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Essay On Pascal's Wager

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In this essay I will discuss the ontological problem of the existence of God and discuss Pascal’s Wager and how it solves the issue. The problem with the proof of the existence of God is that it is not something we will know for sure until our dying day. We can speculate and bet on his existence and “feel” his presence but at this point it is just that, only a bet. This wager is famous for opening up minds to look at the problem in a bigger picture. The problem with the existence of God is not in the answer but instead in the question. Pascal is responsible for refocusing this discussion on God to the bigger problem of the existential context of human life. In a way this can all be broken down to very black and white terms “Either God is or he is not.” But upon looking further we realize that this is a much bigger issue with many grey areas than something as simple as ‘is or is not’. Pascal spends much of his argument refocusing discussion and putting appropriate context on different situations. The question of God is a much more pressing question in relation to human mortality. We are much more inclined to draw toward or push away from faith when we are facing unfavorable situations out of our control. We tend to look harder at the meaning of life and our moral values when we are found staring death straight in the …show more content…

Later in his piece he brings up another solution offered by individuals he calls the “delayed strategy”. Meaning one will live as an agnostic or atheist for X amount of years and then decide to believe once he approaches death. The issue with this approach is that you do not know how long you have left to live. You could die in a car crash tomorrow or you could live to be 105 years old. So the prospect of delaying a life of belief baffles me. The fact that so many are willing to risk their spiritual connection and the possibility of an infinite life is insane to

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