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All right, I've been asked to speak about the fifth way.

The fifth way is the argument that in brief reasons from the reality of natural teleology

to the existence of some intelligent cause

by which natural things are directed to their end.

I want to begin by framing my remarks about the Fifth Way in light of some of the earlier presentations in this symposium,

particularly in light of some of Father James opening remarks on Friday, and in light of a theme that was emphasized in both Father Philip Neri and Dr. Frey's talks yesterday about the first and second ways. I'm going to begin with the latter. We heard from Father Philip Neri and from Dr. Frey yesterday that there's something rather limited about the

intentional content of the conclusions of the first and second ways such that it may not be or

maybe just is not immediately evident that a first mover put in motion by no other or a first uncaused, efficient cause,

must be unique, personal, or providential, the one true God confessed by Catholic faith.

It is the case, however, in St. Thomas's mind that the content of the conclusions of his five ways, perhaps singly, perhaps jointly, must provide an adequate starting point through which it can be shown through further argumentation that this cause that we call God is absolutely simple, universally perfect, unqualified

good, infinite, omnipresent, immutable, eternal, unique, omniscient, loving, providential,

and so forth. That is, all of the conclusions for which St. Thomas argues concerning God

in questions three to 26 of the Sumiteologia.

On this point, I would note that if one inspects the argumentation in questions three to 26

and looks for St. Thomas's direct appeals to the conclusions of the five ways, one first notes that explicit appeals to the

conclusions of the first, third, fourth, and fifth ways are in fact rather few and far between.

There is one direct appeal to the characterization of God as unmoved mover in question three, Article 1.

There are two appeals to the fourth ways characterization of God as good and best or as most

excellent, both of these also found in question three. There are no explicit direct appeals to the characterization of God as a being necessary through himself anywhere in the first 26 questions of the Summa.

And the only appeals to the claim that God is intelligent in order to draw further conclusions about God appear after question 14 in which St. Thomas proves

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