The Essay
GOD DID IT!
A SPIRITUAL BELIEF DRAWN
FROM SCIENCE
INTRODUCTION
1/2/04 updated
April 25, 2006
Do
you ever wonder if there really is a God- with whom
you can feel a relationship?
Do your
prayers get answered?
Why do
bad things sometimes happen to good people?
Do you
ever wonder what caused the world to exist and to work
the way it does?
Are you
interested in how scientific considerations might bear
on such questions?
As a
scientist who had trouble accepting religious
teachings in view of scientific facts, I searched for
evidence in the design and operation of the world as
science has revealed it. The search revealed
unmistakable signs of ingenuity in the design of
everything in the world. We don't ordinarily recognize
those signs because we take them for granted without
asking how they originated.
This
paper presents a theoretical concept for combining our
scientific understanding of the source and design of
the universe with our awareness of a spiritual
dimension in our lives. Most theories of the origin
and functioning of the earth and life do not resolve
the different explanations offered by "natural"
scientific theories, as taught in schools, and the
religious statements that "God created heaven and
Earth" taught by religions. These seemingly polar
opposites are actually resolvable and coexistent. This
theoretical concept offers a resolution of the science
versus religion dilemma by proposing a plausible
"working" theory and credible, verifiable evidence for
an intelligent Creator of our existence.
EVIDENCE
FOR BELIEF IN A CREATOR
There
is overwhelming evidence, not commonly recognized, of
astonishing ingenuity[1]
in the design, creation and operation of the universe,
nature and our lives. A key point of the theory of
this paper is that there is a cause for
everything--whether we have identified it or not. Thus
the world's existence and its ingenious design
revealed by science require a cause. This BELIEF holds
that the ultimate or primary cause is an ingenious
designer-creator. There is nothing else known with the
ingenuity and power to be the cause of the design and
creation of the world.
In many
court trials circumstantial evidence is taken as a
basis for judgment. The evidence of ingenuity in
the world's design is overwhelming. Even though it is
circumstantial and not proof, the evidence justifies
the belief that there must be a transcendent,
intelligent, powerful 'something' that purposely chose
to create this particular form of universe, from the
broadly (but not completely) accepted 'Big Bang'
theory of an explosion that produced:
·
all the atomic elements
·
the scientific laws such as chemistry, physics and
biology which assembled the atoms into this amazing
universe
·
the patterns of the universe's operations such as
life, growth and evolution that produced-
·
the plants, animals and humans living in it.
Name
the cause what you will: Ingenious Designer, Primary
Cause, Intelligent Source, Creator, or God.2
This
intelligent source does not micro-manage the world
today but, while indirectly guiding the overall
direction of this 'world in progress', it has given it
a degree of self-management by incorporating
variations, chance, inherent capabilities and limited
free-will in many areas. These features make life
enjoyable and free, explain some random happenings and
facilitate progress toward a more perfect world.
Anything that can bring such an amazing universe and
living creatures such as humans into being from
nothing, starting with the "Big Bang", must have
super-human intelligence and power.
Although this theoretical concept is drawn from
scientific considerations it still affirms and
reinforces the underlying, if not literal, assertion
of most religions that there is a God- a Creator-
'whose presence can be discerned in all that exists'
(Espinoza). Thus it allows believers to practice their
religion, but on the basis of its symbolic, not
necessarily its literal, meaning.
EVIDENCE FOR THIS THEORY
It is
beyond the scope of this paper to point out all the
examples of intelligent design because they are
everywhere we look. Let a few examples illustrate the
point.
The world in which we live
provides convincing and awesome evidence of
intelligence and imagination in creation. But because
it is the only place we've ever known it's hard to
appreciate how ingenious each feature really is.
To help
recognize this, try to see life from a new viewpoint.
Set aside the way you view the things you have always
taken for granted--such as our earth and our everyday
pattern of existence. Close your eyes and try to
imagine the situation from the perspective of Creator
before this universe existed. Realize that billions of
years ago there was nothing-no stars, no earth, no
air, no time, and no space that we are now occupying
Nothing! Yet today you can open your
eyes and see all that and infinitely more!!
How
would one even begin to create all this? Don't
you get a feeling of awe at the result?
Consider the overwhelming evidence found in the
immensity of the cosmos and the incredibly complex yet
ingeniously interdependent relationships in nature,
which make it work so smoothly
The
more you study science and learn the principles and
methods by which the world works, and experience the
intellectual, emotional and spiritual aspects of our
existence, the more you come to realize just how
ingenious, awesome and, yes, miraculous life really
is.
Most of
the world's design features or characteristics are
absolutely vital to the formation and operation of the
universe and life. This fact offers compelling
evidence for a thinking source that had knowledge of
what design would work well, and also had the power to
bring it all into being. If any one of the vital parts
had been missing there would be no universe as we know
it.
A
complete list of these vital elements would seem
endless but some are discussed in this essay. A
sampling includes:
· the
physical laws of science
· the
Big Bang
· quarks
· electrons
· protons
· neutrons
· the
so-called 'strong' and 'weak' forces that hold
together the nuclei of atoms
· positive
and negative polarities that attract opposites
· electron
orbits that make atomic structure possible
· Ability
of atoms to bond together by sharing electrons to form
the large molecules and compounds of life.
The
list continues with:
· the
gravity that holds everything together, and along with
centrifugal force, holds the earth and other planets
in orbit around their suns
· the
atomic elements such as oxygen, hydrogen, carbon etc.
· water,
sunlight, rain and the key molecules such as
chlorophyll, DNA and proteins needed for life
· all
the processes of cell division, digestion,
reproduction and evolution.
Each
one of these and many more are essential for the
existence of today's world.
Can you
imagine such an assembly of vital elements just
'happening' to be on hand without an intelligent,
reasoning cause?
The Big Bang theory
apparently has some inconsistencies but is accepted by
most scientists. It posits an explosion about fifteen
billion years ago at a single tiny spot (known to
mathematical physicists as a singularity) with an
almost infinite amount of concentrated energy or
material, which was contained by an almost infinite
gravitational force.
Moments
after, the universe consisted of photons, electrons,
neutrinos, protons and some neutrons. Minutes later
cooling condensed these particles into helium and
hydrogen.
Millions of years later gravity condensed this matter
into galaxies and stars. Some of these stars fused
their hydrogen into more helium and eventually 'burned
out', collapsed and exploded as supernovae spewing out
all the heavier elements such as carbon, oxygen and
iron needed for life. These in time condensed as more
stars and planets such as our earth.
So from
something tiny at the time of the Big Bang were
created all the diverse yet ordered and interrelated
entities we observe today: the cosmic universe with
billions of stars, galaxies etc. expanding in space
and containing our solar system with our own sun and
amazing, life-giving, hospitable Earth.
Consider the fortuitous availability
and interactions of the earth's vital air, water,
carbon dioxide, chlorophyll, fertile soil and sunlight
needed to produce the food, fuel and temperature for
survival; and the complex scientific laws of nature's
behavior, including evolution, that have helped
produce the phenomena of life, growth and
reproduction.
More
specifically, recognize that the entire universe is a
system of interdependent, cycling constituents:
·
the galaxies apparently expanding forever
·
the planet earth rotating on its axis for day and
night and around the sun for the seasons
·
water cycling from oceans to clouds to ground to
plants (powered by sunlight) to animals and humans
· carbon,
hydrogen, oxygen and other chemicals cycling from
ground to plants to humans to dust again!
· the
residual energy from the Big Bang, residing in the
nuclei of atoms, the chemical bonds of
compounds, the order, momentum and heat of the
universe' constituents etc. Order, such as in living
things, requires energy for its maintenance. Thus
plants require sunlight and humans need food and die
without it. It has been theorized that when the
universe's energy, which is continually decreasing as
heat is radiated to space, reaches zero, this universe
will cease to exist as such.
Practically anything we observe today can seem like a
miracle if we try to imagine how to design and create
it, starting from scratch: forests teaming with trees,
insects, animals and humans; birds, flowers; beautiful
sunsets. -What a production!
Physicist Chat Raymo3
cites Teilhard de Chardin, Jesuit scientist, as
"insisting that the surest way to know God is through
his creation, and the truest knowledge of creation is
that provided by contemporary science".
