If you're currently standing up, you might want to sit.

If you're already sitting, you might want to lie down.

And if you're already lying down, I don't know what to tell you.

Maybe take a couple of Advil, because you and I are going to think about thinking.

Specifically, you and I are going to think about the ontological argument, which is an argument

for the existence of God. Ontology is the study of being. It attempts to lift up the rug

of our lives and shine a light on what's underneath. It exposes the unspoken assumptions that our lives rest upon.

Studying ontology is a little bit like watching one of those behind-the-scenes documentaries,

except that the subject is your own being. So, what is the ontological argument for the

existence of God? It's an argument that was first suggested by the Italian monk

Anselm in 1078. Anselm was indifferent to Christianity as a younger man, but he was to become

the Archbishop of Canterbury and one of the church's greatest theologians. By the way, he was also

known for his concern for the poor and was an outspoken

opponent of the slave trade, but he's perhaps best remembered for being the originator of the

ontological argument. And here it is. Anselm said, if it is even possible that God exists, then it follows logically that God does exist.

Here's what he meant. God can be defined as a maximally great being, maximally powerful, maximally knowing, and maximally moral.

A perfect 10 in every respect. If you can think of another being who is more powerful or more

knowing or more moral, then that being is God instead. By definition, God must be a maximally great

being. Now, here's where it gets interesting. A being is greater if it actually exists than if it doesn't exist.

So, suppose that this being, of which none greater can be conceived, did not exist.

Well, that would mean that we can conceive of a greater being, one who did exist, would be greater than one who didn't exist.

So, the being of which none greater can be conceived must actually exist.

...