Teleological Argument

The teleological argument compares how things were made in nature to the things built by man. Since the things built by man require a creator, then the things in nature must require a creator as well. Paley gives an example of the teleological argument through the watch example. The example is of him walking and stumbling across a stone, and then being asked how the stone came to be there. Paley said, “I might possibly answer that for anything I knew to the contrary it had lain there forever...” Paley then goes on to say that if he had found a watch on the ground and asked how the watch happened to be in that place? Paley says that he would not have to think about it how it got there but that the “watch might have always been there.” Now you might question why the answers are different for the stone and watch. Paley’s idea as I understand it is that the watch has a purpose-it is made from small parts and therefor the creator or designer made the watch to serve a purpose. Whereas the stone is not made from smaller parts and therefore does not have a designer or creator.

The main question Paley is asking is whether the object was designed or not? He uses contrivance and contriver as proof of design, but no designer. Paley says there must be a designer for the universe based on the watch example and how things are made with a purpose. The strength for this argument is that most can agree with this idea. It is believed in religion that we are made in God’s image so for us to have a purpose in life makes sense. It also makes sense that God created the things in nature to have a purpose because otherwise, why would God put useless things on this earth. Are there weaknesses to this idea? It depends on the person because that person would either believe there is a creator or there is no creator. If there is no creator, then where did the things in nature come from?

In recommended reading, Davies states two arguments about the divine design. The first says the universe displays design in the sense of purpose. The second argument is that it (being the universe) displays design in the sense of regularity. Paley’s example of finding the stone and watch is the example of the universe displaying design as a purpose. Davies goes on to suggest that Paley says “the universe resembles a watch and must therefore be accounted for in terms of intelligent and purposive agency.” I agree with Paley’s idea that we are created with a purpose as the watch, was designed for a purpose to tell time.

 Another idea about the design argument. The article explains that the teleological argument is wrong and that we were designed from science such as through natural selection. What do you think about article, are we contraptions? I believe this article makes sense in some ways, but I believe there is a creator who designed the universe.