Date of Award

5-2015

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Philosophy

First Advisor

Dr. C. Daniel Dolson

Second Advisor

Dr. Nicholas Mantegani

Third Advisor

Dr. Richard Glatz

Keywords

Gödel, modal, God, theism, Bernstein

Access Setting

Masters Thesis-Abstract Only

Restricted to Campus until

5-15-2025

Abstract

In this thesis I will evaluate various modal ontological arguments for the existence of God. I will evaluate Kurt Gödel’s modal ontological argument (as preserved by his student Dana Scott), and Anthony Anderson’s emendation of it. I will conclude that both Gödel’s argument and Anderson’s emendation fail. I then propose a revised version of C’Zar Bernstein’s ontological argument. I conclude that while this argument is not rationally compelling, it is more plausibly sound than not. Finally, I will demonstrate that some extant general objections to modal ontological arguments are unconvincing.

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