Mackenzie Kilduff

Professor Martino

SPL 100: Introduction to Philosophy

1 December 2016

Exploring the God of the Philosophers Assignment

Martin Heidegger once said that he would rather have a God that could sing, dance, and

pray, then a God of the philosophers. Around the world, different types of people believe in

different forms of supreme beings, some accept the notion of a supreme being but do not know

much about it, and some approach such a topic in an atheistic way. Some people, like myself,

feel their form of supreme being protects them, watches over them, and gets their deepest desires

answered. I firmly believe that God is watching over the entire world and guiding the steps of

our lives. God is my Heavenly Father and I am living my life in hopes to live with Him in

Heaven one day. In my life, I have a grown up as a Catholic, believing in God, and God has been

the center of my universe for as long as I can remember. Growing up, church on Sunday was a

must and my siblings and I all attended Catholic or Christian schools for all of our lives. My

sister and I graduated from the same catholic, all-girls school, and we continued on to Catholic

universities, where we continued to grow our Catholic faith. My little brother is currently

attending a Christian, all-boys school and will hopefully continue his education at a Christian

university. At Seton Hill, I have continued to enrich my relationship with God by joining

Fellowship of Christian Athletes, FCA, here on campus and continuing to invest my Sundays in

worship at church. However, in my life, I have always respected and been open to learning more

about other people’s views and the relationship people have with God or do not have with God.
As shown in their works, many philosophers, such as Thomas Aquinas, William James, and

Friedrich Nietzche, view God from their own perspectives.

The philosopher, Saint Thomas Aquinas, pieced together his thoughts about the existence

of God in his work, Summa Theologica. Aquinas based his work off of Aristole’s arguments for

a Prime Mover. In his piece of work, Thomas Aquinas points to the argument that if we examine

the world we live in, we will find proofs for believing in God’s existence. He believes that faith

and reason are consistent with one another. Thomas Aquinas outlines five proofs for God’s

existence in his work. The first proof says that everything must be put into motion. However,

something can not be both the mover and the moved. One thing must first move something else

to continue the pattern of movement. Thomas Aquinas believes that the first mover must have

been God. God is the beginning and has continued to move everything else in existence (Chaffee

362). The second proof that Aquinas discusses is based on efficient cause. One can not be the

efficient cause of itself, but must be caused by something. Aquinas explains that if there is no

first cause, then there can be no ultimate cause. He believes that the first efficient cause is God,

and God has caused everything else in existence (Chaffee 363). The third proof that Thomas

Aquinas reveals in his Summa Theologica is the theme of the possible. He spells out that

everything on Earth must have not existed for everything on Earth to exist. For everything on

Earth to exist, there must be a being that does not depend on something else for existence.

Without something existing first, nothing would exist at all. Thomas Aquinas concluded that the

existence before everything else is God (Chaffee 364). The fourth proof that proves the existence

of God is based on the different degrees of perfection that people hold for everything. The only

way that some things can be judged based on perfection is if there is a most Perfect Being. The

most Perfect Being is God. The fifth and final proof is based on the focus on the end. Natural
bodies, that lack intelligence and knowledge, strive for an end. However, these bodies can not

reach the end unless they are directed by some being that is filled with knowledge and

intelligence. Therefore, an intelligent being, God, exists so all natural things can be directed to

their end. Although, as with most things, there are some distinct objections to these standings.

Some people feel that this principle beyond our understanding is not God. It is also objected that

every moment must have be caused, and God must have a cause (Chaffee 365). In spite of the

objections, Thomas Aquinas stood firm to his belief in the existence of God.

Observing a different philosophical approach to the existence of God, William James

focuses his findings in his book, The Varieties of Religious Experience. William James wrote

about the many different types of experiences that we must act in faith to achieve the truth.

William James included his opinions of passional natures in his work. When scientific reasoning

and the rules of evidence can’t answer the question that we need answered, he explains that we

must use our passional natures to determine what we believe in our life. In his work, William

James also focuses on why we should trust in our religious experiences even when we do not

have sufficient evidence. James uses an example of being stuck in time, unable to make a

decision to explain why he feels this way. We also have the right to believe beyond existence. He

explains that a leap of faith and believing positively will increase our chances for success.

