The so-called "Big Bang" was the explosion of all energy and matter in the universe from a single point that is thought to have occurred around 14 billion years ago. We do not have telescopes or mathematics powerful enough to understand what happened before this time, but physicists have done an impressive job of determining how the universe has developed since the Big Bang. Radio telescopes have measured electromagnetic "echoes" that allow physicists to determine what it was like shortly after. Basically, the entire universe was extremely small (perhaps originally concentrated at a single point) and extremely hot (still about one billion degrees Celcius a few minutes after it began exploding). At these temperatures you could have electrons, protons, and neutrons, but they were moving so fast that they could not combine into atoms. As the universe expanded and cooled off a bit more, you saw the formation of hydrogen and helium atoms. Over the next 300 million years, the universe continued to expand and cool, while pockets of hydrogen and helium gas were pulled together by gravity to form stars and galaxies. It has continued to expand and cool to this very day, and cosmologists are not sure whether it will grow forever, or eventually collapse again.
If you want more details on the history of the universe, you'll have to ask a professional cosmologist. What I am interested in are the philosophical and spiritual implications of what we know about the Big Bang. It seems to me that people are most interested in three questions:
1) What happened before the Big Bang? Did God cause the Big Bang?
2) How can physicists really know what happened so long ago? Their theories are very complicated -- couldn't they be wrong?
3) If the universe is only made of particles like electrons, protons, and neutrons, then where does consciousness or soul come in?
(1)
What caused the Big Bang? The truth is, scientists do not know. But there is plenty of speculation. Some physicists argue that God must have caused the Big Bang, because it happened in just the right way for stars, planets, and life to evolve. If the explosion had been slightly faster, matter would have been too spread out to form stars, and there would just be gas. If the explosion had been slightly more gradual, matter would have been too clumpy, and instead of forming bright stars it would collapse into dead black holes. These physicists like to point out that the laws of the universe are also fine-tuned -- for example, if gravity had been any stronger or weaker, there would have been similarly disastrous consequences.
But most physicists would disagree with this line of reasoning. They argue that postulating a "God" doesn't answer the question, but only creates bigger questions: Where did God come from? What is God like? Many physicists suggest that perhaps countless universes have been formed, and that the perfect one might have arisen just by luck.
In order to resolve this disagreement, we first must get clear on what we mean by God. Most mystics would agree that God is ultimate, incomprehensible, and divine. Since the human mind is limited, it can never form a complete concept of God. The ultimate purpose of reality, as the major religions teach, always remains largely beyond our grasp.
From this point of view, atheists are right to complain that saying God caused the Big Bang wouldn't explain anything. At best it would only deepen the mystery, because God is supposed to be the ultimate mystery. One cannot use the Big Bang to prove God, because God is too large to be entailed by any single physical event. The idea that one can prove God by any finite amount of evidence is absurd from the start.
So have I shown that agnosticism is the best option? No, I've only shown that the Big Bang has little to tell us about God.
But it does have something to tell us, however small. It is true that the nature of the Big Bang, including the laws of nature that were in place, were just right for the development of stars, planets, and ultimately life. Accordingly, the Big Bang should not cause one to doubt God, but rather shows how sacred and precious our universe is.
(2)
Could physicists be wrong about the Big Bang? Of course they could. The problem is, no one has spent as much time, care, or hard work determining the structure and history of our universe. We should trust that physicists have done their best to discover the truth. Many of the facts they have discovered contradict the Bible if taken literally. But one can't expect the Bible to contain all knowledge. Even if the entire Bible was divinely inspired, it was written in a time when people did not have the right concepts to understand the structure of the universe. This had to wait for the discoveries of Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Einstein, and many others. Now that we've achieved this knowledge, the challenge is to reconcile it with what we knew before, not to forget everything we knew and start over again (as many atheists suggest we should).
(3)
Where does consciousness come from if the universe is made entirely of particles? This question has its origin in a logical fallacy: if bricks are square, then does it follow that you cannot build a round tower using them? Of course not. (This is known as the "fallacy of composition" in logic.) The fact that particles are not conscious has no implications for whether a conscious being can be constructed using them. Particles cannot drive on roads or serf the Internet either, but they can nevertheless be used to compose cars and computers.
