Metaphysics of God — Five-Mark Model Answers
Paper 1 — 38 five-mark questions across 6 topics
The Concept and Nature of God
5 questions
Explain what it means to say that God is (a) omniscient, (b) omnipotent and (c) omnibenevolent. [5]
Explain the difference between the claims 'God is eternal' and 'God is everlasting'. [5]
Explain the paradox of the stone. [5]
Explain the Euthyphro dilemma. [5]
Explain the argument that the existence of an omniscient God is incompatible with free human beings. [5]
Ontological Arguments
6 questions
Explain Anselm's ontological argument. [5]
Explain Descartes' ontological argument. [5]
Explain Norman Malcolm's ontological argument. [5]
Explain Gaunilo's 'perfect island' objection to Anselm's ontological argument. [5]
Explain how an empiricist might object to the ontological argument as an a priori proof for God’s existence. [5]
Explain Kant's objection to Descartes' ontological argument. [5]
Teleological/Design Arguments
7 questions
Explain the design argument from analogy, as presented by Hume. [5]
Explain the design argument from spatial order / purpose, as presented by William Paley. [5]
Explain Swinburne's design argument: the argument from temporal order / regularity. [5]
Explain Hume's objections to the design argument from analogy. [5]
Explain the problem of spatial disorder, as posed by Hume and Paley. [5]
Explain how it might be argued that the design argument fails as it is an argument from a unique case (Hume). [5]
Explain the issue with teleological / design arguments that God might not be the best or only explanation. [5]
Cosmological Arguments
10 questions
Explain the Kalam argument (an argument from temporal causation). [5]
Explain Aquinas' 1st Way (an argument from motion). [5]
Explain Aquinas' 2nd Way (an argument from atemporal causation). [5]
Explain Aquinas' 3rd Way (an argument from contingency). [5]
Explain Descartes' version of the cosmological argument based on his continuing existence. [5]
Explain Leibniz's cosmological argument from the principle of sufficient reason. [5]
Explain why the possibility of an infinite series is an issue for some cosmological arguments. [5]
Explain why Hume's objection to the 'causal principle' is an issue for cosmological arguments. [5]
Explain Russell's argument that cosmological arguments commit the fallacy of composition. [5]
Explain how the argument that a necessary being is impossible (Hume and Russell) poses a threat to cosmological arguments. [5]
The Problem of Evil
4 questions
Explain the logical problem of evil. [5]
Explain the evidential problem of evil. [5]
Explain the Free Will Defence against the logical problem of evil. [5]
Explain how Hick responds to the problem of evil using the idea of soul making. [5]
Religious Language
6 questions
Explain the distinction between cognitivism and non-cognitivism about religious language. [5]
Explain how Ayer's verification principle challenges the status of religious language. [5]
Explain how eschatological verificationism is used to argue against Ayer's verificationist attack on religious language. [5]
Explain Flew's view on religious language. [5]
Explain how Mitchell used his 'Partisan' story to respond to Flew's views on religious language. [5]
Explain how Hare responds to Flew's views on religious language using the notion of a 'blik'. [5]
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