What Are the Rules of Something from Nothing?

[Whateverist]

The problem is: what's God's cause? Sure, you'll say he has no cause, and then I'll call special pleading. You said there's a universal rule to make God required, then you say he violates that very rule. So, to keep this from being special pleading, you'll give God some qualities like being "timeless" or eternal. That way, he can exist outside of our notion of causality.

No, no, no. See he has defined God specifically not to need any causing. (Too bad we didn't think of that for the universe, but then again we're not just making shit up.)

And therein lies the problem. Once you admit that you're fine believing in things that have no cause (as we know them), then you've gotten rid of the reason for proving that the universe needs a cause. If you feel God needs no cause because he's timeless or eternal, how do you know the universe isn't timeless or eternal?

This argument only makes sense from your loaded frame of reference. All you've managed to prove is that the Cosmological Argument fits nicely into your world view, and nothing else.

Nicely put.