The atomic elements,
molecules and compounds that comprise the earth and
all the other planets are formed from the atoms
produced by the Big Bang and subsequent condensation
processes. Some mechanism had to combine the atoms
into the thousands of different compounds of the world
we know, such as:
*
various proteins of our bodies
*
drugs that cure us
*
cellulose and lignin of trees and plants, etc.
How
does this ingenious and vital process work?
Organic
molecules usually consist of the atomic elements:
carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and lesser amounts of
nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, etc. The way these
atoms are positioned and bonded to their neighboring
atoms in a molecule determines their behavior and use
in all the processes of life.
One
atom, carbon, has the unusual ability to bond to
itself and thus can form long chains.
These
chains can branch out by bonding to other atoms such
as hydrogen and oxygen or more carbon to produce the
whole family of organic chemicals.
How
does this bonding take place? Consider the
structure of the atom. All atoms from the
smallest, hydrogen, to one of the largest natural
atoms, say uranium, have a central core, the nucleus
of which consists of positively charged protons and
usually neutrons with no charge. The larger the
atom the more protons and neutrons it has.
Far
outside the nucleus, in atomic dimensions, negatively
charged electrons, equal in number to the positive
protons in the nucleus, whirl around the nucleus in
several concentric orbits, of fixed capacity for
electrons that have discrete energy levels.
Bigger atoms have more electrons and orbits. The
outermost orbit contains the electrons that can form
bonds with other atoms to form the big molecules
needed for life.
Atoms
are very stable when their outer orbits are full.
Atoms of inert gasses such as neon and krypton have
full outer orbits and thus are stable and rarely bond.
Atoms
without full orbits bond with other atoms by sharing
enough outer electrons to fill their orbits to achieve
stability and become molecules. If instead of
sharing, some atoms that may be only slightly negative
may "steal" an electron from a slightly more negative
atom and become strongly negative, leaving the other
more positive. The pair then consists of
oppositely charged ions that attract each other,
because positives attract negatives, and they form
ionic compounds such as the common table salt.
When
all the atoms are metallic, say iron, copper and
aluminum, they hold together by contributing all their
outer electrons to the general pool of the group.
The pooled electrons are free to flow through the
metal body such as an electric wire to conduct
electricity. The rest of each metal atom becomes
part of the crystal structure of the metal and obtains
its stability by sharing the free electrons with all
the other atoms
All
atoms and molecules seem to have an inherent, built-in
self- organizing tendency to find a stable
configuration and find it by random migrations.
But how did the stable configurations and the process
of migration "happen" to exist?
What
was the original cause of this effective and vital
feature of our existence? The evidence cited
here points to something intelligent, superhuman and
powerful.
THE
LAWS OF NATURE "Did they just happen"?
The
principles and relationships we call laws of nature
that define and control the formation and operation of
this complex but organized universe, are themselves
marvels of intelligent design. Their elegant
simplicity and inter-connectedness can be seen in the
mathematical forms of the laws" equations".
Thus
the very simple equation F=M A, when properly applied,
can tell the force F needed to Accelerate a body, say
your car, having a mass M to say 60 miles per hour in
a certain number of seconds. How can something so
simple define something so complex?
The
simple equation E=M C (squared) describes the energy E
obtained in a nuclear reactor from the consumption of
a mass M of fissionable uranium, where C is the speed
of light. Amazing simplicity!
Is the
simplicity of these and all the other simple equations
representing the complex processes of nature, just
accidentally simple-or examples of intelligent design?
Another
observation dubbed the "Anthropic Principle" has noted
that many seemingly arbitrary and unrelated constants
in the laws of physics are in fact by mysterious
coincidence precisely the values needed to have a
universe capable of producing life. Even the
most minor variation in the values of certain
fundamental forces of physics would have completely
eliminated the possibility of our existence. For
example:
· If the
strength of
gravity had been slightly weaker relative to
electromagnetism, stars such as our sun would be much
smaller, burn faster and not support life as we know
it.
· If the
nuclear 'weak'
force, one of those bonding the nucleus of an atom
together, were slightly weaker relative to gravity,
all the hydrogen in the universe would have been
turned to helium and there would be no water anywhere.
· If the
nuclear 'strong'
force, which also bonds the nucleus, were 2 percent
stronger, protons, and therefore atoms, would not have
formed; or if it were 5 percent less there would be no
stars.
· If the
difference in
mass between a proton and neutron were not exactly as
it is, all neutrons would have been protons or
vice-versa and no chemistry or life would exist.
·
If ice
were not lighter
than liquid water, a property traceable to unique
properties of hydrogen, ice wouldn't float, so oceans
and lakes and rivers would freeze from the bottom up.
·
If the
ratio of the strong force to electromagnetism were not
exactly
as it is, carbon-the building block of all living
things-would not have been produced at the center of
stars from beryllium and helium during the tiny window
of opportunity - a micro, micro, micro second long.
And the list goes on! 4,5,6
So the
picture of creation seems hardly one of random events.
Rather, it suggests (but does not 'prove' in the
scientific sense) that the right conditions for the
creation of the intelligently designed universe, life
and human beings must have been intelligently
conceived.
One
might argue that an omnipotent Creator could have
structured the laws and constants in any fashion and
simply 'willed' them to work. But in that case the
laws that we discover would still support the reality
we experience and be no less convincing as evidence of
creative intelligence and power.
NOTE:
While science has explained in words and equations
most of the laws that govern what happens in this
world, there is much we don't know, especially at the
fundamental level. For example,
·
Why are
the laws
structured as they are? Is it on purpose to produce
the world, as we know it?
·
Just
how does gravity work? We know things attract
each other in proportion to their mass but how?
· How did
energy get
converted to mass at the Big Bang? We know that
certain amounts of mass are produced by a certain
amount of energy (the famous E= MC squared) but just
how does that take place?
We are
astonished and humbled at the superhuman ingenuity of
all that we know and don't know of such matters.
Humans are arguably the crowning example of ingenuity
in Creation!
Consider you, your human body, composed of ashes from
dead stars, designed with:
· eyes
to see the world and convey information to your brain
·
vocal chords and tongues with which to talk and sing
· legs
to transport you
· arms
and hands to perform your myriad tasks
· digestive
system to provide you with energy from food
· numberless
biological processes in your body, to nourish, grow,
and guard you
· emotions
to provide human pleasures, love and danger
warnings
· sex
organs for producing your offspring
· brain
to receive signals from your sensory organs; direct
your body's functions; think analytically and
logically (sometimes!) to gain knowledge and
understanding; conceive new ideas and patterns of
living; solve problems; create technology of the
modern world, beauty in the arts, and much more!
· intuition
and reasoning power, the uniquely subtle qualities
that represent a high order of intelligent design.
They tell us that all of creation could not have just
'happened', by an infinite number of lucky
coincidences throughout time. It is much more credible
to believe that some intelligent entity devised it
all.
We
intuitively seek an explanation for the mystery of
life and search for that elusive meaning beyond our
everyday experience. Apparently we were created
with that awareness of the existence of a larger
meaning to our lives and we seek our role in it.
All of history's religions bear evidence of a human
yearning for a spiritual dimension. We've been given
the intelligence to discern it if we seek it with an
open mind and desire.
Thomas
Jefferson wrote .It is impossible for the human mind
not to believe that there is, in all this, design,
cause and effect-up to an ultimate cause, a fabricator
of all things from matter and motion, their preserver
and regulator'.7
THE
HUMAN MIRACLE OF BIRTH
Witnessing or being a part of the ingenious birthing
process can be a deeply moving, truly spiritual
experience. How in the world could such a profoundly
creative event have been devised? (conceived?!)
Producing a new human being that will have its own
unique opportunity for a happy and potentially
significant life to live is a sobering but exciting
experience!
In the
complex process of creating a baby the fittest male
sperm, containing the donor's characteristic genes,
must compete with others to find its way up through
the female's slightly hostile acidic uterus to meet
the egg coming down from the ovary. It then must
penetrate the protective layer of the egg, find and
join the egg's cell to form the first fertilized cell
with its own unique genes.
That
cell then starts dividing and duplicating repeatedly.
Individual parts of the organism start to form,
integrate together and grow to full term. The final
result is ejected as a baby, ready to start breathing
and feeding on its own.
The
antibodies that form in our immune systems represent
an ingenious process that fights invading germs. Our
bodies produce their molecular structure to conform in
a hand-in-glove fashion to the invading molecule's
shape. As a key fits in a lock the antibody molecule
attaches itself to the foreign body and neutralizes
it, making us immune to that disease. How did such
amazingly powerful mechanisms and all the other
processes in our bodies and in nature come about?
