Logically speaking, at no point does an infinite regress justify any proposition. But there is no otherwise. To argue for an infinite regress of events, you are by definition arguing for an an actually infinite number of a finite amount. Sometimes it is uncontroversial that a theory that generates aninfinite regress is objectionable, because the regress reveals thatthe theory suffers from some kind of theoretical vice that is a reasonto reject the theory independently of it yielding an infiniteregress. Infinite Regression. For the sake of argument, a person could disbelieve in the infiniteness of God and still believe that an infinite regress is impossible (and thus use it in proving God's existence). It is infinite otherwise it is bounded with by a boundary and that boundary is bounded by… etc. Powered by Discourse, best viewed with JavaScript enabled, : The views and opinions expressed in these forums do not necessarily reflect those of Catholic Answers. Why is infinite regress impossible? Aquinas rejected it because it is a flaw. Apologetics. There is no exact amount that can define a point were you actually have an infinite number of something and so the idea is meaningless.Thus if there were an infinite regress, this would be a contradiction because you would have an actually infinite number in the past; and so it’s impossible. If it were, it would be a first reason, not an intermediate one. If yes then 1/x is an actual infinity. For official apologetics resources please visit. P6 An infinite Causal chain is impossible; Therefore, C A first cause must exist. If one regresses to infinity in looking at intermediate reasons, the fully sufficient reason will never be found, since none of the intermediate links provides the complete reason for the final effect. To speak of an an actually infinite quantity or number is to speak of something that is made of finite parts or irreducible points that add up to an actual infinite. I'm hoping this version of the question will be more clear and easier to respond to. Otherwise, the chain would stop right there. You can have actual infinity. What Is the True Understanding of Causality? Theism I've read in defense of the second premise of most cosmological arguments that in an essentially ordered series infinite regress is impossible because if it did then there would be no first cause and therefore no source of causal power. But it still stands that the infinite causal chain must have a first cause. Why infinite sum of things is impossible? Infinite regress is impossible. The Infinite causal regress is an important issue in dealing with the cosmological argument, especially the Kalam version, and the argument form final cause. I’m not familiar with Zeno’s paradox. June 28, 2018, 6:32pm #22. The whole article at Reduction into Modernism is worth checking out. Following some unpublished work of Gregory O'Hair, David Armstrong identifies and diagrams several possible ways to escape the Skeptic's infinite regress, including: Skepticism - knowledge is impossible. STT: Is it possible to reach from 1 to zero? (The reductio ad absurdum technique.) Several versions of the Cosmological Argument (Motion and Causality) make it one of their premises that infinite regress is impossible. If one regresses the chain to infinity, the total sufficient reason is never found – and thus, the final effect lacks a sufficient reason. If an infinite number cannot be achieved i fail to see how an infinite regress could actually be achieved. He was looking for the *first* cause, something that is 'necessary'. The end time is still a great unknown. Is There a Link Between Atheism and Skepticism? … infinity is an irrational term when appled to a finite universe. Only if the series were finite would it be impossible for there to be something if there were no first cause or uncaused cause. Aristotle first tackled this problem in his own philosophy, and it had a great influence on St. Thomas Aquinas’ cosmological arguments. Think of universe. If it ends then it is a contradiction of terms. Criticisms of the First and Second Ways. The reason is that an instrumental chain of causes (a chain of sticks used to push a rock) can’t get started by itself. Solely a first cause that initiates the entire chain can do that – a first cause uncaused. William Lane Craig . Infinite regress is impossible because infinity is an irrational term when appled to a finite universe. which this leads to infinite regress. But that is impossible. Philosophy. Others think there is, but that all truths are demonstrable. Because there is no such thing as an actually infinite number of something. Again, this is not presented as proof of God’s existence, but merely as proof that an infinite regress among essentially subordinated causes is metaphysically impossible. Because there is no such thing as an actually infinite number of something. There is not an amount, quantity, or number of things, that can add up to an infinite because an infinite is quantitatively indefinable. Eternalists claim that past, present, and future all exist equally, based on special relativity theory’s denial of universal simultaneity for spatially separated events. If everything has a cause then there'a an infinite regress of causes 3. The regress is infinite but virtuous. to wit, if god made the universe, then who made god, then who made the maker of … Aquinas does not explain why there cannot only be secondary causes. From this article, which I just found by Googling “why is an infinite regress impossible?”…. I argue that Aquinas has good reason to hold this claim given his conception of causation. How can the God of the Philosophers be the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob? Sorry, I have to correct myself. Think of Zeno’s paradox. What is his argument? Why does Aquinas think that an infinite regress is impossible? A Production of Word on Fire, "Come now, let us reason together." For the most part I've just accepted that infinity is impossible, since it seems to be the accepted view. Is an infinite regress impossible, as Aquinas says? For Plato, infinite regress is an impossibility. William Lane Craig: The Kalam Cosmological Argument and the Anthropic Principle Many scientists say that some events (on the quantum level, for example) are literally uncaused, and some say that the universe itself could have been uncaused. Of course, if that is done, then eternalism as a whole collapses, since all “events” in the cosmos suddenly fall into normal time sequences with the past no longer existing and the future not yet existing, even though absolute simultaneity for spatially separated events is still denied. The demiurge simply fashioned the universe out of the disorderly material already existing. You are just proving that infinity cannot be reached, I think an actually infinite number is meaningless because there is no actual quantity that can be said to be infinite. However, just for the sake of understanding it, It'd be nice if someone could explain why this is true. Atheist Physicist Sean Carroll Answers…. Continue adding intermediate causes, and there is still an invalid causal series if the first cause is removed after each intermediate is added to the chain ad infinitum. An infinity cannot be reached by finite number of entities. We could have infinite intermediate causes, so there is no need for first cause. Can someone please explain to me why an infinite regress of causes is impossible? But if the series were literally infinite, there ... 