BEYOND PHYSICS & METAPHYSICS: The Foundation of Christianity & Science
HOW THINGS WORK – CONSIDERATION #144
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Tuesday July 9, 2024
“If the aim of physical theories is to explain experimental laws, theoretical physics is not an autonomous science; it is subordinate to metaphysics.”
– Pierre Duhem, 1906
“As a man who has devoted his whole life to the most clear headed science, to the study of matter, I can tell you as a result of my research about atoms this much: There is no matter as such. All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force which brings the particle of an atom to vibration and holds this most minute solar system of the atom together. We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent spirit (orig. geist). This spirit is the matrix of all matter.”
– Max Planck, 1944
PREFACE
Welcome Everybody!
Long before Jesus, Christianity, or Science, the ancient Greeks had begun to develop an entire philosophical system based on “reason,” that allowed them to move beyond the limitations of duality into understanding the Power of Three. The ability to apply reason to a question led to the metaphysics that gave birth to both science and theology. Whether it be our concept of God, or the atom, both are generated from the same rational metaphysical source.
“Rationalism leads to physics and metaphysics reflecting the empirical and spiritual, or body and mind, aspects of reality.”
Rational ideas and concepts such as “a priori knowledge” were considered to be rooted in a non-empirical reality; the foundation of rationalism. Rationalism leads to physics and metaphysics reflecting the empirical and spiritual, or body and mind, aspects of reality. The rational abstraction of mind leads to theology, such as the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). The rational abstraction of mathematics leads to science; starting with geometry (line, point, plane) and evolving into atomic structure (proton, neutron, electron.)
Our perception of the modern world is directly connected to the rational Greek concept of the “logos” or “divine reasoning” or “a priori knowledge,” which enables human beings to transcend the limitations of duality. It is the foundation of both Christianity and science.
CONSIDERATION #144 – Beyond Physics & Metaphysics: The Foundation of Christianity & Science
Born approximately 540 B.C.E., Heraclitus broke the bounds of dualism by recognizing a third factor regulating the pattern of opposites that he called the logos:
He complained that most people failed to comprehend the logos (Greek: “reason”), the universal principle through which all things are interrelated and all natural events occur, and thus lived like dreamers with a false view of the world. A significant manifestation of the logos, Heraclitus claimed, is the underlying connection between opposites…
His understanding of the relation of opposites to each other enabled him to overcome the chaotic and divergent nature of the world, and he asserted that the world exists as a coherent system in which a change in one direction is ultimately balanced by a corresponding change in another. Between all things there is a hidden connection, so that those that are apparently “tending apart” are actually “being brought together.”
Britannica.com – Heraclitus
This idea of a “reasonable” universe would become the driving factor in Western culture. Once the Power of Three was recognized, it permeated virtually all aspects of how we viewed the nature of reality. Whether the reasonable and “objective” reality of science, or the reasonable and “subjective” reality of theology, the ability to balance opposites with a third factor became the foundation for both science and religion.
“This mathematical concept of space revolutionized our understanding and ability to influence and alter our reality.”
During the mid-4th century B.C.E., the mathematician Euclid published his mathematical principles in the Elements, explaining the development of geometry based on the three metaphysical abstractions called a point, a line, and a plane. This mathematical concept of space revolutionized our understanding and ability to influence and alter our reality.
“Almost from the time of its writing, the Elements exerted a continuous and major influence on human affairs. It was the primary source of geometric reasoning, theorems, and methods at least until the advent of non-Euclidean geometry in the 19th century. It is sometimes said that, other than the Bible, the Elements is the most translated, published, and studied of all the books produced in the Western world… he [Euclid] set a standard for deductive reasoning and geometrical instruction that persisted, practically unchanged, for more than 2,000 years.”
Britannica.com – Euclid
The metaphysics of geometry made the physics of our current reality possible. There are no bridges, skyscrapers, or hydroelectric dams without geometry. Gaining practical results from completely metaphysical principles would become the hallmark of the West.
