Here's the thing: at best, Aquinas argues for a god. But even then, it's not a really great argument.
The 4th way, for example, is about the nature of degrees. That, in order to be able to use qualitative statements, there must be some ultimate standard with which to compare to. So, there's some epitome of chocolate pudding, some paragon of a circle, etc. And for the quality of goodness, that thing which is its epitome is god.
But, why isn't the epitome of evil also god? And, aren't a lot of qualities - including good and evil - subjective? Yes, a circle has an area of pi*(r*r), but what is the perfect value of r? What is the perfect line thickness/boundary for this circle? Or color of the stroke? Is abortion always evil? What if the fetus is guaranteed to die shortly after birth? What about in the case of rape? Is allowing LGBT people equal protections and privileges under the law harmful? What about the treatment of slaves? Or adulterers?
The 5th way seems to be about deriving purpose, and thus intelligence, from results. The purpose of an acorn is to grow into an oak tree, not sea lion. But what about emergent phenomena? Why must intention be the cause of movement? There are non-sentient causes all over the place... why must the first be different?
The 4th way, for example, is about the nature of degrees. That, in order to be able to use qualitative statements, there must be some ultimate standard with which to compare to. So, there's some epitome of chocolate pudding, some paragon of a circle, etc. And for the quality of goodness, that thing which is its epitome is god.
But, why isn't the epitome of evil also god? And, aren't a lot of qualities - including good and evil - subjective? Yes, a circle has an area of pi*(r*r), but what is the perfect value of r? What is the perfect line thickness/boundary for this circle? Or color of the stroke? Is abortion always evil? What if the fetus is guaranteed to die shortly after birth? What about in the case of rape? Is allowing LGBT people equal protections and privileges under the law harmful? What about the treatment of slaves? Or adulterers?
The 5th way seems to be about deriving purpose, and thus intelligence, from results. The purpose of an acorn is to grow into an oak tree, not sea lion. But what about emergent phenomena? Why must intention be the cause of movement? There are non-sentient causes all over the place... why must the first be different?