4 The infinite regress argument will not, however, work for Humean causes. Zeno’s paradox shows you can have an infinite number of steps (each one becoming smaller than the previous) in a finite interval. Infinity simply doesn’t exist for a finite universe. Can you conceive of an infinite series stretching back in time or forward to the future? Aristotle argued that knowing does not necessitate an infinite regress because some knowledge does not depend on demonstration: Some hold that owing to the necessity of knowing the primary premises, there is no scientific knowledge. It basically means that any infinitely recurring causality for any event is impossible, since one never actually arrives at a cause. 1 … Dr. Craig, I cannot thank you enough for your apologetics work. Why Does the Universe Exist? Why does Aquinas think that an infinite regress is impossible? The regress argument is the argument that any proposition requires a justification.However, any justification itself requires support. This is why it's a logical flaw. It seems that in many debates, people point to either an infinite regress or infinity in general and use that alone as a refutation. (This is what the argument is postulating). If we remove the first cause, of course, the situation is invalid. There is no exact amount that can define a point were you actually have an infinite number of something and so the idea is meaningless.Thus if there were an infinite regress, this would be a contradiction because you would have an actually infinite number in the past; and so it’s impossible. He made the point that the big bang theory is the simpler explanation for the origin of the universe and that refutes God's existence. From a Thomist perspective, an infinite regress of secondary causes is possible. I was reading Dawkins' book and he argued that God almost certainly doesn't exist because of infinite regress. Now, to reconsider that chain of intermediate reasons described above, we see that the same problem arises. There’s an infinite number of infinitely small discrete steps within a finite period of time, thus implying infinite series of secondary causes within that same finite amount of time. However brief, this summarization provides one of the first contexts for the cosmological argument and its use of infinite regress. What is his argument? I don’t agree with this part either. Is it because according to quantum mechanics things at the subatomic world do not have causes? That is, since each premise is contingent on some reason, we then require another premise to justify that reason. An Infinite regression is a loop of premises that continue on in ad infinitum. Still, if an infinite regression among proper causes of existence (extrinsic sufficient reasons) is impossible, then such a regression, if demonstrated, would require a first cause (extrinsic sufficient reason) which is its own sufficient reason … Not unless the assumption that ”in order for something to exist there must be a beginning when it was created” can be demonstrated to be true. To halve something a potentially infinite amount of times is not the same thing as saying that you have an actually infinite amount of something. We can only go back as far as time allows us to go in our known universe. Several of Thomas Aquinas's proofs for the existence of God rely on the claim that causal series cannot proceed in infinitum. Beyond that, the causal chain could loop back on itself or do all kinds of wonky stuff, too. Why infinite regress is impossible? What makes infinite regress impossible? There are things as actual number of things. Only a potentially infinite number exists…. Therefore there must be a first cause of everything. Because he holds that effects Each one leaves some of the needed reason lacking. Infinite regress is impossible because infinity is an irrational term when appled to a finite universe. Because by definition infinity does not end. IWantGod. Explain. It's simple: no proposition is ever justified which relies on an infinite amount of premises. Infinity simply doesn’t exist for a finite universe. Imagine a simple situation in which there exists a first cause and one intermediate cause. It's false that everything has a cause As you can see, 4 doesn't need us to entertain a God as an uncaused cause. Is the Passage of Time Real or Just an Illusion? and since finite amounts cannot possibly add up to a point that can be defined as actually infinite it is meaningless to speak of an infinite regress because the addition of numbers only ever allows a potential infinite; never an actual infinite. Infinite regression suggests that the dominoes fell on their own, which is impossible. But if you agree that i have proven that an infinity cannot be reached, then you must agree that we couldn’t possibly have reached an infinite number of events in actual reality, so what sense does it make to say there is an actually infinite past? Whether the intermediate causes are limited or unlimited in number, they cannot alone explain the causal process that runs through the entire chain. To speak of an an actually infinite quantity or number is to speak of something that is made of finite parts or irreducible points that add up to an actual infinite. This article assumes the evident truth that real causes produce real physical effects in time, as human beings normally conceive it, that is, with the past no longer existing and the future not yet existing. Were it not for the “need” to conform timelike intervals to eternalism’s false hypothesis, the obvious reading of human experience and scientific observation within the same local world line would be that real causality occurs in “normal” time. Thus, there must be a first sufficient reason, which is its own reason – otherwise the principle of sufficient reason itself would be violated. There is no sufficient reason in an infinite chain of causality and there is no need for it so it is meaningless to argue based on it. regardless, infinite regress is impossible simply by virtue of the 'turtles all the way down' problem. God then isn't an exception to the impossibility of an infinite regress rule (which would itself be impossible), but stands in a qualitatively different relationship to time altogether (one which doesn't require the passing of time at all). 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