Emily McCarty

Is there a good argument for God’s existence? In his theology textbook for beginners, the Summa Theologiae, Thomas Aquinas provides five arguments in defense of belief in God: the Argument from Motion, the Argument from Causality, the Argument from Dependence, the Argument from Perfection, and the Argument from Design. As the titles of the arguments suggest, Aquinas uses various observations about motion, causality, design and other phenomena as evidence for the existence of the divine. This article examines these five arguments in detail and considers what precisely Aquinas meant to demonstrate in each argument, along with their potential scope and limits.

This paper attempts to defend the attributes of omnipotence and omnibenevolence in light of evil. Possible worlds can be used to show that God perhaps has reasons for permiting evil, and these reasons can reconcile God's attributes with the existence of evil. Using Plantinga's Freewill Defense, free will is seen to be a conduit for moral good, but because of transworld depravity, some evil is present along with this good. Flemming objects to this account and seeks something stronger. Through evil's presence, we learn to identify it and learn to show benevolence to one another in light of its presence. Eleonore Stump's work on suffering is used to show that there are spiritual goods that suffering can bring. Suffering is used to bring us into relationship with God and this is an indispensable good, according to Aquinas. God’s omnipotence and omnibenevolence can be defended in light of evil