Many people argue that there must be a soul separate from the body for there to be life after death. But this argument is also fallacious. Life after death is in fact possible even if there is no immaterial soul or spirit. For example, many scientists have argued that a human mind could theoretically be programmed onto a computer. They have even suggested that by uploading ourselves onto computers, we might live forever. Though this scenario is unlikely in the near future, and no comfort concerning those already deceased, it suggests that consciousness does not necessarily disappear when the body dies. This has several implications, in particular:
a) Since our knowledge and values can be passed down through DNA and by teaching, there is a sense in which parts of our soul are transmitted to future generations.
b) Because our souls are patterns, it will always be possible for them to reappear in other times and places, in other universes, or in the mind of God. So the fact that our brains are made out of atoms does not in any way eliminate the possibility of life after death or reunion with the divine.
Of course, I have not proven that life after death always occurs. Instead, I have merely explained that it is consistent with the universe being made entirely of particles, as the sciences have revealed. Just as the software of a computer can be transferred from one set of hardware to another, the much more complex and precious software of the human mind can always -- in theory -- be re-created after the body has died.
In summary, the earliest event scientists have been able to understand is the Big Bang. We do not know why or how it happened. But we know it happened in just the right way to give rise to stars and planets that can support life. Everything around us is made of particles that originated in the Big Bang -- protons, neutrons, and electrons. These particles are simple, mindless, and lifeless. They move according to definite physical laws, yet they are capable of forming all the things that we see around us, including extremely complex living beings. (If you are interested in reading more on these topics, find a copy of Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time.)
In the next section we'll talk about how the kinds of atoms that occur in nature (the elements) have precisely the right properties to form living things.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Preface
Back around the year 1800, there was little question in Christians' minds that God had created the world 6000 years ago, complete with sun, moon, stars, and every species of plant and animal. By the year 1900, the spectacular growth of European science, including Darwin's theory of evolution, had seriously challenged this picture. The literal truth of the Bible has been in serious doubt ever since.
Additionally, Christians have come in contact with other religions from around the world, each unique and seemingly irreconcilable. This has led them to doubt whether there really are any steadfast spiritual truths, or whether the truth is simply whatever you want it to be.
Finally, a growing number of people are starting to recognize that our civilization is on the verge of collapse. It is quickly becoming apparent that billions could die. If we are not prepared when this occurs, it could easily deal a final blow to our faith in a divine nature.
Such doubts led me to embrace atheism myself over a period of about 8 years, followed by another 6 years of wavering agnosticism. Finally, in 2008 and 2009, months of contemplation led me to a series of realizations concerning the nature of human evolution (see xurumin.blogspot.com).
The purpose of this book is to explain these realizations, which I believe can reconcile spirituality, science, and the reality of suffering. In particular, these are my goals:
1) To tell the story of the evolution of life and human civilization over the last 4.5 billion years. Instead of focusing on facts, I will focus on the meaning and significance of this history. (Part I)
2) To explain how the most sacred doctrines of the world's religions agree with each other, with physics, and with Darwin's theory of evolution. (Part II)
3) To explain the significance of the principles of evolution and ecology for how we might transform our lives as modern civilization plunges toward environmental catastrophe and economic collapse. (Parts III & IV)
(This book is a work in progress. I will be posting each section as a write it. Feel free to share any criticisms, comments, requests, or thoughts at any time.)
Additionally, Christians have come in contact with other religions from around the world, each unique and seemingly irreconcilable. This has led them to doubt whether there really are any steadfast spiritual truths, or whether the truth is simply whatever you want it to be.
Finally, a growing number of people are starting to recognize that our civilization is on the verge of collapse. It is quickly becoming apparent that billions could die. If we are not prepared when this occurs, it could easily deal a final blow to our faith in a divine nature.
Such doubts led me to embrace atheism myself over a period of about 8 years, followed by another 6 years of wavering agnosticism. Finally, in 2008 and 2009, months of contemplation led me to a series of realizations concerning the nature of human evolution (see xurumin.blogspot.com).
The purpose of this book is to explain these realizations, which I believe can reconcile spirituality, science, and the reality of suffering. In particular, these are my goals:
1) To tell the story of the evolution of life and human civilization over the last 4.5 billion years. Instead of focusing on facts, I will focus on the meaning and significance of this history. (Part I)
2) To explain how the most sacred doctrines of the world's religions agree with each other, with physics, and with Darwin's theory of evolution. (Part II)
3) To explain the significance of the principles of evolution and ecology for how we might transform our lives as modern civilization plunges toward environmental catastrophe and economic collapse. (Parts III & IV)
(This book is a work in progress. I will be posting each section as a write it. Feel free to share any criticisms, comments, requests, or thoughts at any time.)
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