I’m fighting a losing battle. A lost cause, you might say. “Begs the question” does not mean “raises the question.” Almost always, when someone says, “That begs the question…” they mean,” That raises a question…” Yes, I know you can look it up in some dictionaries online, and the definition will be “to bring up another question,” but common usage doesn’t mean everyone is right. I won’t follow the multitude to commit grammatical evil.
The English phrase translates Aristotle’s Latin — “petitio principii,” the logical fallacy of petitioning the principle. Begging the question is when your premise assumes the truth of your conclusion. You believe something and then use that belief as proof. It’s also called circular reasoning. For example, “Pastor Ichabod Frederick Brisket is a Baptist and preaches the truth because Baptists preach truth.” That’s begging the question. Pastor Brisket may be accurate, but you didn’t prove it. You assumed it and used that as your proof.
But not all circular reasoning is invalid. Philosophical arguments must come back to axioms and first causes. All explanations beg the question when we talk of the universe’s origins. “I think, therefore, I am” begs the question. “The universe can be explained scientifically without God because the scientific principles don’t allow for God.” Saying that you believe in evolution because of logic and reason still puts your logic and reason as the proof of your thesis. And yes, “I believe God created the Heavens and the Earth because the Bible is God’s Word and said it” does the same thing.
When it comes to the first causes, the beginning of everything, you have to start with your premise. Since we can’t recreate the origins, we cannot arrive scientifically. The beginning is a historical event, and we can only get this information from a witness. The Scriptures are the Creator’s testimony to the universe’s origins, and the Bible is a trustworthy source and reliable witness.
I can believe the testimony of historians concerning the history of the Scriptures, which strengthens my faith. I can look to the unmatched beauty of the Scriptures or the evident truth of the doctrines contained. But ultimately, as the London Baptist Confession put it so well, “our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth, and divine authority thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts.”
God exists. Logically, there has to be a first cause if there is an effect. Someone or something put everything here and in motion. I have the witness of the world we live in. I can’t look around at the beauty of creation, the human body’s complexity, and the universe’s wonder without seeing God’s work. It’s been the intuitive understanding of people throughout history that God exists. I also have the inward testimony of God Himself that assures me in the Scriptures. This is a satisfying answer to the question of how the universe began, but it also answers the question why.
