Is it possible to come up with a modern concept of G_d, based on 21st Century knowledge?

Posted on August 9, 2017 by David Lawrence Preston

What can we say about the Christian G_d that is taught in schools, worshipped in churches and referred to in religious broadcasts every day of the week?

It (if you are uncomfortable calling G_d ‘it’, I suggest you examine your religious programming) is the sole reason why the universe and everything in it exists and functions as it does.
It is everywhere, in everything and ever present at all times.
It is all knowing.
It can willfully intervene in the world and frequently does.
It can make things happen which defy the known laws of science and nature.
It can make things happen instantaneously, such as healing without going through the usual intermediate steps.
It knows all our innermost thoughts. It speaks to us individuals, and listens to us too.
We each have a personal relationship with it.
It is intimately concerned about our personal virtue and constantly watches us. At the end of our earthly lives it will judge us. Only those who meet its stringent criteria will be granted salvation. So will those who sincerely ask forgiveness for their wrongdoings and repent.
It loves us unconditionally.
We can ask it for what we want and, depending how well behaved we are, we will receive.
It is to be worshipped, obeyed, thanked and praised.
Although G_d is omnipotent, it has granted humans free will. We make our own choices, but if we choose unwisely we suffer the consequences.

You will have noticed that most of the conceptions of G_d were identified long ago, when humans were relatively ignorant about the world and the universe, limited to a narrow geographical area and guided largely by superstition. For example, the Biblical passages that first describe the Jewish G_d were written around 950-800 BCE, and the letters of Paul of Tarsus that conceptualised the Christian G_d around 54-60 CE.

Could we scientifically weigh up the evidence and make a rational, reasoned judgement? This has been tried, without success; there simply is no evidence for a being, entity or force matching these criteria.

And there probably never will be!

©David Lawrence Preston, 4.8.2017

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Is G_d an information field?

Posted on July 19, 2017 by David Lawrence Preston

Before Einstein, the world was thought to be a collection of atoms and molecules behaving according to certain inviolable ‘laws’. Space was exactly that – empty space, nothing there. Now we know that matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration and even space is not really empty: it is an inexhaustible potential that manifests in places as matter.

What appears to us to be solid matter is actually 99.9999% empty space: billions of tiny particles flying in formation, all held together by an invisible force field. Incredibly, when subatomic particles are studied in detail, they do not actually exist. They are not particles like, say, particles of dust. Rather, they appear and disappear millions of times a second and move at inestimable speeds. Moreover, physicists state that we cannot assume they continue to exist when they are not being observed.

Everything, including us, came out of a formless world of energy. Somewhere in that field of energy is something that determines what we are and what we will become – an information source. Information is everywhere. It’s in every wave and every particle; every atom and every cell. There’s information we see (printed information, TV, internet, GPS) and information we don’t see. Wherever we are, we are surrounded by and infused with information. We may not always have the means to access it but it’s still there, just as a person without their mobile phone on cannot access a signal.

This is hardly a new idea. Thousands of years ago the Indian Rishis knew that matter is not ultimate reality and in his ‘Theory of Forms’ 2,500 years ago, Plato argued that behind every physical thing is the idea of that thing (i.e. information), and it is the idea that is real. The New Testament Letter to the Hebrews states that all visible things come from the invisible and are dependent on the unseen for their existence. More recently Max Planck (1858 – 1947), the theoretical physicist who originated quantum theory, wrote:

‘All matter originates and exists only by virtue of a force… We must assume behind this force the existence of a conscious and intelligent Mind. This Mind is the matrix of all matter.’

What exactly is this conscious and intelligent force, this stream of life? Frankly, I don’t know, and nor do I believe anyone who says they know for sure. As Max Planck wrote, ‘Science cannot solve the ultimate mystery of nature. And that is because, in the last analysis, we ourselves are a part of the mystery that we are trying to solve.’

We are getting closer to solving the mystery; the only question is just how close will we get. Every generation, scientific knowledge advances and spiritual awareness unfolds. But what if the entity described as G_d were really an information field as recognised by science? The ultimate information field that provides the blueprint for the universe and everything in it? That constantly communicates with us and responds to our communication, reflecting our thoughts and words? Now there’s an idea!

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There’s no such thing as evil

Posted on March 25, 2016 by David Lawrence Preston

If there is only one power working in the universe – as Christians, Jews and Moslems believe – and that power is good, then surely evil has no inherent substance!

Of course there are all manner of undesirable things appear in the world, but these do not create themselves and nor do they define themselves. They are simply a PERCEIVED absence of good things like beauty, peace, kindness and love.

Only our THINKING makes evil appear to be an independent force in our lives. Consider this: there is no such thing as darkness, only absence of light. We can have dim light, ordinary light, bright light…. but darkness is no light. Only light is real.

Similarly, evil is the complete absence of good. It has no substance and cannot create of its own accord. Would an intelligent creator build war, poverty, cruelty and unhappiness into its design? No, these are human-made, the result of stupidity, ignorance and selfishness.

The Universe is neither good nor evil, but neutral. It is as it is. We make of it what we will.

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David Lawrence Preston

Dedicated to creating a kinder, happier, healthier world

Tag Archives: G_d

Is it possible to come up with a modern concept of G_d, based on 21st Century knowledge?

Is G_d an information field?

There’s no such thing as evil