Introduction

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Are we the beneficiary of some supernatural ability to connect with Things Unseen?

Or, as some have suggested, is the metaphysical "Other World" merely the internal imagery of a misguided (but well intentioned) brain? This is a debate that has perplexed scientists¹ and troubled religious scholars. For as long as we have understood the brain to be the seat of reason and thought, inquiring minds have attempted (with limited success) to locate the mechanisms of religious experience. We are the beneficiary of one ability that appears to be unique (so far) in the universe: To Question. Or even better: To Question The Questioner! Using language to construct logical and reasoned inquiries into the nature of nature. The nature of God. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but in all other respects it has been the driving force behind all that man has accomplished in the material, intellectual and spiritual worlds.

In Richard M. Bucke's Cosmic Consciousness, Mr. Bucke compares the "visions" of various prophets, seers, and saints, to those of people today suffering from various known mental afflictions, particularly schizophrenia. It is curious to note that modern psychiatrist's describe one of the symptoms of psychosis as "heighten religiosity". Buck posited the theory that the difference between the spiritual experience and the psychotic one was determined by mental fortitude. If you were of a superior mental “stock“, you would have better odds of enduring the often frightening internal imagery and have a spiritually positive experience. If not, madness ensued. Although I am not in full agreement with Mr. Bucke's conclusions (particularly his ideas on evolution and the races), the similarities in subjective experiences are not to be dismissed lightly. And may, when considered, provide us with clues to who we are as creatures of space and time. We may have been “created”, but it seems clear that we have not yet achieved our final state of being. We are, it appears, an unfinished creation.

Others have suggested that the epiphanies associated with religious experience is nothing more than a kind of echoing effect between the two hemisphere's of the brain (Julian Jaynes - The Origins of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bi-cameral Mind). The voices of the angels were actually voices coming from our other hemisphere!

Both of these views, founded as they are in modern research, reflect a rather cold and mechanical view of the world that is known as reductionism. Reductionism views the world as “mere” parts; reduced to the lowest common denominator with little or no room for religion. Holism is one of the concepts we will examine as a tool for attempting to reintegrate the humanities with the physical sciences.

There exists today a growing arsenal of dialog designed to accomplish a meaningful discussion of matters once thought too lofty for the “common man“. What was once the domain of priests or the literate few, can now be explored by everyone. Armed with words and phrases such as "religious anthropology" and "consilience²" and "unification theory", we are able (if not willing) to march into unexplored territories of religious and spiritual awareness. Of this new Age of Enlightenment, Edward O. Wilson writes:

"The assumptions they made of a lawful material world, the intrinsic unity of knowledge, and the potential of indefinite human progress are the ones we still take most readily into our hearts, suffer without, and find maximally rewarding through intellectual advance. The greatest enterprise of the mind has always been and always will be the attempted linkage of the sciences and humanities. The ongoing fragmentation of knowledge and resulting chaos in philosophy are not reflections of the real world but artifacts of scholarship."

And, I might add, not only scholarship, but that frequently this fragmentation of knowledge is propagated by institutionalized religion. Catholic and Protestant alike seem to have the sequestering of "new answers" as it's one unified purpose. Answers to those questions that, until now, had been their sole domain.

Paul Tillich³ once described religion as "ultimate concern". This concern has been globally manifest, in almost all cultures, in some type of formal religion. Religion, and it's teachings, has been the hallmark of sentient humanity for thousands of years. Not until recently, with the advent of democratic, technological societies, has the rule of religious thought been challenged in matters of day to day life. Many of us today, as we shall shortly see, are more and more willing to embrace answers that diverge from traditional religious paths. Often with tragic consequences. Conservative and radical, a burgeoning growth of new religious groups are competing for eager recruits.

Curiosity will naturally lead us to seek answers to the greatest of life's questions. Answering these questions has always been the ultimate goal of Religion. Discovering God’s truth so that we could all agree on what truth was. Religions truths, by the way, for our discussions will be referred to as inspired truth. The Word of God given to the prophets. It is immutable. If that word is to be found only in the bible, it is, unfortunately, a very limited truth; limited by it's finite volume. Is this all we are to be given? No wonder so many people my generation become neglectful of maintaining good spiritual health! There are no further answers to be had anyway! So we stop seeking.

Science, however evil it may be perceived by a hardened few, is based initially on "theoretical" truth. Then it is continually validated, or rejected, in time. The more time, the more certain we are of the hard truth of the matter. Scientific truth is evolving. It does not in any way claim the privilege of Absolute Truth. So as we begin, let's remember that truth is always in the eye of the beholder. Now let's make sure our eyes are seeing all that they can. There are answers out there. They may not be what we want to hear, or may require us to rephrase our questions, but after a few centuries now of intense investigation, trial and error, we are at last coming up with a few concrete and comprehensible answers. Why are we here? What governs our actions? Is there a purpose to life?

