An Argument for the Existence of God (P.S. Happy Valentine's Day!)

Today in my History of Theories of Psychology class I forwarded a new argument for the existence of God. Regular readers will note that this is a revised version of an argument I made here on this blog some time ago. Relevant to my last post (and the series to follow) there is some Frankfurtian stuff on volitional necessities in the argument (#5 and #6 lean on Frankfurt).

In class I called this a fingerprint argument. It doesn’t prove that God exists; it simply looks for a “fingerprint,” a “sign.” For the sake of posterity, here it is:

1. Consciousness adheres to matter.

2. When it does so it preserves structure, leading to increasing complexity of structure.

3. As structure grows more complex, consciousness grows more complex in turn.

4. When consciousness reaches a certain degree of complexity it becomes self-aware/self-reflective.

5. When consciousness becomes self-reflective it will notice that it is bound by certain volitional necessities.

6. The most pervasive and fundamental volitional necessity is love.


Conclusion: Love is built into the fabric of the cosmos. It is a latent potentiality in every speck of matter. This is the fingerprint of God.

Commentary on the points:
1. Self explanatory. You are Exhibit A. So is a dog or mouse.

2. The rudimentary expression of consciousness is pleasure and pain. Pain uniformly signals damage and/or a potential loss of organizational integrity. Pleasure is just the opposite. Thus, consciousness doesn’t adhere to matter in a willy-nilly way. It is intimately involved in preserving organizational complexity. This ability to persevere—to maintain organizational integrity—allows matter to evolve into more complex configurations. Again, you are Exhibit A. Your existence is evidence that both #1 and #2 are true.

3. Again, this is simply a statement of fact. You are both more complex—structurally and consciously—than a dog. And a dog more than a mouse. And so on.

4. Eventually, consciousness can get to the point where it can model/reflect/mirror/represent its own structure. Once this point is reached the two structures—mind and matter—can be leveraged off one other facilitating, in exponential ways, the processes of #1-#3. That is, a self-aware structure can note that it is a structure and can, therefore, become an originator of new structures (i.e., we create physical and mental structures: we build.).

5. When self-reflective consciousness emerges, the agent will become aware that she is volitionally committed to things beyond her own choosing. That is, she will notice that she is volitionally invested and committed it certain ways. These investments (volitional necessities) are what the agent notices she “cares” about. These are discovered rather than chosen.

6. As the agent sorts her experience the most fundamental investments are those she loves. These loves form the foundation of the conscious experience.