At approximately the same time, the ancient philosopher Democritus was proposing that our universe was composed of infinitely small unseeable particles he called atomos, or atoms:
To account for the world’s changing physical phenomena, Democritus asserted that space, or the Void, had an equal right with reality, or Being, to be considered existent. He conceived of the Void as a vacuum, an infinite space in which moved an infinite number of atoms that made up Being (i.e., the physical world). These atoms were eternal and indivisible; absolutely small, so small that their size cannot be diminished (hence the name atomon, or “indivisible”)
Britannica.com – Democritus
Democritus utilized reason to determine the existence of the universe (space) and that all the physical things in it (matter) were composed of atoms. Centuries before Einstein.
POSTSCRIPT
By failing to recognize the influence and consequence of the past we fail to recognize our present perception and understanding regarding how things work. It allows us to forget simple facts, like the fact that modern science is a direct byproduct of Christianity. The metaphysical roots of Christian theology becomes the mother’s milk for a new form of empirical rationalism called science.
“Science was specifically developed to consider and investigate the empirical laws of God…”
The original intention of science was not to disprove the metaphysics of theology, it was to investigate the empirical results of that metaphysics in an empirically objective manner. Science was specifically developed to consider and investigate the empirical laws of God; without accepting or dealing with the influence of spiritual dogma. Science was not concerned with who or what God was; it was concerned with the rational universe that God had created. The physical, objective, verifiable, empirical universe.
“Unlike theology, science attempted to create a new rational discipline based on pure mathematical reasoning …”
The purpose of the Scientific Method was not to eliminate God, but to eliminate the influence of power, politics, and the social constructs preventing the application of the pure rational reason necessary for investigating empirical reality. Unlike theology, science attempted to create a new rational discipline based on pure mathematical reasoning that yielded practical empirical results.
Next week we consider the influence of Plato and Aristotle in establishing the foundation for Christianity and science…
Expand the Conversation by Upgrading to “Reality by a Thread!”
Excerpt From This Week’s “Untangling the Knots of Reality” Podcast:
• UNTANGLING THE KNOTS OF REALITY: Podcast #103 – “Untangling Black Holes”
“What is a Black Hole, and how does it change our perception of the universe?” “What is a Singularity and how is it related to Black Holes?” “Who first predicted the possibility of a Black Hole?” “Why did even Einstein believe that Black Holes could not be empirically real?” “How did Gravity form the universe?” These are some of the knots we will attempt to untangle in this week’s podcast. That’s a lot of Black Hole stuff for one podcast! So, let’s get started…
• REALITY BY A THREAD: “Quantum-Rational “A Priori” Consciousness” (Excerpt)
“The practical appropriate empirical application of these rational precepts keeps any ‘individual’ consciousness from pursuing dominancy or supremacy over other forms of consciousness. It establishes the metaphysical foundation for Jesus’ ‘Golden Rule’ and Kant’s ‘Categorical Imperative.’ The ‘a priori’ self-evident truth that rational morality must be an inherent factor in a rational universe…”
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“The first glimpse of reality came through our direct experience with the incongruent patterns of existence… This duality served as the gateway for considerations far beyond the world of experience, into the world of understanding.” – Book I-Dualism (340 Pages)
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From the "apple" in the Garden of Eden to the "Apple" in Cupertino Valley, the influence of Dualism is ubiquitous throughout the history of our understanding and growth as human beings. This essential foundation of reason, the ability to distinguish and recognize patterns, particularly patterns of opposites, has been the fundamental building block in our ability to understand our reality and create realities of our own, including digital reality. (Book I – Dualism)
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“Quantum level thinking embraces the world of probability over physicality. It refocuses Awareness and Consciousness beyond the empirical world of Physical Reality to a totally abstract world of Quantum Possibility…” – Book V (Quantum Consciousness)
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Book V considers the questions related to what Consciousness is, how it evolves through levels of Perception and Awareness, why each step in the process is important, where we are currently on the “Arch of Consciousness,” and how all of this connects to Artificial Intelligence. (166 pages)