Main.GodOmnipotence History
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* [Required] Anthony Kenny (1987) The definition of omnipotence. In Thomas Morris (ed.) (1987) The concept of God. Oxford : Oxford University Press.
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* [Required] Anthony Kenny (1987) The definition of omnipotence. In Thomas Morris (ed.) (1987) The concept of God. Oxford : Oxford University Press. intranet:kenny-omnipotence.pdf
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* [Required] Anthony Kenny (1987) The definition of omnipotence. In Thomas Morris (ed.) (1987) The concept of God. Oxford : Oxford University Press.
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* http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/omnipotence/
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* [Required] http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/omnipotence/
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Rene Descartes
media:descartes.jpg
@@@I do not think that we should ever say of anything that it cannot be brought about by God.@@@
* D: God made the laws of logic and can change them.
* God can bring about logical impossibilities.
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* On the other hand:
** Augustine: God cannot die or be deceived
** Anselm: God cannot be corrupted
** Aquinas: God cannot move, fail ...
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Augustine: God cannot die or be deceived
Anselm: God cannot be corrupted
Aquinas: God cannot move, fail ...
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* http://www.courses.rochester.edu/wierenga/REL111/omnipch.html
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Augustine: God cannot die or be deceived
Anselm: God cannot be corrupted
Aquinas: God cannot move, fail ...
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Anthony Kenny:
@@@[An omnipotent being has] ... every power which it is logically possible to possess.@@@
But see the [=McEar=] example
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!!The "beyond logic" response
"The argument relies on man-made logic. God is more powerful than logic. God is beyond logic. So this argument cannot show that God does not exist."
Comments:
# The short response - nothing is "beyond" logic. Logic is not conventional.
# The longer response - if logic is given up, we cannot reason about God at all and we would not know what to believe about God.
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!God and omnipotence
!!Readings
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!!Quotes
* Job 42:2 I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.
* Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
!!The problem
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!How should "omnipotence" be defined?
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Compare:
# Can God create a stone so heavy that God cannot lift?
# Can God create a round triangle?
# Can God create a stone so heavy that the creator of the stone cannot lift?
!!How should "omnipotence" be defined?
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# (a) Suppose God can create a stone that he cannot lift. Then (b) there is a stone that God cannot lift. So God cannot be omnipotent.
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# (a) Suppose God can create a stone that he cannot lift. Then (b) there is a stone that God cannot lift. So (c) God cannot be omnipotent.
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* Unless it is necessary that God is omnipotent, God can still be the most powerful agent rather than an omnipotent one.
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!How should "omnipotence" be defined?
X is omnipotent =
# For any logically possible state of affairs S, X is able to bring about S.
# If it is logically possible for any agent to perform action A, then X is able to perform A.
# X is able to do whatever X wants to do.
# X is able to do whatever that is logically possible for X to do.
!Misc issues
Do you think God (if there is one) is able to:
# destroy himself
# change the past
# do something evil
# create another God
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!Some initial remarks
* God could be "she" or "it".
* The argument is not directed specifically at the Christian God. Any version of theism that postulates an omnipotent God would have to deal with this problem.
* There is no reason why the problem has to be formulated in terms of creating a stone. A similar question is whether God can create a creature that He cannot control.
* It is sometimes said that even if God cannot create such a stone, we cannot conclude that God is not omnipotent.
** The purported justification is that to create such a stone is to do something logically impossible, and not being able to do something logically impossible does not imply not being omnipotent.
** However, this response is not quite correct. It is true that if God cannot create a round square, we should not conclude that God is not omnipotent. But creating a stone that the creator of the stone cannot lift is not logically impossible.
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!How to define omnipotence?
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!The problem
# (a) Suppose God can create a stone that he cannot lift. Then (b) there is a stone that God cannot lift. So God cannot be omnipotent.
# (a) Suppose God cannot create such a stone. Then (b) there is something that God cannot do. So again (c) God is not omnipotent.
# Given 1 and 2, it follows that either (a) God does not exist, or (b) if God exists, then God is not omnipotent.
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!Readings
* http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/omnipotence/
!How to define omnipotence?