put forward by Gaunilo, Aquinas and Kant. St. Anselm (1033-1109) was an Italian philosopher and monk who later left his country to become Archbishop of Canterbury. As Anselm firmly believed in God, he wanted to prove God ´s existence through use of logic and reason and thus set out to demonstrateRead MoreOntological Argument999 Words   |  4 Pageson pure reason alone. They attempt to show that we can deduce God’s existence from, so to speak, the very definition of God. St. Anselm of Canterbury proposed the first and most well known ontological argument in 1078 in his Proslogion, but it was actually Immanuel Kant, an 18th century German philosopher, who first called the argument â€Å"ontological.† In his argument, Anselm defines God as â€Å"that than which nothing greater can be conceived.† This can be interpreted as defining â€Å"God† as maximal perfection