William James explains that we are entitled to believe even when we need evidence, but are

unable to get it. To quote James, he says, “Be strong and of good courage.” James encourages us

to find our own answers to the question of religion, but he does not want us to be stuck thinking

about what would happen without religion (Chaffee 387-388). In the American Magazine, Robert

F. Morneau focuses on a variety of human insights inspired by William James’ work. Morneau

pointed out that James’ central theme is that pragmatism is a major precedent for truth. He
explains that at the end of our life, humans hope to be reunited with God. However, God’s

existence is in our physical world. At the end of the article, Morneau gives ten insights from

James’ work. One insight, which is “we need to address the big question”, brings the awareness

of a Transcendent Reality. In James’ work, he focuses on what a human’s main goal is. In life,

humans have many concerns, including physical well-being and political stability. However,

there is also a large focus on what stands on the top of our list of concerns. In a Christians life,

the union with God and the unity among ourselves is at the top of the list (Varieties of Insights).

William James inspired many people to find their own answers within themselves and believe

what they would like to believe.

Another philosopher, Friedrich Nietzche, had very different views of God than Thomas

Aquinas and William James. Nietzche was a German philosopher who completely challenged the

ideals of Western philosophy and the concept of God. Friedrich Nietzche praised the concept of

the individual self and how life is surrounded around the “will to power”. He also believed that

we must create values instead of conforming to values. He finds the core values of the Christian

faith to be improper. Friedrich Nietzche declared that God is indeed dead and that the last

Christian died on the cross. However, he did not say that God himself is dead, but he did say that

the concept of God as an all-powerful being was being taken away by modern society (Chaffe

495-496). In his work, The Gay Science, Friedrich Nietzche tells a story of a crazy person who is

looking for God. The crazy person asks many questions to the people in the marketplace

regarding what humans are doing to protect the concept of God. In the story, the people that do

not know God look at him like he is crazy, hence the name. The crazy person explains that, “God

is dead! God remains dead! And we have killed him!” Friedrich Nietzche wants us to learn that

we can longer rely on the help of God to provide us with purpose in our lives or to provide us
with a moral code to live by (Nietzche). He encourages us to become this for ourselves and find

meaning in our lives ourselves. Friedrich Nietzche also arises the idea that as humans we have

killed God and we are no longer going to be able to bring him back. Friedrich Nietzche firmly

believes that the concept of God has been tainted and harmed with to the point of where humans

can no longer even rely on him for simple tasks. Friedrich Nietzche believed that God is dead

and uses his works to display how he is dead to other people.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and everyone has different views on a wide

variety of topics. The topic of belief in God and spirituality is widely debated. Philosophers, such

as Thomas Aquinas, William James, and Friedrich Nietzche, have staked their opinions on their

topics, in their various forms of work. Aquinas believed in God, William James felt that we, as

humans, should be able to choose what we believe in, and Nietzche feels that we, as humans,

have “killed God” and taken his emphasis away from people. Younger people, in our society,

may have a hard time identifying with these philosophers. Millennials are constantly stressed to

think for themselves and find morals to live by on their own. They have a “do-it” yourself

attitude and have a hard time trusting the higher institutions above them (Alpher). However, just

because millennials don’t identify themselves with an organized religion, does not mean that

they don’t believe in God or the afterlife. Currently, only half say that they believe in God with

absolute certainty (Masci). I feel that most millennials will be able to find a balance in the

findings of James and Nietzche. They both felt that it should be the person’s decision on what

they believe. Millennials have a hard time fully putting a name to what and who they believe in.

As a millennial myself, I feel that I identified with Aquinas the most. However, I completely

understand what it is like to feel like the world around us has caused the death of God, like

Nietzche suggests. I also believe, like James, that everyone should be able to form their own
opinions for what they believe. Everyone should be able to feel a certain way, think a certain

way, and believe in a certain thing. Many people, on topics such as the belief in God, rarely tend

to change their opinions, but it is always good to view the ideas of others.
 Works Cited

Alper, Becka A. "Millennials Are Less Religious than Older Americans, but Just as Spiritual."

Pew Research Center. N.p., 23 Nov. 2015. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.

Chaffee, John. The Philosopher’s Way: Thinking Critically About Profound Ideas. 5th ed.,

Boston: Pearson, 2016. Print.

Masci, David. "Q&A: Why Millennials Are Less Religious than Older Americans." Pew

Research Center. N.p., 08 Jan. 2016. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.

Nietzsche, Friedrich W, and Walter A. Kaufmann. The Gay Science. New York: Vintage Books,

1974. Print.

"Varieties of Insights." America Magazine. N.p., 31 Jan. 2014. Web. 30 Nov. 2016.