Existence of God

The question of whether God or any divine being exists, examined through philosophical arguments, religious traditions, and theories of knowledge.

Cosmological argument: An argument that the existence or structure of the universe requires an ultimate explanation or first cause. It infers a divine source from the existence or contingency of the universe.
God: A supreme or ultimate divine being, understood differently across religious and philosophical traditions. Arguments about existence depend on which attributes and conception of God they assume.
Aristotle: An ancient Greek philosopher whose works shaped metaphysics, logic, ethics, and natural philosophy. His account of an unmoved mover became a major source for later arguments about a first cause.
Deism: The belief in a creator who does not intervene in the world through ongoing revelation or miracles. It affirms a divine creator while rejecting many claims about active providence.
Religious experience: A personal experience interpreted as an encounter with, or awareness of, a sacred or divine reality. Such experiences are often offered as personal evidence for divine existence.
Teleological argument: An argument that order, complexity, or apparent purpose in nature supports the existence of a designer. It treats features of the natural world as evidence for divine design.
Theism: The belief that at least one God or divine being exists. It names the broad position affirmed by arguments for divine existence.
Thomas Aquinas: A thirteenth-century theologian and philosopher who integrated Christian doctrine with Aristotelian philosophy. His Five Ways systematized several influential arguments for God's existence.
Pantheism: The view that God and the universe are identical or that divinity pervades all reality. It changes the question by identifying divinity with the world rather than a separate being.
Fine-tuned universe: The observation that physical constants appear to fall within ranges compatible with complex structures and life. Fine-tuning motivates design arguments and competing explanations of cosmic conditions.

Linked from 1 page

IrreligionRelated: Disagreement about this question underlies some irreligious positions but does not define every form of irreligion.