The central questions of this course are:
- Can humans know whether the claim "God exists" is true or not?
- If so, how?
- If not, why not?
- Are these first three questions actually useful?
This course examines the questions of divine existence with the tools of epistemology, the classic branch of philosophy that concerns itself with what we can know.
The major proofs from ontology, cosmology, teleology, and divine encounter are explained and tested.
The arguments against God’s existence, principally the problem of evil, are also tested.
Faith and transcendence-based claims, denying the need for proof, are examined.
Religious discourse uses intention rather than cause to explain the world. Approaches that accept this as fundamental are explored.