A
SIMPLE LOOKING LEAF
Similar
astonishing power is found in chlorophyll, the green
substance in growing vegetation. It is able to capture
photons from sunlight to power the reaction of carbon
dioxide in the air with water to produce not only the
oxygen we breathe, but most of the organic matter we
need to sustain life. It provides us with all the
grains, vegetables, grass and trees we need for food,
clothing, and wood and it once produced the ancient
vegetation that may have become our fossil fuel.
To
simplify here a very complex process of
photosynthesis, the chlorophyll molecule in leaves
captures sunlight energy (reflecting back the green
color). The chlorophyll's electrons, activated by the
sun, pass their electrical energy to two intermediate
molecules named NADPH and ATP. Enzymes split
water molecules into hydrogen ions and free oxygen;
the latter diffuses out of the leaf to the air which
living species breathe. Meantime carbon dioxide
diffusing into the leaf from the air links with
another intermediate, RuBP. After several more
steps all these reactants produce a molecule of
glucose while the intermediates are restored to start
the cycle over again. The glucose and its derivatives
become the source of most of the world's needs for
energy.
--- And
all this takes place in a simple looking leaf!
EVOLUTION,
the process first described by Charles Darwin offers
clear evidence of ingenuity in the design of living
things. Darwin's evolutionary theory posited that
natural variations in genes, called mutations, produce
variations in an organism's ability to survive and
procreate in the various changing environments. By
this theory, where advantageous for survival, the
fittest members of a species survive to pass their
genes on to their offspring. Thus they cause a gradual
evolution toward fitness for survival of life and
humans from the amoebic soup of pre-historic times to
the highly developed, living species of today.
It seems significant (and fortunate for us) that one
branch of development has been toward higher order,
intelligence and ability, all of which favors survival
in a competitive environment.
How
does evolution work? It is complicated. Start
with the fact that no two members of any species are
ever exactly alike, even twins. Cloned animals these
days aren't identical even though they may have
identical genes. Historically it was the fittest of
the species that tended to survive best
.
Some of
the variations between individuals are produced by the
random effects of the environment or experience on the
individuals ('as the twig is bent'). But some are
caused by mutations of the code of the DNA molecule in
the individual's original genetic make-up.
DNA
(desoxyribonucleic acid) is the key element in the
process of evolution and indirectly in all the
processes of life. It is the molecule found on the
chromosomes in the nuclei of cells of organisms--both
animal and vegetable. In a very complex, ingenious
process DNA helps determine an organism's identity,
structure and behavior. It is so unique to that
individual organism that criminologists use it to
establish the definite identity of a person.
It
consists of a long ladder-shaped molecule, twisted
like a spiral staircase (a double helix). The sidebars
are chains of desoxyribose phosphate and the 'rungs'
or links are four types of basic chemicals dubbed AGTC
(for four nitrogen-containing bases: adenine, guanine,
thymine and cytosine)
The
sequential order of these different chemical links,
embedded in selected segments of the DNA called genes,
provides unique codes. The DNA transmits the codes of
the genes through an intermediary molecule (RNA) to
one or more proteins to establish the coded sequence
of linked amino acids of those proteins that are
forming the cell.
It is
the uniquely coded proteins that actually provide the
individualized and sometimes-inherited traits of the
different parts of an organism- e.g., skin color,
body-build, health, deafness, family resemblance etc.
It seems as if the code instructed the protein as to
its role in the organism. Just how that role is
performed remains an intriguing puzzle.
In an
added complication in the process of transmitting the
code to the protein, enzymes often cut and
'alternatively splice' some of the original DNA's
genes to produce spontaneously a new gene. These new
genes are the source of many of the unexplained
mutations found in nature.
The
fact that the genetic mutations of evolution are
produced at all and that some mutations have features
that are superior and best fitted to survive has to be
viewed as a very effective and practical concept - and
ingenious. And, that the general pattern of
their operation has resulted in the emergence of human
beings can seem strongly suggestive of a purposeful
design (at least to a human!). Coding is where an
intelligent something might intervene to insure the
availability of superior genes for adaptation of
species and development of the human race.
Archeological studies show that evolution did not start until DNA was created and showed up in the fossil remains. This highlights the key role of DNA in the creation of the world. DNA has even been called the "God molecule".
The sudden
mysterious appearance of eyes in the long
archeological history of the evolution of animals
could also have been the result of divine, purposeful
intervention.
The
evolutionary process requires the presence of all the
proper chemicals for:
·
the side bars and the rungs of the DNA
·
the intermediate RNA, (somewhat similar to DNA but it
has uracil in place of thymine)
·
the enzymes
·
the amino acids for the proteins etc.
·
and the means of coding.
It
seems highly significant that if any of these
components of the evolutionary process are missing,
evolution does not take place.
What
causes this fortuitous assembly of these components?
The prevailing theory is that they are synthesized in
the body by enzymes. How ingenious! Could the same
original cause of the synthesis also guide the coding
to insure the availability of the 'fittest' design?
It
seems inconceivable that a mindless molecule such as
DNA could have designed and produced itself and the
ingenious operations it performs. It is as if
something intelligent had programmed everything with
intuition or knowledge of what to do!
In a
very readable book, G.L.Schroeder has postulated that
God's wisdom permeates the world.[8]
In the
post-Darwinian world there has been an assumption that
evolution is a 'natural' thing-just part of the way
things work. But again, its ingenious complexity
argues for it to be recognized as the product of
purposeful and reasoned consideration by something
intelligent.
It seems that an intelligent source guides life's progress and direction by
designing the mutants in DNA to cause individuals to have certain
characteristics and abilities. In other words, the creator works through humans.
THE
LIMITS OF EVOLUTION
In
discussions of the origin of life and the world, it
should be recognized that evolution is only one part
of the creation process, not a complete explanation of
everything in life. For example, it does not
explain the origin of the DNA molecule itself. Nor
does evolution deal with the source of all the non-living
things in the world, such as:
·
the Big Bang
·
the universe
·
the existence of physical properties such as the
negative charge of the electron
·
the amazing structure of the atom
·
the earth
·
the minerals
·
the carbon, water, sunlight etc. that produce the
living things of life.
Furthermore there are some abrupt changes and puzzling
gaps in the long archeological history of evolution
that suggest the possibility of some sort of
purposeful intervention. One example cited above is
the sudden appearance of eyes in several species
simultaneously in the course of archeological history.
BRAINS
Our
human brains make us intelligent, reasoning,
self-conscious and emotional creatures. They are one
of the most complex examples of ingenious design on
earth. They process information, use the gift of free
will to make decisions, day in, day out. They
are involved in most of the body's functions from
seeing, talking and moving to automatic control of
unconscious bodily processes. They make possible our
development of knowledge and the language by which to
share it for progress.
Their
construction and functioning are so complicated yet
efficient as to defy full understanding----at least so
far. But studies of injured brains along with magnetic
resonance images (MRI) and stimulation-response
behavior have thrown some light on where
certain functions take place. For example, in the
jelly-like tissue of the brain it has been shown that:
· the
frontal lobe is involved in
speech;
· the cerebrum, the largest part of the
brain, receives signals from all the sensory organs
and commands the actions of muscles and glands;
· the cerebral cortex (part of the cerebrum) is involved
in seeing, hearing, feeling emotions, thinking and
remembering;
· the cerebellum coordinates body movements; and
· the brain stem, the most primitive part of the brain,
controls
breathing and blood pressure.
Communication between these different parts of the
brain takes place through interconnecting nerves and
some cooperation seems to be involved.
But
there is so much we don't know about the brain's
operation. Just what goes on when our brains perform
their myriad tasks? We know our brains have about 100
billion nerve cells (neurons and neuroglia), and 100
trillion synaptic connections networking from the
brain stem at the top of the spine throughout the
brain. The neurological cells account for half the
brain's weight and help develop and support the
neurons.
The
neurons interact with each other by passing and
storing electrical signals and electrochemical
molecules (e.g. dopamine and serotonin) from neuron to
neuron selectively at the synaptic joints where they
meet. Experience seems to help contribute to the ever-
changing patterns of neuron connections. Many
thousands of neurons are involved in the simplest of
tasks. And it all works-beautifully!
