The History of the Kalam Cosmological Argument

Dr. Craig traces the history of the Kalam cosmological argument all the way back to its origins as a response to Greek philosophy!

INTERVIEWER: Let's talk cosmological argument. You know something about that, right?

DR. CRAIG: Yes!

INTERVIEWER: Bill, what is the history of that argument? How far back does it go?

DR. CRAIG: Oh, it really extends very far back toward the very beginning of Christianity, actually. Early Christian commentators disputed the Greek doctrine of the eternity of matter. According to Aristotle the universe has always existed, and the role of God is simply to provide order in the eternal cosmos. Christians understood that this was inconsistent with the Jewish doctrine of creation out of nothing, and so they began to devise various philosophical arguments against the infinitude of the past. This then was developed during the Middle Ages by medieval Islamic and Jewish philosophers, and then bequeathed back to Western Latin-speaking theologians during the Middle Ages. So it has a long history. One of the great things about the argument is its inter-sectarian appeal. It's been propounded by Muslims, Jews, Christians, both Catholic and Protestant, and so has a great inter-confessional appeal.