Category: Logic & Reasoning

Pascal’s Wager: A Pragmatic Argument for Belief in God

~ 1000-Word Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology ~ 9 Comments

Should you believe there’s a God?

To answer this, we might examine arguments for theism—like first-cause and design arguments—and arguments for atheism—like arguments from evil. These arguments offer evidence for and against God’s existence.

Pascal’s wager, originally proposed by Blaise Pascal (1623–1662), takes a more pragmatic approach. Pascal thought that evidence cannot settle the question of whether God exists, so he proposes that you should bet, or wager, on God because of what’s at stake: you have lots to gain and not much to lose.

This article explains Pascal’s wager and considers three objections.

Dutch Book Arguments

~ 1000-Word Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology ~ 4 Comments

Author: Daniel Peterson Categories: Epistemology, Philosophy of Science, Logic and Reasoning Word Count: 1000 Philosophers looking to support a position about how certain we ought to be of some belief, given our other beliefs, sometimes take advantage of Dutch book arguments. These arguments show that alternative positions lead to accepting a series of bets, each … Continue reading Dutch Book Arguments