Authors:
- Offers a refreshing discussion of the kalam cosmological argument
- Advances a detailed critique of the argument based on the impossibility of an actual infinite
- Presents a unique analysis of Platonism and of temporal becoming
- Draws on very recent and first English translations previously unavailable to scholars
Part of the book series: Sophia Studies in Cross-cultural Philosophy of Traditions and Cultures (SCPT, volume 25)
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Table of contents (10 chapters)
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Front Matter
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Historical Background of the Kalām Cosmological Argument
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Front Matter
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A Defence of the Kalām Cosmological Argument
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Front Matter
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Back Matter
About this book
This book offers a discussion of the kalām cosmological argument, and presents a defence of a version of that argument after critically evaluating three of the most important versions of the argument. It argues that, since the versions of the kalām cosmological argument defended by Philoponus (c. 490–c. 570), al-Ghazālī (1058– 1111), and the contemporary philosopher, William Lane Craig, all deny the possibility of the existence of an actual infinite, these arguments are incompatible with Platonism and the view that God foreknows an endless future. This conclusion, however, is not a problem for the proponents of the kalām cosmological argument, for the book shows how the argument can be defended without denying the possibility of the actual infinite.
In order to offer a comprehensive analysis of Philoponus and al-Ghazālī’s cosmological arguments, the book draws on recent English translations of some of their works. Next, the book advances a detailed argument against the popular argument based on the impossibility of an actual infinite. Finally, the book offers a unique defence of the kalām cosmological argument by defending philosophical arguments for a beginning of time that do not deny the actual infinite, evaluating which hypothesis best explains the discoveries of modern cosmology, and offering an argument in support of the premise that, if the universe came into existence, then God brought it into existence.
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Authors and Affiliations
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School of Philosophy, Faculty of Humanities, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
Jacobus Erasmus
About the author
Jacobus Erasmus is currently a postdoctoral researcher at North-West University, South Africa. He received his PhD in 2016 from North-West University and was awarded the Merit Prize in 2015 by the university’s School of Philosophy for superior performance for his doctoral dissertation. Jacobus Erasmus also holds an Honours Degree in IT and he is a part-time computer scientist and programmer. His main research interests include Natural Theology, Philosophy of Religion, and Metaphysics.
Bibliographic Information
Book Title: The Kalām Cosmological Argument: A Reassessment
Authors: Jacobus Erasmus
Series Title: Sophia Studies in Cross-cultural Philosophy of Traditions and Cultures
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73438-5
Publisher: Springer Cham
eBook Packages: Religion and Philosophy, Philosophy and Religion (R0)
Copyright Information: Springer International Publishing AG 2018
Hardcover ISBN: 978-3-319-73437-8Published: 01 February 2018
Softcover ISBN: 978-3-319-89248-1Published: 04 June 2019
eBook ISBN: 978-3-319-73438-5Published: 08 January 2018
Series ISSN: 2211-1107
Series E-ISSN: 2211-1115
Edition Number: 1
Number of Pages: XIII, 186
Topics: Philosophy of Religion, Christian Theology, Islamic Theology, Classical Studies