Pascal’s wager, practical argument for belief in God formulated by French mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal.In his Pensées (1657–58), Pascal applied elements of game theory to show that belief in the Christian religion is rational. He argued that people can choose to believe in God or can choose to not believe in God, and that God either exists or he does not.
4. Ignoring the Role of Evidence. Critics claim the Wager ignores evidence for or against God. However, Pascal assumes that evidence alone cannot resolve the question and argues that practical considerations guide decision-making under uncertainty.. John Polkinghorne writes: “The Wager acknowledges the limits of evidence and invites exploration of deeper reasons for belief.”⁷
My criticism does not focus on Pascal as a historical figure, but on the belief that his wager would still be relevant today. Reducing the scope of the Pascal's wager The Wager is reserved for people who admit a priori the following hypotheses: • the human soul is immortal; • deities observe us and judge, reward or punish us;
Perhaps a more impactful criticism of Pascal’s wager is that it falls victim to the ‘many-God problem’. While, in the age of Blaise Pascal, there would only realistically have been a single God in which somebody could reasonably believe, in a modern, secular society there are many. Pascal’s wager would seem to state that we should ...
This article critiques Pascal's Wager from multiple perspectives, focusing on the weaknesses in its premises and the consequences of its application. The Nature of Belief. One of the core challenges to Pascal's Wager lies in the nature of belief itself. Pascal frames belief in God as a simple choice—as if it were as easy as placing a bet at a ...
Pascal's Wager. The argument is short and snappy like Anselm's ontological argument, and it sidesteps the long and involved messiness of proofs for the existence of God by grounding belief in God with prudential or beneficial considerations. To believe in God, says the Wager, is the smartest thing to do.
Jeff Jordan defends this line of response, though in an unconvincing manner (‘The many-gods objection and Pascal's Wager’, pp.316–317, and ‘Pascal's Wager and the problem of infinite utilities’, p.53). An exception is Richard Jeffrey,The logic of decision (2nd ed., Chicago, 1983), pp. 150–154.
These disclaimers notwithstanding, Pascal’s Wager has been subject to considerable criticism, by Christians and non-Christians alike. This essay will give an overview of Pascal’s argument, along with its strengths and strictures. A follow-on essay will consider recurrent criticisms of the wager and suggest at the end how Pascal’s Wager ...
“Pascal’s Wager” is the name given to an argument due to Blaise Pascal for believing, or for at least taking steps to believe, in God. The name is somewhat misleading, for in a single section of his Pensées, Pascal apparently presents four such arguments, each of which might be called a ‘wager’—it is only the third of these that is traditionally referred to as “Pascal’s Wager”.
The Many Gods Objection (MGO) is widely viewed as a decisive criticism of Pascal’s Wager. Some have attempted to rebut it by employing criteria drawn from the theological tradition. This paper will offer a different sort of defense of the Wager, one more suited to its apologetic aim as well as to its status as a decision under ignorance. It will be shown that there are characteristics ...
The Many Gods Objection (MGO) is widely viewed as decisive criticism of Pascal’s Wager. By introducing a plurality of hypotheses with infinite expected utility into the decision matrix, the wagerer is left without adequate grounds to decide between them. However, some have attempted to rebut this objection by employing various criteria drawn ...
Study Pascal's wager. Learn about Blaise Pascal, a 17th-century French philosopher, and read about Pascal's wager, an argument for why belief in...
Pascal’s Wager is a philosophical argument for the belief, or lack of belief, in a God written by the French philosopher, physicist, and mathematician, Blaise Pascal; published in 1669.
The Many Gods Objection (MGO) is widely viewed as a decisive criticism of Pascal’s Wager. Some have attempted to rebut it by employing criteria drawn from the theological tradition. This chapter will offer a different sort of defense of the Wager, one more suited to its apologetic aim as well as to its status as a decision under ignorance.
Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) has been criticized—appropriately, it seems to me—for trivializing a decision about ultimate reality by likening it to a wager, as though it were a Las Vegas bet. However, this nearly 400-year-old devisement does at least provide a vehicle within the context of a more enlightened Adventism for respectful friends to ...
The seventeenth century French philosopher Blaise Pascal explained his wager by considering which party, the believer or nonbeliever, risks more in the grand scheme.
Pascal’s wager Perhaps it was the calculated apprehension of being wrong about God that led to Pascal’s conversion. His famous wager clarified what’s at stake in religious disbelief.
Pascal's Wager. The economics of sin and salvation were calculated by the 17th-century philosopher Blaise Pascal, who attacked the problem with comically dispassionate pragmatism. God may or may ...