The
brain's ability to produce experts is particularly
fascinating. The brain apparently condenses all the
learning from experience and observations of a skilled
practitioner in a given field into unconscious,
integrated conclusions, judgment or knowledge. It is
that judgment that qualifies him to be characterized
as an expert in his field.
But
many mysteries remain.
How for
example could proteins be coded to build the different
parts of the brain, which perform in such a complex
manner?
And
just how does the brain learn its functions?
Just
what is a thought?
And
what is the role of emotions in the brain's functions?
How do
impulses from the eyes get transformed into scenes in
the "mind's eye"?
It is
hard to imagine that the brain developed its complex
structure and functions without guidance.
NERVES
Our
bodies contain a million miles or so of bio-electric
"cables" called nerves. No creature from amoeba to
human can function without them. The brain
itself is a mass of nerves.
All
body parts communicate with each other through the
nerves. This makes possible the rapid, integrated,
body- control so typical of animal behavior.
Information on everything the nerves sense, from
sight, smell, touch and sound to pain, pleasure and
thoughts, is conveyed to the nerve centers in the
spinal cord and brain for further directions. Other
nerves then relay this processed response to the
appropriate nerve or muscle fiber for action.
To help
you understand the amazingly complex and ingenious
design and operation of our nerves, consider this
description:
Each
nerve usually contains many insulated neuron fibers
that individually conduct the message impulses
generated in the many parts of the body. A nerve is
thus much like a telephone cable containing multiple
communication pathways.
Each
neuron in the nerve consists of three main parts. At
one end are many "dendrite" receptor fingers which
generate or receive messages. Then there is the main
cell body containing the nucleus that processes the
messages and creates a response. Last is the extended
arm, the "axon", (which may reach three feet in length
for the nerve that that runs from one's finger tip to
one's brain). The axon has multiple terminals that
transmit the processed message to the multiple
receptors in the next adjoining nerve or muscle.
Curiously, the terminals don't quite touch the next
receptor, so the terminal has to emit a special liquid
neurotransmitter, made and stored by the neuron cell
that bridges the gap in a millisecond to complete the
transfer of the signal!
Each
neuron and its axon in the nerve are covered with a
two-molecule-thick sheath of myelin protein,
which not only protects the neuron's signals, but
helps generate and transmit the signals to the end of
the neuron.
To make
this possible, porous nodes, or pores, are spaced at
short intervals along the axon's covering sheath.
These pores contain two types of channels or pores.
One type is designed to open on signal to permit the
selective passage of positively charged sodium atoms
(ions) from the fluid outside the neuron into the
center of the neuron's axon. The other pore permits
passage of potassium ions, either in or out. These
pores block the passage of everything else including
large molecules and negative chlorine ions.
By very
selective pumping action, molecules of the neuron
sheath are able to produce and maintain different
concentrations of the electrically charged sodium and
potassium ions inside and outside the neuron. When the
neuron is at rest, the inside has a higher
concentration of potassium and a lower concentration
of sodium (and negative chlorine ion) than exist
outside of the neuron. These concentration differences
produce a voltage gradient across the neuron cell
wall, with the inside measuring a minus 70 millivolts,
relative to the outside.
The way
each neuron cell sends signals is startlingly clever.
When a neuron's dendrite sensors are stimulated by an
incoming voltage pulse from another nerve, or by a
physical signal such as elevated temperature from a
hot stove, it routes the signal through the neuron's
axon arm. Upon receiving the signal pulse the axon
opens its nearest sodium pore to allow a pulse of
positive sodium ions to rush through the axon sheath
into the axon's center. When the first pore opens, it
triggers the next and succeeding pores to open and
thus creates an avalanche of excess positive sodium
ions along the length of the neuron's axon.
This
positive avalanche raises the inside cell voltage to
plus 50 millivolts. It is this sharp voltage change
that constitutes the signal pulse that activates
action downstream. It travels the length of the nerve
to the end terminals where it triggers release of the
neurotransmitter which bridges the gap to the next
nerve or muscle fiber. And all this takes place in a
few milliseconds!
After
delivering its message the nerve opens the
potassium pores and also restarts the ion-pumping
action to reestablish the original (resting)
concentration differences and voltage gradient, in
order to prevent accidental repetition of the signal!
Could
all this complex nerve structure and amazingly
effective functioning have occurred spontaneously,
without any guidance? What wisdom is at work?
DNA in our genes certainly is responsible for passing
the design on to succeeding generations but where did
the original design concept come from which first
programmed the DNA with the design and pattern of
behavior?
CHEMICAL SYNTHESIS
Synthesis of chemicals occurs widely in animals
bodies, which need hundreds of different complex
chemicals to grow and function properly. A few
familiar ones include:
·
varieties of proteins and DNA for building the body
·
hormones to help the body function
·
hemoglobin to carry oxygen in the blood
·
adrenaline for stimulation
·
dopamine for providing pleasure
·
electrochemical neurotransmitter compounds that carry
signals between nerves in the brain
The
synthesis of such chemicals is said to be performed in
the brain itself and elsewhere. Just how the various
syntheses take place is not fully established but
enzymes are frequently involved. How did it come about
that the body can produce such a variety of chemicals
that meet its needs?
UNPREDICTABLE CHANCE AND UNCERTAINTY
occur in many complex systems of everyday life, such
as the luck of birth, health, weather; other people's
thoughts and actions, chance happenings, accidents,
economics, and politics, What role does chance play in
our lives? It ingeniously limits our control of
the future and to a certain extent our responsibility.
Thus it can induce humility and acceptance of forces
beyond our control. It also offers an interesting,
balanced variety in our lives and prevents predictable
routine. It challenges us to deal with the
uncertainty, including the bad things in life, and to
adapt and make the best of it.
Einstein once quipped that God does not throw dice,
but it appears that God did set up the game of chance
for us to play. It may be that the area of chance is
where an Intelligent Source could intervene to affect
outcomes, without breaking any natural laws.
We can
at least pray for:
·
that intervention
·
wisdom to make the right choices in life
·
strength to endure bad luck
·
ability to make the best of the new opportunities
offered
On
balance, uncertainty seems preferable to a life of
predictable certainty.
SELF
MANAGEMENT and innate ability seem to be an
intelligent feature of everything including living
organic species. For example, humans are
self-organizing; plants are able to seek sunlight and
fertile soil; animals are able to find food and mates.
"Every species has enough intuitive capability to be
able to perform its role in life and survive". Even
complex "chaos" systems such as turbulent water and
weather patterns show some self-organizing
capabilities.
Human
capabilities and accomplishments represent arguably
the strongest evidence of intelligence in creation.
Consider the advance civilization has made since
humans first appeared on earth: in knowledge,
understanding and skill in all fields from science,
technology and medicine to human relations,
organization and the arts. The unique genes in our DNA
makes this possible.
Our
intangible attributes such as emotional feelings,
conscious awareness of our existence, instincts,
creativity, artistry, inspiration, capacity for
compassion and love add to the list of life's
wonderful features.
Scientific evidence suggests the mechanism for
generation of some emotions may involve the secretion
of chemicals in the body. Oxytocin for example
can make rats cuddle and seems related to the
generation of family love-and thus to spreading the
genes that will insure survival. Adrenaline
stimulates energy and porphyrins ease pain. Some
individual human attributes or tendencies can be
traced to the effect of inherited genetic DNA but no
explanation for the other attributes has been
established. Whatever the mechanisms however, their
design, purpose and function seem amazingly
Providential. We are a tribute to our Designer.
Indirect but supporting evidence of creation's
ingenuity can be found in the observation that when
one has a firm conviction of the existence of an
all-pervading creator; one can seek and find real
benefits from that faith. These may include:
·
the comforting feeling of companionship with God's
presence
·
the opportunity to share one's innermost thoughts and
concerns with him
·
the exciting awareness of being a part of God's plan
·
recognition of purpose and meaning in life
·
appreciation of all the ingenious features of our
existence
·
better health, parenting and human relations.
So the
evidence is all around us if we can but recognize it!
As Sir John Templeton said, "Humans searching for
evidence of God is much like a wave on an ocean
searching for evidence that the ocean exists".
QUESTIONS
Even
when you are convinced that a kind, caring God exists
you may wonder about some of the questions people have
always struggled with, and what can be said about them
here?
1.
Why do scientists seem to avoid discussion of religion
and the evidence for God?
For one
thing, established religions are often laden with
supernatural claims that defy rational, scientific
principles. And often, scientists tend to consider
their discoveries as the adequate, immediate
explanatory cause and do not pursue the question of
the original cause for that explanation.
