How would I approach the question: ‘The Design (Teleological) argument proves that God exists.’ Do you agree?

So, when approaching this question, the important thing to remember is that it doesn't matter what your opinion is, but how strong your argument is. Therefore, in your answer you need to show that you have thought about more than one point of view, whilst demonstrating why your conclusion is stronger than the other possible conclusion. A simple essay structure you might want to follow is:

Paragraph 1: Provide a quick sentence summary of the argument and acknowledge that thinkers are divided as to whether it proves that God exists.

Paragraph 2: Put forward some ideas in support of the conclusion you are going to draw (If you believe that it is a strong argument for God’s existence give reasons why it’s strong, if you don’t think that it’s a strong argument, discuss some of its weaknesses.)

Paragraph 3: Now (very briefly) put forward the opposite opinion to the one you presented in paragraph 2.

Paragraph 4: Justify why this counterargument does not persuade you to the other side.

To make the conclusion a little more sophisticated we might say something along the lines of: “Whilst there are strong arguments for and against the teleological argument, I believe that those which support it are stronger. However, it is also important to remember the intended purpose of the argument: to help those who already believe in God defend their faith, as opposed to converting those who do not believe in God. A central idea for religions is that theists can never prove conclusively that God exists, otherwise there would not be room for faith.”

In terms of content, some ideas you might like to use are:

Pro teleological argument:

As argued by Paley, if we would automatically assume that the sophistication of the watch means that it was designed then why should we not also assume that the sophistication of the world indicates that it has also been designed? Surely, as the world is so much more sophisticated, complex and wonderful than a watch, there is even more reason to presume that it was designed than the watch, and what is more, that the designer of the world must be far greater than the designer of the watch.

The argument is also supported when one appeals to science; for example, as discussed by Isaac Newton, a vital factor in humanity’s success is our opposable thumbs, without which we could not write. Therefore, surely this seemingly tiny but imperative detail cannot be the result of pure chance. Similarly, scientists have calculated that if the gravitational force operating on the world was slightly different then life could not exist on earth. Again, this cannot surely be a coincidence. (This argument is essentially that put forward by R. F. Tennant, which he referred to as the ‘Anthropic Principle’.)

The argument is supported by scripture, for example in Genesis, God is described as having designed and created the world.

Weaknesses of the teleological argument:

If the world was designed that does not mean that it was designed by the omnipotent, omnibenevolent and omniscient God worshipped by the major religions. It could just as easily have been designed by a devil, by several gods, by a demi-god etc.

If the world was designed, one could argue that it was done so very badly; why would God create the illness, evil and natural disaster that are an inherent part of the world?

We already have an entirely scientific explanation for the appearance of design in the world: evolution. Design is therefore merely an illusion.

There is a reason we would pick up a watch on a heath and consider it to be designed, which is that it is seems so distinct from the natural world. This therefore goes against the idea that the world appears to have been designed.

If we were to apply Ockham’s razor to the argument, the explanation of the complexity of the world being the result of entirely organic processes is far simpler than adding God into the mix, and therefore we should accept it.

This is by no means a conclusive list of the strengths and weaknesses you can discuss, nor should you try to include all these ideas in the exam; it is important to keep an eye on the time and complete all the questions, without ending up having to rush the last few answers, or worse not have time to answer them at all. Prioritise the ideas which you find most interesting as you will remember these the easiest and be able to make the best answer from them.