Pamphilus is a young man apprenticed to the philosopher Cleanthes. He's present during a series of debates between his master, Philo, and Demea concerning the existence and nature of God. He relates the discourse to his friend Hermippus.
Concerning the existence of God, all three philosophers seem to agree in favor, although they debate at length. Each arrives at their conclusion in favor of the existence of God by different methods, which is the cause for debate. Through their discourse Hume presents several arguments or issues which are often contested among philosophers. These arguments include the natural order of the universe and its consequences, the balance of suffering and goodness in the universe, and the qualifications of the human mind to arrive at conclusions about God.
Each of the men presents his point of view. Cleanthes, as an experimental theist, believes in the existence of God based upon the order of the natural universe. In his view, all the complexity of existence points to an intelligent design and an undeniable proponent force throughout all the universe. Philo opposes Cleanthes' teleological approach to theology because he cannot accept the human mind's ability to discern such things. He argues that nothing can truly be known by such an imperfect, biased mind. In order to truly understand the nature of God, Philo believes a person must exist outside of the universe because only then would he or she have an accurate perspective in order to clearly interpret matters. Here Demea, who up to this point had agreed with Philo, accuses Philo of "accepting an extreme form of skepticism." He proposes a division between faith and reason, preferring faith as the more important. To Demea, fidelity to God is paramount even to understanding him. He argues from a priori reasoning, meaning in this context pertaining to the existence of the universe. If we exist, then we must choose loyalty to God above all else.
In the end, Pamphilus seems to think Cleanthes wins the argument. His verdict is somewhat suspect, however, because of his apprenticeship to the man. According to the presentation of the arguments by Hume, it seems far more likely that Philo is the favored one. In Hume's own opinion, Philo comes the closest to winning the debate.
