The very idea of design: What God couldn't do

Religious Studies 40 (1):81-96 (2004)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

This paper argues for the proposition that there is fundamental incoherence in the idea of a divine designer. Such a being would have to have intentions and thoughts prior to designing and making a world. But it is a necessary truth that thought – of the complex and articulated kind necessary for the design of a cosmos – presupposes possession of language. It is further necessarily true that language is impossible, save for beings who inhabit a public world containing other linguistic subjects. The divine designer would be the impossible exemplar of the private language, whose incoherence was demonstrated by Wittgenstein. Objections to this line of argument are noted and rebutted. Even God can't whisper in His own ear.Isaak Babel (Published Online February 17 2004).

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,593

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Analytics

Added to PP
2009-01-28

Downloads
44 (#317,814)

6 months
3 (#445,838)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Citations of this work

On the plurality of gods.Eric Steinhart - 2013 - Religious Studies 49 (3):289-312.
Trinity and creation: Why Kortum's argument fails.Tom Mccall - 2007 - Heythrop Journal 48 (2):260–266.

Add more citations

References found in this work

No references found.

Add more references