Natural-law argument

The Natural-law argument for the existence of God states that the observation of governing laws and existing order in the universe indicates the existence of a superior being who enacted these laws.^[1] The argument was popularised by Isaac Newton, René Descartes, and Robert Boyle.^[2] The argument of natural laws as a basis for God was changed by Christian figures such as Thomas Aquinas, in order to fit biblical scripture and establish a Judeo-Christian teleological law.

Bertrand Russell criticized the argument, arguing that many of the things considered to be laws of nature, in fact, are human conventions.^[3] The teleological argument assumes that one can infer the existence of intelligent design merely by examination, and because life is reminiscent of something a human might design, it too must have been designed. However, considering "snowflakes and crystals of certain salts", "[i]n no case do we find intelligence". "There are other ways that order and design can come about" such as by "purely physical forces."^[4]