How do we know that God exists?

Question

Simple enough question, and very much related to the topic.

According to the sources, on what basis should people believe that there's a God?

Answer 1

Assuming we all exist, think, know and interact with our actual surroundings etc.

The Ontological Proof

The first class of Divine Proof is the Ontological proof. It goes basically like this:

God as a concept is perfect.

Perfect things must have the quality of existing, else they wouldn't be perfect.

Hence, God exists.

Problems

This doesn't really convince anyone of anything.

Possible Solutions

Many philosophers have spent a lot of time tweaking this proof, but in the end I don't think anyone else really cares about it.

The Cosmological Proof

The second class of Divine Proof is the Cosmological proof. First pioneered by Aristotle and taken up by the Rambam, it goes something like this:

Everything that moves was moved by something else.

There cannot be an infinite regress of events.

Hence, there exists a Prime Mover and we call Him God.

Problems

First off, you could just say that there can be an infinite regress of events.

Secondly, in the current proof what can God tell you to do? Move? Not so powerful...

Possible Solutions

Two avoid the second problem, some have changed "move" to other powers and given those to God.

Alternatively, some focus on the fundamental nature of the proof which is that there exists a being external to the general rules of science. They will argue something like this:

Morality* is eternally true independent of circumstances.

Hence, there exists some entity outside of the natural world and we call it God.

(*Replace Morality with Rationality or some other fundamentally True concept as you please.)

This doesn't really get exactly the God we want, but it is better if you assume Morality/Rationality/etc. is eternally True independent of circumstances.

The Teleological Proof

This is the most commonly given of the three Divine Proofs by organizations such as Aish HaTorah and other (especially Charedi) organizations. It goes something like this:

[Some aspect of the world] is very complex.

Hence, it must be designed as such by a Higher Being whom we call God.

Problems

It might not be. Everyone agrees this is not a strict proof. [BTW this is why people are so opposed to Darwin, not the textual issues from Genesis 1]

Possible Solutions

Err.. Find something REALLY REALLY complex.

Summary

There is no strict philosophical proof for God; however, there is no strict proof against the existence of God either. You need to evaluate the evidence and BELIEVE.

Sources: Philosophy classes and personal research on the subject.

Answer 2

To my knowledge, the only "argument" for the existence of God given in the Torah itself is that He directly revealed Himself to us at Sinai:

Deut. 4:35 "Unto thee it was shown, that thou mightest know that the LORD, He is God; there is none else beside Him."

Deut. 5:4, "The LORD spoke with you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire."

In other words, direct experience does not require philosophical proof.

Rabbi Jacob Emden expanded this argument into our own time, saying that, "When I consider these wonders [of the survival of the Jews in exile], they appear greater to me than all the miracles and wonders that God did for our ancestors in Egypt, and in the wilderness, and in the land of Israel."

All philosophical arguments for the existence of God made in traditional sources are only intended to reinforce this basic experiential knowledge that is the heritage of the Jewish people. While these arguments can serve to shore up our beliefs against challenges, many sources see these arguments as helping us acheive a more personal, immediate connection to God.

The most common such arguments found in Jewish works are:

1. The Argument from Design - Many aspects of the natural world appear to have been been designed with intelligence and intent.

2. The Cosmological or "First Cause" Argument - What set the world moving? Where did it come from?

3. The famous "Kuzari" argument (which is also found in the writings of R' Saadia Gaon and Maimonides), that the Sinai revelation was a historical event witnessed by the entire nation. (This argument is basically just an extension of the Biblical "argument" that is intended to enable us to rely with confidence on our historical tradition.)

In my personal opinion, the various philosophical arguments for the existence of God are mainly useful for countering Hume's arguments against miracles. Briefly stated, he argues that no testimony of a miracle should be believed unless the falsehood of the testimony would be more improbable than the miracle itself. It follows, therefore, that one's ability to accept the testimony of the Jewish people's historical experience of miracles has an inverse relationship with the degree to which you think miracles are improbable.

All of the classical arguments for the existence of God are, fundamentally, arguments that we can perceive an element of the supernatural in the natural world itself. Thus, each such argument makes the possibility of miracles more plausible. At some point, it becomes more likely that Sinai Revelation really occurred than that it was made up (which, per the Kuzari argument, is very unlikely). Once you reach that point, then you have the Sinai Revelation to rely on for everything else.

Answer 3

How does a Chasid know that G-d exists? He has Emunah.

How does a Litvak (a.k.a. Yeshivish Jew) know that G-d exists?