Some of the concepts discussed here are highly technical by their nature. It is my objective, then, to present these ideas in a way that may, to some, seem oversimplified. I will be using analogies as much as possible to aid in visualization. And in so doing, spark the interest of the lay person to continue researching, on their own, the miraculous nature of Existence. Or God's Creation. However you want to see it. That is the only purpose of this material. It is not to convert or persuade. But hopefully, to rekindle an interest in the natural world that all too many of us have lost in the hectic day to day lives we live. We can make the time to better our understanding of "all this". Knowledge and Truth are no longer the lofty pursuits of the intellectual elite. But it does require effort. My only hope is to inspire an old sense of wonder in the new and a new sense of wonder in the old.

Faith⁴, in relation to the discussions that are to follow, I define primarily as a feeling of trust in something greater than ourselves. And through that trust, feel ourselves to be an important part of, and connected to, everything and everyone around us. In it’s grossest manifestation, a feeling of total “connectedness” is the essence of the religious epiphanies described by many of our greatest religious leaders including Jesus, Buddha, and Mohammed, in addition to a host of saints, monks, and other persons of religious significance. It has also been experienced by ordinary people who have induced altered states through various means. This feeling, in it’s more mundane expression is experienced by many people of many religions throughout the world, as a sense that everything (existence) is “ok“; even in times of horrific turmoil. 

Recent polls reveal statistics indicating an 85% "belief" rate among Americans (the majority of whom consider themselves to be Christian), and we are seeing increasing numbers of new religious organizations springing into existence throughout the world. We are seeing old feelings that are being expressed in new and different ways. With new concepts and rituals, but still based on what we call Faith.

Unless otherwise stated, I will be primarily concerned with the 1st definition of Faith (see footnote), although the second meaning will also be of great concern to future discussions I should further describe Faith as a subjective experience, or perception, as opposed to a "learned" set of ideas (although there are teachings that can be "learned" that appear to initiate or heighten certain religions experiences that can form the basis for a heightened sense of Faith; meditation for example).

I will be using the word religion to denote the later meanings of faith. I may refer at times, though, to the Faithful as a means of representing, in a non-partisan way, those persons or groups of persons who hold a deep and abiding trust in those tenants or teachings that have been passed down to them. Religion shall be considered in the discussions that follow, as the vehicle for the Teaching of Truths; an agency for dispensing Answers, both personal and social, to the Faithful. Although I will attempt in every way possible to respect the religious beliefs of everyone, in the end, it is my assertion that in order to maintain a healthy and functional feeling of Faith into the next century, some traditional beliefs may benefit from a good pruning.

One last note before we begin. We are dealing here with what is often considered opposing ideologies. And most of us have already chosen our camp. So for the secular who think Jesus Christ was a rock star, I will begin with a brief history of religion. Although Part One is concerned with religion, we will be considering as valid, information acquired from the scientific community, such as anthropology, archeology, etc. to examine the development of the religious Mind. Part Two is meant to assist the faithful who think a paramecium is a couple of mice. We will look at the development of the scientific method and what it has revealed about existence, and it's spiritual implications. The “guts” of our discussion will take place in Part Three which is intended to present the basics of emergent properties, holism, and science's quest for the Unified Field Theory or the Theory Of Everything. We will examine the potential confirmation of both religious and secular ideologies within a context that is (hopefully) mutually supportive to both. And, finally, attempt to produce a viable description of spirit. One that we can all comprehend and (hopefully) agree upon, with which to realize a deeper trust in the processes of existence and, just maybe, live a little happier in that existence.

^{#0:  Walter Mosley, PhD, in a personal letter dated 9/26/00 [Back to Text]}

^{#1:  I will often refer to the "scientists" as those people who have established their "world view" based on observed truths, regardless of whether they have a degree and work in a lab. I shall refer to the "religious" as those who have established their world view on the basis of inspired truth; primarily, but not exclusively, that knowledge contained within sacred texts. This is used as a convention only. There are many past and present scientists who firmly believe that God exists. Likewise, many religious people have no problem with a symbolic interpretation sacred texts.  [Back to Text]}

^{#2:  The term was coined by William Whewell in a 1840 synthesis entitled The Philosophy of the Inductive Sciences and refers to a "jumping together" of knowledge by linking facts and theories across seemingly unrelated fields of inquiry in order to create a common ground of explanation. For more information refer to Edward O. Wilson, CONSILIENCE - THE UNITY OF KNOWLEDGE /Random House, Incorporated / March 1999 [Back to Text]}

^{#3:  Tillich, Paul (1886-1965). One of the most influential and creative Protestant theologians of the 20th century. Tillich saw his role as an attempt to redefine the Christian faith for an era in which traditional Christian culture was fast being replaced by a host of modern often anti-religious ideologies. In the pursuit of his goal, he tried to bring culture and religion together so that each was made clearer by the other. He believed that religion is the substance of culture, and culture is the form of religion. [Back to Text]}

^{#4:  faith: (Amer. Her. 3rd Ed.) 1. Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, an idea, or a thing. 2. Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. 3. Loyalty to a person or thing; allegiance: keeping faith with one's supporters. 4. Theology. The theological virtue defined as secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God's will. 5. The body of dogma of a religion: the Moslem faith. 6. A set of principles or beliefs. [Back to Text]}