If one were blessed to walk ever so reverently into morning mass at the cathedral at Strasbourg, France, two things would undoubtedly present themselves to the senses as the most holy of temporal things. First,Strasbourg architects of the Middle Ages were masters at first drawing the attention to the massive expanse and openness of the Gothic nave, but then, as if drawn by God Himself, up, up, and up 465 feet to the domed heavens elaborately adorned in medieval artistry. Second, the choir in morning mass enthralls the listener as yet again the utterance of human voice draws you in, then, as if fully drawn by God Himself, up, up, and up goes both sound and sight. To say there is a fixating quality to the nave ceiling ever so adorned and ever so high is to give credit to God alone for both the craft of the builders and for such holy and thin places. Places where the distance between heaven and Earth becomes very thin. In it all and through it all, everywhere is cause.
Whether it be the pushing of air through the vocal cords to make a sound or the placement of the cornerstone on the foundation, the Law of Causation is ever at work, yet it is not happenstance. Indeed, the effects of causation depend upon prior conditions, such as the second stone being placed upon the first, and the third being placed on the second, etc. Cause and effect, you see. But the Law of Causation also states that events do not occur without sufficient reason. Hence, the cathedral’s coming into being had a sufficient causal reason to come into being—namely, the desire of the stonemasons and the will of God. Sure enough, not one cathedral stone was the cause of its own existence, nor did it lay itself in the grand structure. For that matter, each note sang by the choir was not the cause of its own sound, nor did it vocalize itself in song. Such notions are absurd. To be certain, sung musical notes just as surely have causes as do grand and lofty ceilings. And so it is at Strasbourg. It seems there truly is nothing about either that did not have a cause. From foundation to the central tower and on to the steeple with its capstone and finial, like links in a chain, stone by stone, year by year, not the greatest nor the least sits in full array without a cause having put it there. In fact, what would that make of me to claim the cathedral had no cause whatsoever? That is, perhaps the stoneslaidthemselvesinwhichcase they would be their own cause. For thatisnonsense.Rather,reasonand necessity dictate that every stone in the heap has a cause. The Law of Causation is not limited to medieval stone structures; everything, for better or worse, has a cause, including this article, for better or worse. It is, in fact, how science works: observation of effects to determine by inference their cause. Again, cause and effect. One could say there is a nonnegotiable fact of reality that all effects have causes. That means the cathedral at Strasbourg has a cause(stonemasons)whousedpink sandstone, which has a cause (the cementing of sand together over time), which itself has a cause (the weathering away of antecedent stones), etc., etc. And it doesn’t matter ifyouaretalkingaboutcathedral stones or house cats. However, an infinite regress of causes is not possible. Somewhereintimepast,there had to be a first cause of everything uncaused by anything. There is no other logical option. The chain cannot go back forever. A quick look up inside the cathedral will tell you that. Sure enough, there is a singular uncaused first cause. What Aristotle called “the unmoved mover” and Aquinas the “uncaused cause. And it is this First Cause of all causes that Christians know as God.
Nevertheless, an intriguing question presents itself: if everything has a cause, and the First CauseisGod,thenwhocausedGod? After all, it’s a critical question that has been asked for centuries by some of the great skeptical minds. For example, 18th-century philosopher DavidHume(1711–1776) asks, “Why should the chain stop with God?” Hume goes so far as to argue that we must live our lives as if causation is real, but we cannot justify it philosophically. However, I am not so sure Hume is right. Join us again next time as we continue the investigation. Until then, ask a bold question: Is God dead?
Gloria in excelsis Deo! Ty B. Kerley, DMin., is an ordained minister who teaches Christian apologetics, and relief preaches in Southern Oklahoma. Dr. Kerley and his wife Vicki are members of the Waurika church of Christ, and live in Ardmore. You can contact him at: dr.kerley@isGoddead.com.