René Descartes' View of GodIn 1996, songwriter Joan Osborne performed a song called "One of Us" which was nominated for three Grammy Awards. What made this song so successful and interesting were the powerful lyrics that essentially asked, “What if God was a human being?” As she wrote the lyrics to "One of Us", she wondered about God and how the world would be different if God existed in real life and not just a supernatural force. You may be wondering, “What does this have to do with the 17th century?” Well, in the 17th century, there was a man, René Descartes, who was interested in God and questioned his existence. After an unforgettable night on November 10, 1619, his interest in God grew stronger and he had developed many opinions that were or were about God. When he expressed his research on the application of inductive methods of science and mathematics to philosophy through "Cogito ero sum" (I think, therefore I am), he began to argue about the existence of God saying that God and science could coexist, since he proved that he existed. René Descartes, a Catholic, benefited from a broad classical education, which influenced him to become a great philosopher. At the age of eight, “he was enrolled at the Jesuit college of La Flèche in Anjou, where he remained for eight years” (“Descartes”). There he received instruction in mathematics, scholastic philosophy and classical studies. Although he planned to pursue a military career in the Netherlands, “his attention was already drawn to the problems of mathematics and philosophy to which he would devote the rest of his life” (“Descartes”). ..... middle of paper ......Descartes was an important philosopher in the 17th century and one of the reasons for this was his view of God. Thanks to his knowledge and inspiration this November 10, he was able to elaborate on the philosophy. He had a mission to accomplish in his life, a mission to see the truth. He was able to accomplish this mission by researching the truth of God, algebra and geometry, reasoning and many other theories which earned him to be called the father of modern philosophy. Works cited: Descartes, René. The philosophical works of Descartes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1911. Vrooman, Jack Rochford. Rene Descartes. New York: GP Putman's Sons, 1970. "Descartes, René." New Funk & Wagnalls encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Inc., 1952. “Rene Descartes.” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. July 13 1999.