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©2001 Jon Youngblood Unity Through UnderstandingA Guidebook for the Recently Alive |
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©2001 Jon Youngblood Unity Through UnderstandingA Guidebook for the Recently Alive |
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If Heaven as described in sacred texts is just above the clouds, it can only be in another dimension. I’m not being sarcastic here, I mean it. In the next section on The Very Very Small, we will look briefly at some current thinking on the implications of String Theory and missing, or hidden, dimensions. There is no reason whatsoever to suggest that heaven could not be in this invisible and as yet undiscovered territory in which these extra dimensions are wrapped up into tiny little balls and tucked away inside of the normal space (and time) that we experience through our senses on a daily basis.
What we have found above the clouds is no less staggering in its ‘glory’. Again, I don’t use the word glory lightly. It is intensely glorious for me to view an up-close image of the Orion nebula. Wow! And if you are specifically looking for the glory of God, well, look no further my friend. Even my more moderate days where my agnosticism holds court, I am no less inspired by the sight.
This past decade has seen quantum leaps in our Understanding of the Cosmos. Theories once held improbable are now the accepted norm. Things have clearly changed since my days in High School science class. We will look at just a few of them later on and what some of the implications are for the future of our Universe (and God willing - Human Kind).
As information began to flow into the European continent from the southeast, armed with the telescope, the early astronomers of the Renaissance began in earnest to unlock the secrets of the heavens. And our worldview began to grow. We adored the wisdom of the ‘ancients’ but realized at the same time that some of their understanding of the world was flawed. With the invention of the telescope in 1608 (first known as the spectroscope), and with ancient and new improvements in mathematics, we finally became capable of understanding our world and what its place was in the universe. It is easy to see why the highly religious among our ancestors refused to give up the warm and safe comfort of being in the middle of things. Like a puppy struggling to get to the center of the brood, closest to mommy, where it is warm and a nipple is right at hand. But over time we came to accept that the world was not the center. Not at the center to a degree which continues to stagger the imagination. We are the tiniest specks of dust. Lost in an infinite cosmos.
HOME SWEET HOME - With the invention of the telescope and these new mathematical skills we learned the truth about our home. Our home is a planet with one moon. Most planets, but not all, have one or more orbiting bodies (moons or rings). Our home is a solar system of nine planets which circles, or orbits, an average sized star. We now know that planets are probably present in some size and position around most stars. At the same time that we see our solar system is not unique, we also see that (so far) every planet seems to have unique characteristics. That there is other life of some kind out there is pretty hard not to concede at this point. We will see eventually, so lets save that for our descendants to confirm or disprove. Our home is a galaxy. A galaxy is comprised of 1 million to 1 trillion stars and are held together by mutual gravity. Galaxies are grouped into groups and groups are grouped into clusters. it’s a really big place out there.
BIG BANG -
