Pascal’s Wager vs. the Ontological Argument
Pascal’s Wager vs. the Ontological Argument
Pascal’s Wager was a groundbreaking theory posed by the French philosopher, mathematician, and physicist Blaise Pascal. Pascal, who is said to be the father of modern probability, felt that that religion should be approached as a gamble. It was one of the first efforts to incorporate the concept of infinity. The wager stated that, even though the existence of God cannot be determined through reason, one should wager as though God exists, because living accordingly, has essentially nothing to lose and experiences can only be beneficial. Pascal’s Wager consists of three arguments. The first is the argument from super dominance. Pascal wrote: “God is, or He is not. But to which side shall we incline? Reason can decide nothing here. Which will you choose then? Let us see. Since you must choose, let us see which interests you least. Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation that He is.” In this quote, Pascal is implying that there is a possibility God exists, if one assumes God exists and he indeed does, then one has gained everything, perhaps heaven. However, if God does not exist then one has lost nothing. The Bible would merely be a mistake and He would not exist, along with Heaven or the like. Regardless, it is best to take the gamble because there is nothing to lose, according to Pascal. Pascal’s next argument was the argument from expectation. He supported this argument when he wrote: “Let us see. Since there is an equal risk of gain and of loss, if you only had to gain two lives, instead of one, you might still wager. But if there were three lives to gain, you would have to play (since you are under the necessity of playing), and you would be imprudent, when you are forced to play, not to chance your life to gain three at a game where there is an equal risk of loss and gain. But there is an eternity of life and
Pascal’s Wager was a groundbreaking theory posed by the French philosopher, mathematician, and physicist Blaise Pascal. Pascal, who is said to be the father of modern probability, felt that that religion should be approached as a gamble. It was one of the first efforts to incorporate the concept of infinity. The wager stated that, even though the existence of God cannot be determined through reason, one should wager as though God exists, because living accordingly, has essentially nothing to lose and experiences can only be beneficial. Pascal’s Wager consists of three arguments. The first is the argument from super dominance. Pascal wrote: “God is, or He is not. But to which side shall we incline? Reason can decide nothing here. Which will you choose then? Let us see. Since you must choose, let us see which interests you least. Let us weigh the gain and the loss in wagering that God is. If you gain, you gain all; if you lose, you lose nothing. Wager, then, without hesitation that He is.” In this quote, Pascal is implying that there is a possibility God exists, if one assumes God exists and he indeed does, then one has gained everything, perhaps heaven. However, if God does not exist then one has lost nothing. The Bible would merely be a mistake and He would not exist, along with Heaven or the like. Regardless, it is best to take the gamble because there is nothing to lose, according to Pascal. Pascal’s next argument was the argument from expectation. He supported this argument when he wrote: “Let us see. Since there is an equal risk of gain and of loss, if you only had to gain two lives, instead of one, you might still wager. But if there were three lives to gain, you would have to play (since you are under the necessity of playing), and you would be imprudent, when you are forced to play, not to chance your life to gain three at a game where there is an equal risk of loss and gain. But there is an eternity of life and