Yet
many people who are scientifically trained to search
for explanations and causes for everything in life do
tend to believe in a spiritually transcendent source
of life, but they cannot fully prove it professionally
and therefore avoid discussing it. Basic research
scientists tend to concentrate their interest in
specialized areas where their kind of controlled
experimental study of objective things may be able to
make discoveries. They avoid subjective areas of
philosophy and religion where such a possibility is
not likely.
A
growing number of particularly eminent scientists
however have alluded to the theoretical existence of
an intelligent creative force behind our existence.
For example:
Einstein:
"I believe in a God who reveals himself in the
harmony of all that exists, but not in a God who
concerns himself with the fate and actions of
men".[9]
"Science without religion is lame. Religion
without science is blind". (The latter quotation is
from Newsweek, 7/20/98 reference.)
Paul Davies, Professor of Mathematical
Physics, University of Adelaide, Australia said
[10] there is "powerful evidence that there is
something going on behind it all" (i.e. the universe).
"The impression of design is overwhelming'. The
universe is "no minor byproduct of mindless,
purposeless forces. We are truly meant to be
here". By
means of science, we can truly see into the mind of
God.
Stephen
Hawking, eminent
physicist:
"If we do discover a complete theory,
(of the universe and life) it should in time be
understandable in broad principle by everyone, not
just a few scientists. Then we shall all,
philosophers, scientists, and just ordinary people, be
able to take part in the discussion of why it is that
we and the universe exist. If we find the answer to
that, it would be the ultimate triumph of human
reason-for then we would truly know the mind of
God".[11]
Edward
O. Wilson, famous
biologist:
"The existence of a Cosmological God
who created the universe (as envisioned by deism) is
possible, and may eventually be settled, perhaps by
some form of material evidence".[12]
2. HOW DID BELIEF IN GOD UNFOLD OVER THE
RECORDED AGES?
In the
pre-Christian era belief in a creator was laden with
superstition and multiple gods.
An
early Christian belief held that God created
everything from nothing (ex nihilo) and continued to
control everything.
Then in
the 14th century St. Thomas Aquinas theorized that
reason aids faith; that God's existence can be proved
by human reason--for example by noting the order
existing in the universe's design and the principle of
cause and effect.
All
that was before science started to make its
discoveries that, since Galileo's systematic
observations of gravity in the 16th century, Sir Isaac
Newton's laws of motion in the 17th and Charles
Darwin's theory of evolution of life in the 19th
century, explained how the world "really" works.
But in
discovering the laws of the universe's behavior,
science inadvertently threw out the "baby" of awe and
spirituality with the "bath water" of ignorance, doubt
and superstition.
The
average person back then seemed not to care that an
explanation of how things work did not account for the
"who?" or the "why?"-- i.e. the source, purpose or
spiritual significance of the world's existence or of
its intelligent looking design. Many lost
interest in religion and spirituality and thus forsook
the moral guidance and inspiration formerly received
from faith in religious teachings. With that they
experienced a decreased concern for others, the common
good, the earth, and the future -and an increase in
self-centered interests and materialism.
Teleologist philosophers have long held that the
mechanisms of nature must have an originating cause
and that this ordered universe is evolving inherently
and intelligently toward some predefined goal.
Therefore an ultimate designer must exist.
In
recent years opponents of the theory of evolution have
maintained that living organisms have been
"intelligently designed" rather than been the result
of evolution. While having an element of truth, in
that intelligent design is involved, they do not
disprove the step by step mutations that science has
demonstrated cause the adaptation of species.
Today
we are beginning to realize the importance of these
trends as our world's problems grow. Fortunately,
science offers new evidence, cited here, that can
renew faith in a powerful, ingenious and caring
creator. As in many court trials, the evidence is
circumstantial but compelling.
3. Why
does the world today, designed by god, seem to have PROBLEMS
SUCH AS:
= Early deaths
= Disease epidemics
= Earthquakes and tornadoes
= Humans being born crippled, retarded or in
other in unfortunate
circumstance
Many
people feel that if this is what God of present day
religions has produced, religion doesn't deserve their
confidence.
Remember first that the world's misfortunes make the
news, not the myriad good things in life, which vastly
outnumber them.
God
does not micro-manage the world, didn't produce
the misfortunes and must regret it all. God designed
the world to be self organizing and self sufficient.
It runs itself. Everything has the innate ability,
without instruction, to do its thing--from the
negative electrons that whirl around the positive
nucleus of every atom to make chemical activity
possible, - to the specifically required chemicals in
our bodies that digest our food, and energize
all our organs,-- to the sun activating the
chlorophyll in leaves to convert the carbon dioxide we
exhale to glucose and the oxygen we
breathe, - to all living creatures, doing what comes
naturally.
God
also designed almost everything to exist with a
variety of differences in features and
qualities. These differences not only make
evolution for survival of the fittest possible, but
also produce the variations that make life
more interesting.
Yet not
all variations can be perceived as interesting
or pleasing to all people. Some in fact , such as
those listed above, can seem quite the opposite:
hurtful, painful, unpleasant. They are the inadvertent
by-product of God's design for a wonderful world.
Variations that are good for some people may be bad
for others. Thus heavy rain may be bad for damp
tropics but would be great for the desert.
The
undesirable things mentioned above are usually extreme
variations or malfunctions of more normal
phenomena: floods from extreme rain ; drought
from too little rain, and so forth.
In
complicated systems such as the world, the variations
are apt to produce occasionally extreme results . They
are not the product of God's purposeful intent.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In
addition to these impersonal problems, the world
suffers from a host of man-made problems such as:
·
self
centeredness, meanness, greed
·
wars, violence and hatred
·
corruption, oppression
, poverty
·
environmental degradation
Unfortunately, it is we humans who are responsible for
most of these conditions . "We have misused our
free-will and intelligence to make selfish or
bad choices". But we have also been given the
responsibility to understand and deal with all the bad
things our freedom of choice can bring about.
Many believers report that when they pray they
frequently find they receive not only comfort but
ideas on how to deal with their problems
Our
goal must be to:
·
recognize and appreciate the gift of this
marvelous life
·
Understand that we are the cause of most of
life's
ills
·
Be
inspired to do our part by becoming better people with
more concern for our fellow humans and our
environment.
In any
case, recognize that life with our freedoms and
capabilities is clearly preferable to a predetermined,
controlled existence.
So how
do we deal with the bad things in life? We are
challenged to apply our intelligence toward dealing
with them, by understanding and reducing their cause.
We can, for example,
·
develop safer products, roads, cars, foods, etc.
·
strive to live healthier lives and eliminate sources
of infection
·
be alert and prepare for earthquakes, tornadoes, etc.
·
be thankful when things go right
If we
are among the unfortunate, we can try to
·
adapt to the misfortune.
·
learn lessons from it for the future
·
be toughened and strengthened by it
·
Make the best of what remains and be thankful, as many
courageous handicapped and disadvantaged people do.
We can
also be strengthened by sharing our pain with God
through prayer, receiving insight for dealing with our
problems and comfort from having done all that we can.
We can feel relief and hope from leaving the outcome
of the adversity to a Greater Power.
Philosophically it may be hard to accept and be of
ironic comfort, but if it were not for the bad things
in life, we might not notice or appreciate the good.
Both of them make life more interesting, put our good
fortunes in perspective and make us grateful for life.
Everything is relative and could be worse.
In a
sense, bad things can be viewed as the "price of
admission" for the privilege of receiving the gift of
life. It's "part of the deal" (and better than
no life at all!)
4.
Is the
BIBLE
true?
"No, not literally, but it represents a yearning of early people
for a God and an explanation of how life originated. Thus the authors, inspired with
insight provided by God's design of their DNA, wrote what they thought would have
taken place."
Many
people are skeptical of the historical accounts in the
Bible. They note that most of the accounts were handed
down orally for decades before being recorded and thus
are subject to the possibility of distortion and
exaggeration. They also cannot be verified today,
often defy scientific principles, and usually have
alternative explanations.
But the
Bible does not have to be taken as literal history.
Statements in the Bible for instance can be regarded
as the efforts of ancient writers to convey in
symbolic language the underlying truth of the reality
to them of the Supreme Being whom they worshiped. The
stories do however often reflect the wisdom of the
ages on how to live in our Created world, as derived
from human experience and intuitive recognition of the
Creator's vision.
