Pascal's wager

Meaning

Proper Noun

• An argument for theism (and specifically Christianity, according to the writer) maintaining that belief in the divine ensures happiness in this life and offers the possibility of eternal happiness (should God or divine beings exist), whereas atheism, even if it brings happiness in this life, offers no hope of eternal happiness and carries the risk of eternal damnation.

Origin

• After French theologian Blaise Pascal, who formulated the wager.