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Does God Exist? Is God Male or Female?

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1).What about Leibniz (407)? Did he believe in God or not? Was his belief (whether God exists) based on reason or faith? Explain.

2.)Thanks for this reasoned view of reasoned religious beliefs. It sounds a lot like Pascal's wager (p. 426), rather that real faith. According to the wager, we have nothing to lose by believing. If we believe and there is no God, no harm done. But of we don't believe and there is a God... uh oh. Pascal's wager is belief as hedging your bets rather than true acceptance of God. What do you think?

3.) My question to you is what do you think about Hume's claim on page 413 of chapter 13 (A verbal dispute?) that theists and atheists are not really that different? I did not really understand this particular claim, but would love to hear your views about what it means to be an atheist.

4.) Is God male or female (or neither)? How do you know? What difference does it make?

5.)The question I have for you and the class is this: Did Mary Daly really ban male students from her class, or were the male students just not interested in being taught by a feminist who thought less of male gender?

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Solution Summary

Leibniz's debate on whether God exists is explored, including whether it is based on reason or faith. It also discusses Pascal's views on God, Hume's claim that theists and atheists are not really that different and if God is male or female (or neither), and if it makes a difference. Lastly, it discusses if Mary Daly really banned male students from her class, or if the male students were just not interested in being taught by a feminist who thought less about the male gender.

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Hi,

Excellent questions!

RESPONSE:

1. What about Leibniz (407)? Did he believe in God or not? Was his belief (whether God exists) based on reason or faith? Explain.

Leibniz believes in God. Leibniz reports, "I hold, that when God works miracles, he does not do it in order to supply the wants of nature, but those of grace. Whoever thinks otherwise, must needs have a very mean notion of the wisdom and power of God." (http://www.schillerinstitute.org/fid_02-06/031_happinessA.html).

Leibniz believed that God did not create a universe that was so deficient as to require miracles in order to persist. God's miracles were seen as acts of grace, not unlike his creation of the universe itself! Leibniz here relies on his view that it is through reason that we learn what things are good (http://www.earlymoderntexts.com/pdf/leibdm.pdf).

And, his belief that God exist, was based on reason (as opposed to faith). For example, the Discourse on Metaphysics (1686), Gottfried Leibniz, using reason, develops a philosophy concerning physical substance, motion and resistance of bodies, and God's role within the universe. It is divided into 37 chapters. His foundations for the work concern the conception of God as an absolutely perfect being (I), that God is good but goodness exists independently of God (a rejection of divine command theory) (II), and that God has created the world in an ordered and perfect fashion (III-VII) (http://www.earlymoderntexts.com/pdf/leibdm.pdf).

2. Thanks for this reasoned view of reasoned religious beliefs. It sounds a lot like Pascal's wager (p. 426), rather than real faith. According to the wager, we have nothing to lose by believing. If we believe and there is no God, no harm done. But if we don't believe and there is a God... uh oh. Pascal's wager is belief as hedging your bets rather than true acceptance of God. What do you ...

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