Among
God's creations, Jesus is an inspired role model and
teacher and thus a prime example of this wisdom. Jesus may have developed his special qualities from genes in his DNA created by God.
As such, he can be considered the son of God, as we all can be also.
One
recent detailed study[13] of early Jewish traditions
as they relate to the Bible concludes that the Jewish
scribes who wrote the Bible never intended that it
should be read as literal history. Their intent in the
New Testament was to convey the astonishing God-like
impression Jesus made on those whom he encountered.
Through Jesus. presence and teachings, people sensed
in him the reality of God and found in him the messiah
predicted by their ancient tradition. Being
intuitively aware of God's love for us, Jesus. message
centered on God and the way to live and not on
himself.[14]
Because
this was not easy to speak about in the ordinary
language of human beings, scribes used the mythical
style of the earlier Torah scriptures (in the Old
Testament), with parables and legends. Thus they
ascribed to Jesus acts only a God-like superhuman
could perform such as walking on water, raising the
dead, changing water into wine etc. Non-Jewish
scholars ever since however have tried to interpret
the Bible literally, apparently unaware of the ancient
mythical style of writing. These literal efforts are
still apparent in some religious creeds and rituals
and, if not explained, can lead to confusion.
So, one
can accept the underlying meaning and wisdom of the
writings as originally intended, celebrate and rejoice
in their symbolic revelation of the underlying truth
that God the Creator exists and created Jesus to
satisfy our need for an earthly- spiritual connection
to a transcendent power. At the same time we can be
tolerant of the ancient mythical style, recognizing
that other people may be deriving much comfort and
inspiration from their literal interpretations.
The
theory of this essay however does not depend on such
writings and instead offers modern verifiable evidence
to make belief in an Intelligent Creative Force more
convincing and to make possible the benefits from such
a belief.
The
"miracles" found in the Bible, similarly, do not have
to be taken literally. They, too, were written by the
early Jewish scribes in the mythical style of the
Torah and were not intended to be taken literally but
rather as symbols of the power and presence of God. In
the New Testament, they were to convey the powerful
God-like impression that Jesus made on his followers.
While
probably responsible for much misunderstanding, such
miraculous stories do appeal to the spiritual needs of
some people by helping them visualize and derive faith
in God's power and presence. If one believes God
created the scientific principles that produced the
miracle of the universe from nothing, such human
perceptions of earthly "miracles" that defy rational
explanation can easily be seen as within a creator's
power. And as discussed in the next section one cannot
rule out some direct intervention by God in areas
where uncertainty and chance prevail, such as healing
the sick, catching fish, calming storms etc.
Thus
miracles are less convincing of God's power than the
evidence of a Creator's existence we can see around us
every day.
As for
modern "miracles" such as weeping icons and Divine
appearances, many people yearn for some current signs
of God's presence today and are led to find them in
their daily lives. But the same reasoning applies- the
best evidence lies in the design of the world all
around us.
5.
Why doesn't God answer prayers in the way asked for?
Prayers
of supplication are only part of our spiritual
relationship with God. To someone who loves us so much
as to create us, we owe gratitude for the miracle of
life and the privilege of being part of it. Because of
this close relationship we are not alone. We can
strive to understand the role God continues to play in
our lives-not as our servant but as our Creator,
companion and guide. God created us on purpose. We are
meant to be here.
As
discussed earlier, God has built in much unpredictable
chance and uncertainty in life, which leads to wide
variations in individuals, their situations and needs.
Suppose God answered prayers only for those who asked?
What about those who didn't ask, or who asked for the
opposite? Whatever God did for one person might be bad
for someone else.
If a
personal God answered our prayers as our human parents
might, able to give us children what we ask for, to
smooth our way, to solve our human problems wouldn't
that spoil us? Why would we need our gifts of free
will, intelligence and capabilities?
What
God did do was give us the ability, intelligence and
responsibility to do what we can to deal with our own
needs and problems. By having a firm belief in God and
praying to Him, we can be empowered with strength,
ideas, insights, inspiration and clarity of thought to
take action. In a sense then, God guides the world
through our minds, hearts and hands.
But, if
we are unable to do anything about it, we can obtain
the peace and comfort that comes from yielding
responsibility for the outcome to a Higher Power.
After all, God created this world and can be expected
to guard it.
Have we
been designed to benefit from a belief in God?
Many people, including athletes, report experiencing a
Power from praying and acting with faith that has
enabled them to meet challenges in their lives. And it
has been established that a firm faith, which can be
invigorated by praying, helps healing through the
"mind-body" effect (the placebo effect of medical
research) which has been divinely built in to our
systems. Perhaps these effects work by stimulating our
hormones and enabling us to hope more confidently, to
heal ourselves and to see and do things better.
Sometimes our prayers are answered in ways we didn't
expect. (God may say "no"!) Many times God answers our
prayers with a change in our feelings. We feel better;
can see things from a new viewpoint; or feel
confidently determined.
Circumstances may change, or the feared event does not
happen, or the outcome turns out to be more favorable
than we expected. We find these results more
often as we learn to recognize the good and trust in
God's wisdom and align our visions with God's.
Might this be the Divine Way?
How can
I tell if God is aware of my existence? The
short answer is: by the way I feel after praying
to Him. Being an omnipotent spirit, God who
designed everything in this world, can be aware of
everyone's existence. He will respond most strongly to
those who pray most earnestly. Having designed the
world to function on its own, He does not ordinarily
answer prayers directly. But as mentioned above, He
answers the earnest one who prays, with comfort and
insight, and may stimulate ideas to deal with problems
Do we
know any situations where God might intervene more
directly in our lives? The vast areas of our lives
where variations, uncertainty and chance seem to reign
can offer the most likely place where God could
intercede in human affairs, such as disease, or human
decisions, without violating his own natural laws.
Some of
the contributing factors to the outcome in these areas
of uncertainty may seem trivial but can have an
important effect-for example a chance human action or
a coincidence; a casual remark overheard, can make
someone change his mind.
Could
God be involved in these areas by affecting our
thoughts and behavior, perhaps without our awareness;
or perhaps through the inspiration of our faith? Could
a divinely directed cosmic ray affect a neuron in a
key part of someone's brain to trigger a particular
opinion or action? Could God mutate genes to introduce
a particular characteristic in someone's behavior,
such as in Jesus. actions and teachings?
Stranger things than that are happening in this world.
Physicists know that one area of uncertainty is down
in the sub-atomic, quantum range. Predictions of
behavior of individual particles are only educated
guesses based on averages or probabilities.
Measurements of both the momentum and location of an
electron for example cannot be made at the same time
because in part any such measurement produces changes
in the thing being measured. Yet something is
producing an overall average result that is always
predictable.
Two
other scientific discoveries in the "out of this
world" category are so spooky that Einstein referred
to one of them as a "ghostly
action-at-a-distance" and
he refused to believe it-although it has recently been
confirmed. (Davies, p.158). At the quantum level of
physics, pairs of sub-atomic particles such as protons
and anti-protons spontaneously appear from nothing
even in a perfect, so-called "quantum
vacuum"! (Could
this phenomenon have been involved in the Big Bang,
which seems to have produced the universe "from
nothing"?) Furthermore, the state of one particle,
such as its spin, depends on the state of the other
particle-no matter how far apart they have become
separated!
Whether
or not this has any bearing on God's answering
prayers, it indicates at least that there are strange
mechanisms taking place in life that are beyond our
control, yet are controlled by something. And small
events can produce large effects in complex
systems-much as El Nino does in the world's weather,
and the "loss of a nail in the horse's shoe" did in
the subsequent loss of the horse, man, battle and
kingdom in the familiar nursery rhyme. Even the
neutrino particle, so small it can penetrate many
miles of lead, contributes to the explosive death of
massive stars that generate the heavy elements needed
for the formation of the universe.
So
there is certainly room for Divine Intervention in
God's Way. And since it can be helpful to pray, we can
accept the result, find the good in it, and gain the
possible benefits noted above.
6.
HEAVEN
Has any
scientific evidence been found for belief in the
existence of the heaven, which has been accepted since
at least the time of the Egyptian pyramids? They were
stocked with food for the pharaohs"
after-life" Heaven
still is featured in today's religions.
No
scientific, physical evidence has been found. But some
kind of after-life may still exist because heaven as
pictured exists in the spiritual realm and thus does
not display material evidence. Any God who could
create this super- ingenious world might have cared
enough for the emotional needs of his creatures to
provide for their continuation in some form after
their death.
