Can We Prove the Existence of God? Can we prove the existence of
God? What exactly does it mean to prove something? What would
count as a proof of God's existence? To explore these questions,
let's consider one popular argument for God's existence and test
it against some different criteria for proofs. Here's the
argument: 1. If God does not exist, there are no objective,
culture-transcending moral duties. 2. There are objective,
culture-transcending moral duties. 3. Therefore, God exists. Is
this a proof of God's existence? One suggestion is that any
sound argument constitutes a proof. An argument is sound if and
only if (a) all its premises are true and (b) it is deductively
valid, in the sense that its conclusion follows necessarily from
its premises (i.e., it's logically impossible for the premises
to be true but the conclusion to be false). Is our argument
sound? It's certainly deductively valid: it has the valid
argument form of modus tollens (if P then Q; not Q; therefore,
not P). Moreover, both of its