Is it possible to infer from the workings of the universe the
omniscience of God?
Thomas Aquinas argues in his Fifth Way that it is impossible
to explain the determinations (teleology) exhibited by natural things without
appeal to intellect. My question is –
can we go beyond that? Can we, through
examination of observable phenomena, reasonably infer the necessity of an
omniscient being?
If we can infer intelligence from the
behavior of mindless nature (as Aquinas argues), can we then look at the complexities of nature as
a whole and – from that – infer omniscience?
It seems like it should be possible. If you look at nature, there’s a lot going on. Pretty much everything is busy doing
something that fits into the giant puzzle somehow. If you take all of it into account – every relation,
of every thing, in every system, one to another – and consider the fact that
the intelligence required by the Fifth Way would have to know and understand
all of it, I sincerely think the case could be made.