Here in
the material world there is overwhelming evidence of
that sacred hand, as pictured herein, which if fully
appreciated can satisfy today our yearning to live
with God. And our accomplishments and the memory of
our lives will live on after our deaths in the minds
of those who knew and loved us.
Unfortunately the concept of a future perfect world is
being misused today by certain terrorist leaders to
encourage youths to devalue this life and to earn a
shorter route to heaven by suicide bombing of those
they think defy the will of their God.
7.
Is this theory a copout?
Some people may wonder whether this theory, that God
designed and created this world and the laws science
has discovered, is just a "cop out" -another example
of "God of the gaps"-wherein everything we can't
explain "rationally" we say, "God did
it".
But
this theory posits that God did create everything,
including the so-called gaps. We know of nothing else
that could have done it. Science has discovered the
principles and laws that describe how the world works-
but has not explained how or why the laws came about
or who or what designed them.
The
more science has learned in the past about how the
world works, the less mysterious people have thought
it seemed and the less they have ascribed to God. But
just because science has discovered the mechanisms and
laws but not the source of them doesn't mean there is
no source. In fact the discoveries reinforce the
evidence for an intelligent Creator by disclosing the
ingenuity and integrated nature of the laws and
mechanisms.
8.
Why Hasn't Science Proved God Exists?
A frequently expressed view today is that unless
science can answer the question of God's existence,
faith in God is difficult to accept. But it should be
recognized that scientists like to prove things by
setting up experiments and testing to see if results
are reproducibly obtained as predicted from theory.
The question of whether God exists and created life
does not lend itself to such an approach. Instead, it
must be judged by circumstantial evidence obtained by
other scientific methods including careful study of
the overall evidence' in the world's ingenuity,
elegance and completeness of design, as presented
herein.
In
addition to such qualitative aspects of life we
can observe daily, science has in recent years
discovered many other startling clues of intelligent
design in the technical and quantitative features of
the universe and life's processes. These are cited in
the Evidence section above, and again, constitute
strong evidence of a reasoning and purposeful Creator.
This
theory for belief in God draws on the scientific
observations of the design and workings of nature and
the natural laws, to reveal their astonishing
ingenuity. Science has made its advances in part by
seeking the cause for every thing it studies. This
theory is based on the preponderance of verifiable
circumstantial evidence which points strongly to an
Intelligent Creator as the cause of it all.
It is
significant that science has not disproved the
existence of a Creator (calling everything
"natural"
is certainly not a disproof). Furthermore,
science has no accepted theory for the originating
cause of the Big Bang, or of evolution. Science has
just shown how most things work. In a sense then,
scientists might be considered modern day
"prophets"
by revealing and explaining the ingenious workings of
all God's Creations.
While
many people who are scientifically trained to search
for explanations and causes for everything in life do
tend to believe in a spiritually transcendent source
of life, they cannot fully prove it professionally and
therefore avoid discussing it. Basic research
scientists tend to concentrate their interest in
specialized areas where their kind of controlled
experimental study of objective things may be able to
make discoveries. They tend to avoid subjective areas
of philosophy and religion where such a possibility is
not likely. Unfortunately those avoided areas are just
where the ultimate cause exists for science's
technical causes.
Every
individual in every age attempts to understand and
explain the origin and control of life and the
universe in terms that make the most sense to them.
For example, the universe is magical (controlled by a
sun god; multiple gods etc.); mythical (controlled by
spirits); monotheistic (Judeo-Christian); mechanistic
(reasoned, controlled by scientific laws). Modern
theories of life go so far as to consider such
mind-boggling possibilities as multiple universes,
self-organizing systems, "dark" energy and string
theories. (The latter name stems from the finding that
the behavior of subatomic species can best be shown
mathematically to have the many required modes of
motion if they are represented as loops of strings,
rather than as single particles.)
Whatever the correct explanation, the evidence cited
in this essay points to the design being caused by an
ingenious, powerful and caring Creator (God Did It!)
DISCUSSION
Polls
have shown that ninety percent of people believe in
God, even though some may not practice a religion and
may harbor skeptical misgivings because there is no
scientific proof of the existence of God. Their faith
may have come from
·
acceptance of religious teachings or family traditions
·
an awareness of a spiritual dimension in life beyond
the visible
·
a need to believe in something more significant than
themselves
·
a search for strength to deal with adversity
·
a sense that this complex, smoothly working world
could not have just "happened" without some purposeful
reason or cause.
Science
has demonstrated that everything in the physical world
has a cause or explanation. (Even so-called random
events such as card sequences, ocean wave heights, and
weather patterns have causes that would explain them
if all the factors involved were known.)
This
paper has presented modern scientific revelations of
the design and operation of the world that show hard
evidence of superhuman ingenuity. Such strong evidence
of intelligence and ingenuity points clearly to a
reasoning, immensely powerful cause of everything from
the Big Bang's origin of the universe to the
astonishingly ordered complex life of today.
Consider briefly some of the evidence we have been
citing for a reasoning, ingenious designer. Every
feature of the world seems necessary and designed to
do its job: from the
·
quarks, neutrons, electrons and other sub-visible
particles that form the world
·
to the gravitational attraction that holds everything
together
·
to the process of photosynthesis in plants that
captures the sun's rays and stores the energy in
chemical bonds of sugar molecules to provide most of
the energy used in the world
·
to gene mutations that adapt living things for better
survival.
Ingenious creative power is seen in almost all
of the world's features. Consider first the amazing
fact that the world exists at all. Think of the
multiple steps needed to create it:
·
establishing the scientific principles (laws) that
make and control the world's operation
·
fashioning the Big Bang which produced the elements
needed to form the universe and us
·
designing the chemical and physical reactions that
produced the chemical and physical things in the world
·
Devising the processes of evolution that helped
fashion the living species of life.
Recognize also the ingenuity in the complex design of
the world's building blocks, the atoms. Their
negatively charged electrons whirl around the nucleus
in concentric circles of discrete energy; are
attracted to, and neutralize the positively charged
nucleus. The atoms bond to each other by sharing
electrons to form all the complex inorganic compounds
and organic molecules of the earth.
Another
amazing feature of the world's design is the
fortuitous existence of all the different elements
such as oxygen, hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen that are
needed by living things, and the metallic elements
such as iron, calcium and aluminum that form the solid
ground, as well as all the metal "nuts and
bolts" of
our familiar modern world. Each element is available
in a quantity sufficient for its various purposes and
is cycled between those purposes. For example oxygen
cycles from recharging hemoglobin in the blood of
animals, where it picks up carbon to become carbon
dioxide which is converted back to free oxygen by
photosynthesis in green plants.
Astonishing too is the ability of human and other
animals to synthesize in their bodies all the complex
chemicals (hormones, enzymes etc.) needed for life!
And although scientists have unraveled the complex
structure of the DNA double helix molecule and the
roles of most of the genes embedded in it they have
not yet been able to synthesize it because it is so
complicated.
The
listing could go on indefinitely.
Just
try to imagine how to design and create an atom or a
brain or the world! We know of no way such things
could be the result of an unreasoned process. And if a
way is ever discovered it would simply add to the
evidence of ingenuity in the world's design.
It is
inconceivable that this world is just a coincidental
assembly of all its hundreds of perfectly interacting
components. And no evidence has ever been found of any
residual signs of intermediate designs that would
suggest the world was developed stepwise by random
trial and error.
Creation taking place without some kind of reasoning
process would be less credible than the idea of a
reasoning God. The complexity of the design of this
smoothly working world requires something with
ingenious creativity and deductive reasoning ability,
as well as limitless power and care to bring it into
being. And these are all supernatural qualities of a
creator.
What
other explanation can there be? Some people say
"it is
all just natural - it is the way things are". But that
explanation does not answer the question of the
cause of nature and things considered natural -how
they were designed and came into being. Even though
each component of the world does seem to have a
"natural" innate ability to do its part, from where
and how did it get that ability?
Others
see the world's existence as the result of the action
of the scientific laws of physics, chemistry, biology
and the process of evolution. Well, it is, at
least partially. But the laws alone don't explain the
ingenuity and completeness of the design of the world
-- living and non-living. They "simply" define the
basic rules that such qualities must obey. And where
did the laws come from? The theoretical concept
of this essay posits that an intelligent creator
produced those laws and established the conditions
that produced the world. That creator may also have
guided the outcome by interceding in random areas of
chance such as mutations and unpredictable events.
