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The Ontology of Christmas
The Bible was written in an age in which it had to accommodate
itself to the mind of the pre-scientific man, conveying the truth about human
nature in the language of metaphor and anthropomorphism. On the surface of
it, at least, the legends, metaphors, anthropomorphisms, analogies and
parables found in the Bible may not qualify as “science,” but the worldview that they convey, especially at Christmas time, can now be
shown to be coincident with cutting-edge, modern-day scientific thought.
Probability Theory
This year’s winner of the coveted Templeton Prize was the Polish
cosmologist and catholic priest, Professor Michael Heller. http://www.templeton.org/questions/universe/ In an essay entitled Chaos, Probability and the Comprehensibility of the World, Professor Heller ranks Probability Theory as
one of the most reliable scientific templates in existence today. Question:
How could the fundamental testimony of the Bible, written thousands of years
ago, be in agreement with a modern-day scientific template such as
Probability Theory?
The Science Hidden in the Bible
In Genesis 2:7 we read that God formed man from the “dust of the
earth” (physics of the universe, statistically oriented toward more probable states). In the Ten Commandments we find God
repeating the words “You shall not... You shall not,” presupposing a
statistical tendency to the contrary.
In Proverbs 14:12 Solomon declares, “There is a way which seems right
unto a man, but the end thereof are
the ways of death,” presupposing a statistically probable outcome (“death”
being the end point of energetic striving beyond which no more change is
possible—“final equilibrium state” in the language of science). In Matthew
7:13 Christ says, “Enter in at the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and
broad is the way, that leads to destruction, [but] narrow is the way which
leads to life,” suggesting something scientifically simple, elegant and
predictable. The “narrow gate” leads
to statistically less probable states of life, structure,
complexity, heterogeneity and non-repetition (i.e., lower entropy states). The “wide gate”
leads to statistically more probable
states of non-life, non-structure, simplicity, homogeneity and repetition
(AKA “abortion, same-sex marriage and “euthanasia”). These and numerous other
scriptural passages, along with the brutal record of human history itself,
add volumes of evidence to the Biblical truth that the derivative (“fallen”)
nature of mankind is statistically oriented toward disorder.
Quantum Theory
Scientists recognize the essential similarity between universal
phenomena and have developed the theory of quantum mechanics to explain it.
Statistical theory is one of the pillars of quantum mechanics in that it
provides a basis for analyzing the relationship between probable and
improbable. Connecting all the dots, and all things being equal, we see that
the transition from less probable
states to more probable
states is characteristic of the behavior of all physical
systems in the universe—including human ones formed from the “dust of the
earth”. Take away God from the human
sphere of existence and what have you done? You have reduced human beings to physical
systems whose behavior will begin to mimic that of every other physical
system in the universe. This is what is happening to American culture today.
Look beneath the surface of the culture war and you will see a gigantic,
complex, physical system, inching its way toward more
probable states.
Understanding the Pauline Gospel
Paul's rhetorical discourse in Romans 7:15-24 goes so far as to
suggest that the physics of the universe is influencing the behavior of man
in negative ways:
I do not understand my own irrational nature. For
I do not seem to be able to do what is good, but end up doing the very thing
that I hate and know to be evil.... So then it is no longer I myself that is
oriented toward evil, but something in my flesh [in my physical
constitution].... For in my inmost spirit and mind I delight in the Law of
God; but I see in my flesh [physical system] a contrary principle at war with
the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin internalized in my
physical members.
This
was written in a pre-scientific age. How would the Apostle Paul have stated
the same thing today? Regardless, he would have concluded it in the same way
that he did 2000 years ago: “O wretched man that I am,
who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus
Christ our Lord!”
The
Wonder of Christmas
Would an omniscient and loving Heavenly Father create a universe
oriented toward more probable states, fashion
the bodies of His children from the physics of the same universe, and NOT
institute a plan of salvation from the very beginning? Unthinkable! The Bible chronicles the different stages
of God’s plan from Genesis to Revelation, often doing so in a metaphoric
language that the pre-scientific man could relate to. In “Eden,” the Spirit
of God shielded the spirit of man from the natural orientation of the
universe. Even after the “fall” and expulsion from “Eden,” God provided an
interim shield and covering in the form of the Mosaic Covenant. But even
before the creation itself, the Creator had already foreseen the consequences
of man’s free will and made provision for a more perfect salvation to come. As
the New Covenant affirms, the advent of Jesus Christ on earth was not an
afterthought of God: Christ was the Lamb
slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8).
For
Unto Us a Child is Born
Wonder of wonders, 2000 years ago the Creator himself assumed a
body of flesh and walked among us to fully shoulder the burden of mankind and
undertake a wholesale overhaul, transformation and re-orientation of human
nature at the deepest spiritual level. Stated figuratively, 2000 years ago
Christ Jesus built a spiritual “firewall” between the nature of universe and
the nature of mankind, making that “firewall” accessible to all who chose to put
their trust in God. And that is Good News indeed, the good news that we celebrate
every Christmas!
For further context refer to the preceding newsletters at
http://www.jerustar.com/Newsletters.htm and the newly published book In God
We Trust by Victor Shane.
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What is America’s culture war really all
about?
Who are the warring factions and what do
they really want?
What set of beliefs drives the ideology of the conservative right?
What set of beliefs
drives the ideology of the liberal left?
How do these beliefs divide America when it
comes to:
● The
Judeo-Christian worldview?
● The Ten
Commandments?
● Marriage
& family values?
● Abortion?
● Homosexualism?
● Euthanasia?
● The
American military?
“The purpose and content of this book are clearly
stated in the subtitle, Understanding
the Culture War in a Scientific Age: The Pitched Battle for the Soul of
America. I think the author has
contributed significantly toward fulfilling this purpose. I am particularly
impressed by the selection and integration of principles and presuppositions
in the early chapters, followed by application of these principles in
subsequent chapters. He adheres to the Judeo-Christian worldview, but the
book should be of significance and interest to readers whatever their
worldview may be.”
—Robert B. Fischer, Ph.D.
Provost,
Biola
University
“Most great movements of history have launched only
after one great book has stirred the hearts of men. Such a book is In God We Trust by Victor Shane which
makes the moral argument for America’s third great religious reawakening.
When the battle is ultimately won and civilization is successfully defended,
history will remember the book that started it all.”
—Rabbi Daniel Lapin,
President,
American Alliance of Jews
and Christians
http://rabbidaniellapin.com
“Though Victor and I have different understandings of
the details of religion, Victor being a devout Christian and I being an
orthodox Jew, clearly in his book, In
God We Trust, we share identical views regarding the desperate need for a
return to the Biblically based moral code that once prevailed in American
society and upon which America was founded. Victor has put into words the
concerns and desires of the silent majority of Americans which must cease to
be silent.”
—Gerald Schroeder, Ph.D.,
Jerusalem,
Israel http://www.geraldschroeder.com/
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