Descartes And God
Jared Rhine English 201 October 10, 1997 Descartes sets about proving the
existence of God through his meditations on knowledge in an effort to prove the
skeptics of his time wrong. He first determines that human knowledge is based
entirely too much on unproved presuppositions. He argues that this makes it
difficult to distinguish between truth and error, since we cannot recognize true
knowledge. Descartes proposes that the quest for knowledge must be based upon
universal doubt. Specifically, he proposes the following in relation to his
universal methodic doubt: 1. In order to seek truth, it is necessary once in the
course of our life, to doubt, as far as possible, of all things. 2. We ought
also to consider as false all that is doubtful. 3. We ought not meanwhile to
make use of doubt in the conduct of life… 4. Why we may doubt of sensible
things. 5. Why we may also doubt of mathematical demonstrations. 6. We cannot
doubt of our existence while we doubt, and this is the first knowledge we
acquire when we philosophize in order. Descartes proceeded to strip away his
knowledge base in order to determine the one indubitable fact, Cogito, ergo sum.
From this absolute knowledge of his own existence, he set about deducing the
existence of God through ontological argument. In our minds, the idea of God is
one of an infinitely perfect Being. An infinitely perfect being must have
existence, otherwise it would not be infinitely perfect. Therefore, God exists.
In proving the existence of God, Descartes set the groundwork for determining
that God created man. He further postulated that God, being infinitely perfect
and not a deceiver, could not have provided man with the deceptive powers of
knowledge. Therefore, man's mental faculties are determined to be trustworthy
provided we separate what there is of clear and distinct in the knowledge from
what is obscure and confused. Using this reasoning, man must discard all
previous knowledge, which is doubt-ridden, all sensory-based knowledge (as
perceptions can be misleading), and all intellection. As a result, skepticism is
removed and valid knowledge possible. Descartes primary purpose was the defense
of human knowledge against the attacks of the skeptics. He was justified in
excluding preconceived notions, presuppositions, and traditions in determining
the limits of knowledge. Descartes discarded the ability of the mind to know
truth and the human abilities of contradiction and sufficient reason. In doing
so, he made a solution to the problem impossible. As it relates to his theory of
the existence of God, Descartes universal doubt refutes his own conclusion as to
God's existence. Descartes formed an idea of God as an infinitely good being. He
would have had to discover this idea within his own mind.
According to his
principle of universal doubt, he cannot simply know whether his conception of
God is correct or incorrect. He would have, as a matter of his own principle,
considered it as false until proven otherwise. Therefore, since the idea of God
is in doubt, the trustworthiness of man's reasoning must also be doubtful and
Descartes cannot escape his own real doubt. Descartes uses a process of
reasoning, a mathematical formulae, in attempting to demonstrate God's
existence. If his reasoning is of demonstrably doubtful validity, how can
Descartes demonstrate God's existence? The validity of Descartes reasoning is
supposed to flow as a consequence of the infinite perfection of God; and God's
infinite perfect is made certain through Descartes' reasoning powers before he
has even proven that these reasoning powers are valid and trustworthy. Descartes
assumes the very thing beforehand, which he intends to prove afterwards.
Descartes accepts the trustworthiness of his faculties in demonstrating the
existence and infinite perfection of God, and that is illegitimate. A doubtfully
valid faculty will produce a doubtfully valid argument, which will, in turn,
produce a doubtfully valid conclusion. The entire argument for God's existence
is therefore nullified by a suspect reasoning process. Since he proves the
reliability of his reason and process by means of God's veracity, the proof of
his reliability cannot be established beyond doubt. Thus, Descartes attempt to
vindicate the validity of human knowledge failed, because, by rejecting the
reliability of his own powers to discover and know truth, he made it impossible
for himself to remove himself from his own universal doubt. Further, Descartes
has marked inconsistencies in the manner in which he applies his procedure. He
purports to reject everything in his pursuit of fundamental knowledge, even
principles of contradiction and sufficient reason. In reality, he does not. He
assumes the truth of these principles and uses them repeatedly. Cogito ergo sum
is based upon the validity of the principle of contradiction. This principle
states that it is impossible for something to be and not be at the same time.
Descartes becomes aware of his own existence by thinking or doubting. Why?
Because he perceives that it is impossible to think and not think and to exist
and not exist at the same time. If he were consistent and seriously doubted the
principle of contradiction, he would have to agree that it is possible for an
entity to think and not think, to exist and not exist at the same time. Then,
according to his own supposition, he could not be sure after all that the fact
of his existence is certain.