The Rambam says so, and the Raavad doesn't argue. :o)

Answer 4

I'm a terrible one for sources, however as far as I am aware there are four ways in which Judaism knows that Gd exists.

• The first method is brought in the midrashim regarding Abraham. There are two stories that I know of regarding how Avraham knew that god existed.

  1. Story 1: (Thank you @Monica Cellio) Abraham was walking along the way and saw a building that either (had a light in it's window, or was on fire), Avraham looked at the building and said, "Can that house have no master?, surely there is a master of the world."
     I have seen the midrash explained in two ways based on how you translate the line. Either, a building with a light on must have someone who lives in, and so with our world, life exists, so someone must have created it. Or, a house would only be on fire if someone owns it and an enemy wished to destroy it. Since there is evil in this world, and there is constant entropy, the fact that things get "built" means there is a creator. In modern language you might describe this as entropy vs evolution. However as with all midrashim, it could be undertood differently by each person.

  2. Story 2: Abraham was sitting in the sun, when suddenly a cloud blocked the Sun. The Cloud must be stronger than the sun, then a wind came, and the wind moved the cloud, so wind is stronger than clouds, then the wind came to a mountain and was blocked, so a mountain is stronger than wind, then a river was seen carving through the mountain, so water must be stronger than mountains, then the sun dried up the water, so the sun must be stronger than water... This cycle lead Abraham to believe that there must be a force outside of the cycles of nature which is strongest of them all, and runs it all, and that force is Gd. In modern language you might say, "That which breathes life into the equations." However as with all midrashim, it could be undertood differently by each person.

** Edit: It seems that the original midrash talks about man being better than spirit because of a wordplay, so I'm not sure where I heard this version from, but the basic concept is the same.

• The second method in which we know Gd exists, is in the fulfillment of prophecies and being able to see the hand of Gd in history. This is first mentioned in the Torah when Gd describes himself as the Lord Your Gd who took you out of Egypt. This was a common way for the Rabbis of the Talmudic and Gaonic period to relate to Gd, most notably the book the Kuzari written by Yehuda HaLevi. Various prophecies have come true over the centuries, the latest of them being the return of the Jewish people to the land of Israel.

• The third method in which we know Gd exists is Rambam's principle of knowledge and the methods of books such as Derech Hashem which aim to prove Gd logically as either the first cause of all things, or show Gd as a necessity in some other logical manner. This method became popular in the middle ages, and has only grown since then. This method has become the most popular over the centuries, to the point that now most Jewish understandings and proofs of Gd are no different from any other theistic philosophy.

• The fourth method of knowing that Gd exists is through personal experience and prayer, where a person feels a close relationship with his creator. This is most common in circles influenced by the Hassiduth movement from the 18th century.

Answer 5

Some other proofs of G-d's existence (although a bit related to Avi's answer)

HASHGACHAH PRATIS (Divine providence) - Everyday stories from life; both from the lives of others (who one knows and trusts) and from one's own life. If a person pays close attention to what happens around him, he cannot help but note the Hand of G-d in so many events in our lives. There is no need to elaborate here.

PRAYER - If a person prays to G-d, he will see G-d answer him. That does not mean that every prayer is answered, but it does mean that if we turn to G-d regularly, we see totally unexpected turns of events that can only be attributed to prayer. This can be seen (sometimes even more vividly) with regard to the prayers of others as well. The prayer of a Tzibur (congregation) carries more weight that that of a Yachid (individual), and its effects are equally more evident.

PROPHECY - Even today, the power of prophecy can be seen when pondering the Torah's promises (can a nation exiled from its homeland and splintered into a dozen minor ethnic groups for 2,000 years, have the ability and resolve to return en masse to their homeland and become a universally recognized world power?). Perhaps closer to home, those who have had the merit and opportunity of meeting with the Tzadikim (righteous sages) of the generation know that even today, we can find shadows of "prophecy".

This category includes the infinite beauty of the Torah, which is evident to all who study it in depth.

source: translator's note at end of http://www.dafyomireview.com/article.php?docid=398

Answer 6

There was a painter that did not believe in God. One day a fellow came to visit his house. After a while the painter had to leave, and he let the fellow remain in his house. When he returned the whole front room was repainted by the fellow. He said to him "Who painted the room?", the fellow responded "Unbelievable, while I was sitting on the couch all of a sudden a gust of wind blew in through the open window and it pried open the paint cans, and then the paint just splattered, and amazingly it repainted the entire room." The painter said "Your crazy, I am a painter and I know that it is impossible for such a thing to happen." The fellow said "Look, you feel such a thing is impossible, yet you believe that the world which is way way more complex was created on its own!".