Metaphysics: Key Concepts and the Question of God

Posted on Nov 16, 2024 in Philosophy and ethics

Key Concepts

Ente (from Latin, meaning “being”) refers to any reality. Be (from Latin esse) is the principle constituent of a body, determining what it is.

Ontology is the part of metaphysics concerned with the body and modes of being. It studies being in general and issues common to all entities.

Theology is a philosophical discipline about the existence and essence of God as the first cause of beings. Essence is what makes an entity what it is, determining its individuality and species.

Key Issues of Metaphysics

Being

Soul

The soul concept originated in a religious context as life and breath, transcending the body’s death. It has two basic meanings: the start of life and the principle of rational knowledge. It is considered the specific and distinctive reality of humans compared to other animals.

Plato posited the soul as an immortal reality, governing moral and rational knowledge. Descartes separated thinking substance (soul) from the extensive (body).

  • Monist Reductionism: Explains mental phenomena in physical or biological terms.
    • Behaviorism: Reduces mental phenomena to behavior, responses to stimuli.
    • Identity Theory: Mental processes are identical to brain processes.
    • Eliminative Materialism: Mental states should be replaced by neuroscience.
  • Neurophysiological Dualism (Eccles, Popper): The brain is not complex enough to account for consciousness; an autonomous self-conscious mind exists.
  • Functionalism (Putnam, Fodor): Mental states are functional states of the body, not just the brain.
  • Emergentism

Question of God

Religious consciousness originates from ancient events, evidenced by funeral customs and the desire for immortality, leading to the idea of a transcendent realm.

Evidence of the Existence of God

Throughout history, there has been evidence of God’s existence.

  • Ontological Proof (Anselm of Canterbury): God is the greatest conceivable being, and must therefore exist.
  • Causal Proof (Thomas Aquinas): Five arguments based on movement, causality, contingency, perfection, and intelligence.
  • Ethical-Moral Proof (Kant)
  • Experiential Proof: If one experiences God, it must be true.

Critiques of God

  • Feuerbach: The idea of God is a human construct, idealizing human qualities.
  • Freud: Belief in God is a sign of an immature personality, needing a father figure.
  • Nietzsche: The other world and its values are imposed by the priestly class on the weak.
  • Marx: Religion is the opium of the people, justifying the dominance of some classes over others.