In class and while reading Meditations on First Philosophy, I have come to believe the idea that there is a infinite being that I am unable to understand but can at least comprehend the existence of. This being, or "God" has been assigned many different and varying properties by different people throughout history. Many times God is depicted as an old man with a large beard or as a shimmering mass of white light. I believe that people attempt to show God in physical so that they are able to relate to the idea of an infinite and perfect being. I completely agree with Descartes however that God is not what is described or shown in movies or literature.
As Descartes puts it,
"By the word "God" I mean an infinite substance, eternal, immutable, independent, omniscient, omnipotent, and that by which myself and all other existent things, if it is true that there are other existent things, have been created and produced" (Descartes 43).
The idea that God is an all knowing, all seeing, all powerful, perfect and infinite being is a mind blowing notion to me. I find Descartes' argument that there must be a God because we as humans have no experience of perfection or infinity and yet we can partially grasp this notion. To me, the example of a baby having no idea of limits and in that way having an example of infinity is a fantastic example. This idea amazes me even further when I think about the fact that Descartes came up with this solution to his questions simply by thinking about the question of whether or not God exists.
Why do you think that human beings strive to be able to capture God as a form that we can understand? Do you believe there to even be an image that would be able to succeed in that pursuit? Is there any other time in which we will be able to experience infinite reality other than when we are first born and have no comprehension of limits or rules?
Going off of what you said, I think people try to capture God as an image we can understand because people want to believe that they are powerful and have some type of divine usefulness and purpose. I think this is why people try to see God as a kind of glorified human form, as you alluded to. Seeing God this way makes them believe in themselves more. Descartes tries to see God as something that goes beyond this human-like image, but I'm still not entirely convinced that that's possible because I'm not sure it's possible for us to see beyond the world we live in. For example, we can imagine something going on forever but only in the scope of what we know. If God goes beyond what we know, I don't really think we can see that.
ReplyDeleteA agree with Rochelle. I can't so easily buy the whole "we can imagine infinity without experiencing it" argument. At least for myself, I honestly CANNOT imagine infinity, much less describe its characteristics. If someone asked me what infinity was, my understanding of it limits me to describe it as something that goes on forever. Whether in philosophy or in mathematics, or just something your parents described to me as a very big number, the "idea" of infinity will never be something I can comprehend or picture in my head. Descarte's argument was extremely convincing and thorough, indeed almost undeniable, until he injected what I felt was a forced assumption about the human race's knowledge of infinity.
ReplyDeleteI think humans try to imagine or comprehend God in certain ways because it gives us a level of comfort. If we were to simply have the idea of infinity, perfection, and therefore God, we would probably be more fearful of the infinite. These conjectures, images, and descriptions of God, perfection, and the infinite are only existent because, as imperfect beings, we are unable to grasp these ideas without our own incomplete and imperfect ideas of these things.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I totally agree with Rochelle and Megan- that humans strive to be able to capture the image of God because they have so much trouble capturing the image of the infinite, and can only fully enter into their belief systems with a solid mental picture of God.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, Descartes' reasoning is very convincing, and as a Catholic it supports my faith. However, Descartes' proof of God's existence is based on his claim that the Mediator has a clear and distinct perception of God. He claims two things that contradict each other: that we can only be sure that our perceptions are true if God exists, and that we can know that God exists because we have a clear and distinct perception of the idea of God. Disregarding the idea of infinity and our ability to perceive it, this contradiction furthers my doubt/confusion with Descartes' reasoning. What do you guys think? I'm sure Descartes would have a fantastic answer...