This
theory, in pointing to an ingenious creator, does
credit something that is ethereal and different from
familiar everyday, earthly phenomena. This may make it
hard for some people to grasp. But the theory must
explain the originating cause of the "not everyday"
ingenuity in the integrated designs of everything from
the Big Bang, the electron, the atom and gravity, to a
human being. We know of no earthly phenomenon that
could do that.
How
could an invisible, non-material source create an
ingenious physical world? One idea recognizes
that the non-material realm contains all the
intangible things such as ideas, concepts, designs,
knowledge; intelligence, consciousness; scientific
laws and principles of how things work; music, love,
affection, motivation. God exists in this non-material
realm and from there could design the physical world
and establish the principles and laws that in part
determined the way it all developed.
God as
creator must be aware of the many challenges to
progress toward a better world resulting from chance
and poor choices humans can make with their free will,
but he can motivate and guide believers to deal
intelligently with those things.
God
also pervades the rest of the world, providing every
thing from atoms to plants and lower animals to human
beings, with enough inherent capability to enable each
individual entity to perform its tasks because it is
designed for that purpose. In fact each part is vital
in the overall design of the world. As examples,
consider the evidence cited above: electrons circling
positive nuclei to form atoms, atoms reacting to form
compounds; DNA encoding proteins; neurons passing
signals to form ideas in the brain; etc.- all
performing in a vital assigned, predictable manner.
While
we have never seen God, we can be aware of his
presence as an all-pervading, personified
consciousness by the effects he produces, not only in
us but also in the ingenious design and integrated
operation of everything. One can indeed have a
glowing feeling of being in a living world with
God by focusing attention on all the miraculous ways
everything works as discussed in the Evidence section
-- from the sun producing all our food and energy to
the workings of the human mind. Life itself is the
miraculous, spiritual sign we yearn for but seldom
recognize as such.
VISUALIZING GOD
Many
people have trouble visualizing God and that can
hinder their recognition of His presence as creator,
comforter and guide. Remembering that we live in a
material world while God exists in the non-material
spiritual world, we must transport our thoughts and
consciousness into the spiritual realm. When we do
that we may become aware of His intimate presence
within us, perhaps as our soul, our guiding
conscience and confidante.
We can
share with Him our innermost thoughts, problems
and joys, as we might with a loving father.
It
takes concentrated effort to develop such a personal
relationship and it may depend on having a conviction
that God does exist. That conviction may depend on
personal history reinforced by the evidence cited in
this essay.
The
hope for the future may be that we all will lift our
eyes occasionally from our self- centered, daily
concerns to grasp the "big picture" of our life's
source, meaning and purpose from the perspective of
our Creator. If we open our minds and hearts to
seek and sense such an added spiritual dimension of
life, we can enjoy the exciting awareness that
something of great significance, some knowledgeable
force lies behind all we see. And we are part of it.
We are meant to be here, to enjoy and be grateful for
the gift of this wonderful existence. We have been
given the abilities to be reasonably self-sufficient,
to deal with life's adversities and to be grateful for
life's blessings. We can find inspiration from the
vision of being partners with our Creator, caring for
our fellow creatures and for the well being of all
Creation.
An
appreciation that all of us share the common bond of
being children of the same God, created from the same
supply of atoms, with various individual talents and
frailties, makes it easier to understand and accept
each other as members of our family. We can feel
we share a kinship with them and can admire their
various individual talents and forgive their faults,
as well as our own, as products of genetic
inheritance, environment and experience. These factors
strongly affect the nature of free choices our fellow
humans make from among the many alternatives. Someone
with troublesome faults may have inherited such traits
or had a rough background and may not have been
exposed to the conditions that would have helped him
make good choices.
Qualities of understanding, forgiveness and good will
are all key ingredients in personal relations,
conflict resolution, world peace, and a just and
sustainable future. Leaders of wars frequently draw
their support from the people by appealing to
religious, cultural, ethnic, or racial differences
between the opponents, which have fueled
misunderstandings, jealousy, threats and tensions.
Examples include the Christian crusades, the
Israeli-Palestine conflict and the September eleventh
terrorist attack. If everyone were to have the same
understanding of God as our creator, such as the one
portrayed here, the common bond created could improve
understanding, communication and friendliness. The
cause of wars might be greatly reduced.
Fortunately babies are born innocent and unbiased.
They offer possibilities for a fresh start toward a
better world. Reinforcing parents, understanding,
faith and motivation today could allow them to pass it
on to their children and turn the world's future
around---theoretically in one generation!
This
theoretical concept--that strong scientific evidence
of intelligence in every aspect of the world's design
offers a reasoned basis for a firm conviction of the
existence of a Creator- may not produce a "Born
Again"
feeling but it did cause me to exclaim:
"Ah-Ha!" I
never thought of life that way before! Now I have an
exciting and motivating understanding of what it's all
about as I glimpse the "Big Picture" of the world's
ingenious design and the myriad complex processes
going on everywhere, -- in my body, and in all of
nature.
"As I
go out each morning and take a deep breath I will try
to be aware of these ingenious processes, for instance
the way the oxygen in my lungs that is recharging the
hemoglobin in my blood, was produced by sunlight being
absorbed by the chlorophyll in nature's green leaves
and converting the carbon dioxide I exhale to oxygen
and to glucose in the leaf"
.Through such awareness I can feel a satisfying
spiritual connection with the Author of this life-and
can more confidently personify Him as a caring father
figure--one to whom I can express my gratitude for
life and look to for strength and guidance.
"Now my
awareness of God is reinforced each day by
experiencing the joyous thrill of "finding the sacred
in the ordinary".--God's handiwork in the everyday
things of life- such as:
·
the earth on which we live, with its abundant supply
of fertile soil, water, minerals, oxygen and sunlight;
·
the availability and interdependence
of all the necessary atomic elements and molecules,
and all the .scientific laws. that produce the
.natural. way things work;
·
the
sunlight that heats our planet, and through its
photosynthetic action on green foliage, powers the
production of the food we eat, the oxygen we breathe,
and the fuel we burn;
·
the ingenious design of our physical
and mental capabilities that produce our amazing
accomplishments in the modern world around us.
.Now I
can also sense the transcendent in the beauteous
things of life such as:
·
the exquisite elegance and functional design of a
flower
·
the grandeur of a starry night that reveals the
infinite size of our universe
·
the awesome beauty of a scenic sunset over the water
·
the inspiration of a soul-satisfying symphony
·
and the spiritually inspiring feeling of gratitude for
having been purposely created as a unique and valued
citizen of this miraculous universe".
S.
Edward Eaton
If
you would like to comment or discuss this with me
you may contact me at
tedandteri@aol.com; or 100 Otis St., Hingham, Ma.
02043
References
[1] "Ingenuity"
is here taken to mean a clever quality of design
involving the proper choice of multiple components
working well together to meet the needs of a specific
goal.
[2]
This paper uses the terms creator mainly and God
sparingly because of the variety of interpretations
God has received in the past. Also it uses the
pronouns him and his because there are no other
appropriate single pronouns in the English language.
[3]
Skeptics and True Believers: The Exhilarating
Connection Between Science and Religion, Chet
Raymo, 1998, p. 264
[4,5,6]
The
Mind of God; Paul Davies, Professor of Mathematical
Physics, University of Australia, 1992; God.The Evidence; Patrick Glynn, Assoc. Director,
Washington University Institute for Communitarian
Studies; 1997
[7]
Jefferson the Man--In His Own Words; Ed. Robert C.
Baron; Fulcrum Publishing; 1993. P.50
[8]
G.L.Schroeder-- The Hidden Face of God, 1998
[9]
Five Equations that Changed the World, M.
Guilden
[10]
The Mind of God, Paul Davies, Professor of
Physics, Univ. of Australia, 1992
[11]
A Brief History of Time, concluding passage,
Stephen Hawking, 1988
[12]
Consilience- The Unity of Knowledge, Edward O.
Wilson, 1998
[13]
Rt. Rev. John S. Spong, Bishop of Newark (Episcopal)-Liberating
the Gospels: Reading the Bible with Jewish Eyes,
1998
[14]
Meeting Jesus (Again) for the First Time,
Marcus J. Borg, Professor of Religion and
Culture, Oregon State University, 1994