Philosophical musings on Quanta & Qualia;  Materialism & Spiritualism; Science & Religion; Pragmatism & Idealism, etc.

Post 5.   Addendum to Post 4

Alternative Theory of Reality & Deity

   
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My Alternate Theory of Reality (ATOR) is based, in part, on the scientifically-confirmed fact that our world ain't what it appears to be. The Earth, as seen from a normal human perspective seems to be a flat surface with a few bumps here and there. Only from an artificially elevated viewpoint can we see that it's actually a curved surface with no obvious boundaries, i.e. a sphere. Likewise, ordinary physical objects appear to be solid lumps of matter, yet with the aid of quantum mathematics, we discovered that those familiar things are mostly empty space. Oddly, the gaping gaps between atoms are able to resist penetration by other atoms only due to mysterious repellent “forces”. Moreover, on the quantum scale, even space is not nothing, but a plenum humming with creative power, able to produce new particles from potential energy at a moment's notice. So our cutting-edge Science asks us to believe in an unseen, yet powerful & meaningful realm at the very foundation of our world.

Clearly then, the knowable universe encompasses realities beyond the physical appearances of the material world; including the intriguing mysteries of a realm we can only imagine --- and can express only in mathematics and myths. So, I have come to accept --- as previous generations of thinkers have guessed --- that ultimate reality is more than meets the eye. That “more than” involves an enigmatic shape-shifting potency that we now label with the Greek term for workman : “Energy”, which seems to be comparable to what pre-scientific sages called “Spirit” or “Soul”. Yet, despite our more extensive experience and data pool, we still do not completely understand what that ghostly force is, only what it does. According to Big Bang theory, that creative power existed in its purest state in the hypothetical Singularity from which our universe burst in an eruption of production --- seemingly something from nothing.

The similarity of that creatio ex nihilo to various creation myths was not lost on the pioneers of modern cosmology. So, they sought an alternative explanation for the sudden appearance of space-time & matter-energy. But the eternal Multiverse and infinite ManyWorlds theories only push the question back into a unknowable “space & time” beyond our knowable reality --- as an all-things-are-possible-in-eternity explanation. So those scientific-sounding conjectures are no more scientifically valid than pre-scientific creation myths, even if it is assumed that quantifiable empirical data is all that matters. Until rational-pragmatic Greek philosophy emerged from among the emotional-romantic religions, the myriad myths of early cultures made no attempt to explain how the universe worked. They simply assumed that some human-like mind had a good reason, they why, for creating a physical world and questioning creatures.

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Post 5a continued  . . . .click Next

Words of wisdom from the gunsmith: "The world ain't what it seems....the moment you think you got it figured, you’re wrong."

Movie : The Shooter