Descarte's Proof of God's Existence

Present and evaluate one of Descartes’ proofs of God’s existence.

Through the culmination of Descartes’ three Mediations, he consistently uses the tool of doubt in order to prove that not only does he exist, but that as a result, God also exists. Descartes is most predominantly known for his theory of “Cogito, ergo sum”, which thusly translates into “I think, therefore I am”. In congruence with this, an old Persian proverb states that “doubt is the key to knowledge”. Through all of this information and much heated debates, it has been proven that “doubt” is not only an influential key in the acquisition of knowledge, but also an essential one. This is largely due to the human’s natural tendency to question the truth.

Descartes begins his proof to God’s existence in his First Mediation, where he states his reasoning for doubting all things, with a high concentration on material things. He refuses to accept anything as knowledge, or foundation of knowledge, unless it can be undoubted with complete certainty. Continued into his second Meditation, Descartes justifies his own existence. He states that he is “certain that [he] is a thinking thing”. This is the sole thing that Descartes describes he is absolutely certain of. Therefore, because he is able to think and create ideas, he must exist. This second Meditation goes “hand in hand” with “I think, therefore I am”.

With all of these basics set, it is within his third Meditation, that the existence of God is proven. He uses the first two mediations to prove his own existence. However, in order to not hold doubt of anything, he must also prove God’s existence. He states that, “I must examine whether there is a God, and if there is, whether he can be a deceiver. For if I do not know this, it seems that I can never be quite certain about anything else”. With the idea that God is not a deceiver, Descartes acknowledges God’s existence by his knowledge of a “perfect” being. He understands that he is not a perfect...