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On the Proofs for the Existence of God of Saint Thomas Aquinas

The Five Ways of Proving that God Exists -- Summa Theologiae Ia, q. 2, a. 3.
(See also Aquinas' other discussions of God's existence and his Natural Theology).

Video Presentations on the Five Ways

The Five Ways in Context


Expanded text of 'The Five Ways in Context'

Analysis of the First Way

Expanded text of 'Analysis of the First Way' with notes

Assessment of the First Way


Expanded text of 'Assessment of the First Way'

Explanations/Analysis of the Five Ways: (arranged in ascending order of detail and sophistication)

• Aquinas' and Anselm's Arguments for the Existence of God in Syllogistic Form -- by Robert J. Schihl, Ph. D.
• Explanation of the Five Ways -- by Patricia Weiss
• Aquinas' Five Ways -- by Stephen A. Richards (includes videos (e.g. of cooked chicken) to illustrate the proofs.)
• Problems of the First Cause by Fr. William Most, from the electronic library of EWTN.
• Philosophical Proofs on the Existence of God -- by S. M. Miranda
• Explanation of the First Way -- by Philip A. Pecorino.  Also includes other cosmological arguments and objections, especially in the light of Big Bang cosmology.
• An Examination of Thomas Aquinas' Cosmological Arguments as found in the Five Ways -- by Scott David Foutz
• To Follow the Second Way of Aquinas -- by David McGraw. An explanation of the proof from efficient causality (dynamic punch) and a defense of identifying the First Cause with God. Also includes an impressive list of links to relevant resources on the internet.
• Five Proofs of God -- by Joseph E. Barrett: being "Excerpts lifted from Thomas Aquinas: God and Explanations by Professor Christopher F J Martin."

Analysis of Thomistic Proofs in General:

• St. Thomas and Big Bang Cosmology -- by William Carroll
• Can the Existence of God Be Known by Reason? -- by James Arraj
• On the Existence of God -- from Lux Veritatis

Criticisms of Aquinas:

• The Cosmological Argument, by Gordon H. Clark. Challenges the claim that the Five Ways are demonstrative, and not merely probable.
• The Resurrection of Thomism, by Doug Erlandson. Claims the principle "nothing comes from nothing" is circular and question begging.
  • Reply to Erlandson, by Joseph Magee.
• Mistakes of Aquinas (no longer available)
  • Refutation of the so-called "Mistakes of Aquinas" by Apolonio Latar (contains most, if not all, of the original "Mistakes").
• Internal and External Causal Explanations of the Universe (1995) by Quentin Smith

See also "Why the Burden of Proof is on the Atheist," by Ralph McInerny.

Return to the Aquinas on the Existence of God

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