Caleb Clanton wrote an article in the most recent volume of Philosophia Christi in defense of the cosmological argument.[1] More precisely, he argued for the principle of sufficient reason that undergirds the argument, and against the existence of brute facts which undercuts the argument. Here is a brief summary of his argument.
A contingent being is one whose existence is derived from a source outside of itself. Everything we see around us is a contingent being: trees, rocks, planets, stars, and even the universe itself. How did the set of all contingent beings originate? While the vast majority of all contingent beings can be explained by appealing to a prior contingent being, this cannot go on ad infinitum because an infinite regress is logically absurd. It follows, then, that the entire set of contingent beings cannot be explained by appealing to another contingent being because as the set of all contingent beings, there can’t be any additional contingent beings. Only a being that is not contingent can explain the set. A being that is not contingent is a necessary being, meaning it does not derive its existence from anything outside of itself, but has existence in and of itself by a necessity of its own nature. Theists identify this necessary being as God. (more…)
Thinking to Believe 