Elder Jäger continued with his explanation. Reconciliation is an excellent way to describe it. In its Latin form, ‘reconciliatonis’, which means to sit down again with. In other words, to bring things back to together in one. You are correct Avatar, we cannot reconcile God and the mysteries of the universe. It’s not what we are here for. Our existence has a purpose.Reconciliation is an excellent way to describe it. In its Latin form, ‘reconciliatonis’, which means to sit down again with. In other words, to bring things back to together in one. You are correct Avatar, we cannot reconcile God and the mysteries of the universe. It’s not what we are here for. Our existence has a purpose.
“What makes things do what they do? What makes dogs bark, cats purr, and plants grow?”
Adams, Scott. God’s Debris a Thought Experiment. Andrews McMeel, 2013.
Let’s start with the first question which is really a multi-part question. What makes things like rivers and rocks do what they do? What makes plant life do what it does? What makes animals like dogs, cats, and dolphins do what they do?
It’s the same answer for all of these things, plants, and animals. They are obedient to their purpose and design. They don’t question their purpose like we have been doing for past forty-five minutes. They don’t ask why? Plants and the ecosystems that they exist in, follow a set of rules.
I grew up on a farm. If you plant a seed, provide it with the proper soil and watering, the seed doesn’t think about what it wants to become. A tomato seed doesn’t choose to rebel and identify as corn, nor does a dolphin tire of living in the water, pick up its belongings, and move to the mountains. When the moon tugs at the ocean, the tides don’t get together and decide to go in different directions.
But humans are different. They do consider their purpose. They do ask why. They also destroy the land, modify crops with chemicals, wipe out entire ecosystems to build cities, kill and eat any animal they choose, and build weapons of war and kill one another to get financial gain and power. Humans ask questions about God’s decisions as if he should be obliged to answer ridiculous questions like; why do people have to suffer, while humans are the ones who make the choices to disobey their design and purpose.
Looking over at Elder Gottlieb and Avatar, Elder Jäger responded. Considering what the two of you have been discussing, what comes to mind are the words of Jacob when he explained that the Spirit speaks “of things as they really are, and of things as they really will be” and he also explained that people can “look beyond the mark” which is a choice. People can get so lost in deep mysterious questions “which they cannot understand”, like running into a dark cave with no flashlight and no map.
Didn’t you and your best friend actually run into a cave without good lights or a map and nearly get yourselves killed?
Yes, but I was young and stupid. Let’s not make this about me when I am trying to make a point.
What is your conclusion Mr. Jäger?
The earth, the plants, the animals all obey their design and their purpose. Humans normally do not. That the evidence that we more God like. We ask questions and make choices that make no sense. We can choose a humble quiet peaceful life, or one burdened pursuits for wealth, power, and pleasure. We were placed on this earth with everything we would need, and yet we choose to ask the idiotic question, how can I get more?
Humans are following their instincts to get more and learn more, which is what drives ever complex technologies, like the internet and super computers to emerge.
“The internet is starting to connect the world. Society’s intelligence is merging over the internet, creating, in effect, a global mind that can do vastly more than any individual mind. There is no logical limit to how much our collective power will grow.”
Adams, Scott. God’s Debris a Thought Experiment. Andrews McMeel, 2013.
Now you are drifting into the realms of science fiction, where a society, like the Borg, becomes a single mind connected by a central computer. That makes for good science fiction, but as Elder Jäger mentioned, that’s looking way beyond the mark.
Science fiction generally proves true in science. Science begins with assumptions and hypotheses. The problem with assumptions and hypotheses is that hey can “lead us down the wrong path (Adams,2013)” How do we solve for Zeno’s Paradox known as ‘The Arrow’ when he argued that flying arrows are actually at rest?
Really? Really? To make a point about the problems with science, you are going back to a conversation, which may be fictional, between Aristotle and Zeno? I am student of physic, so I have read Aristotle’s Physics.
Mr. Gottlieb, you need to go back far enough in order to understand where we are today? The ancient Greeks asked questions that led to Newtonian classical physics, the theory of relativity, and quantum physics. One question which carries with it, a series of assumptions, can carry you in the wrong direction.
Or cause you to “look beyond the mark” which is what most people do. Our sun provides us with the light and energy that keep us alive. Our moon helps direct the tides in our oceans. Both the sun and the moon provide us with our times and seasons. While it may be interesting to learn about the vastness of space or the mysteries of molecules and atoms, we need to be careful to not look beyond the important things right in front of us.
How do you know that your mark is true? Imagine handing someone a compass that is damaged and a map that was incorrectly drawn. The person will think that they are going in the right direction to their destination, but they will end up in the wrong place.
Yes, that is what most people most people do. They follow maps that are not properly marked. They use compasses that to not point north. They spend too much time looking at distractions along the path, forgetting to keep their sights on the mark. You need the right map, compass, and mark to guide you to your destination.
And you believe that you have beaten all the odds and found the right map, compass, and confidently know the mark? Doesn’t that seem arrogant and very risky? What if you are wrong?