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CONSTANT TRANSFORMATION IS OUR HUMAN VOCATION
The world really progress a lot: from lower and simple way to a higher and complex one. This progressive change is attributed to man himself. But the question is: What is the purpose of all these? What is the intention of man in doing this?
Man’s intention is to attain comfort and a happy life. It is our nature as human beings, to direct all our activities, be it mental, social, or physical, to a sense of fulfillment which gives us the experience of happiness. In other words we want to make this world a paradise, where toils and hardships are totally obliterated from our human existence.
However, we forget that the tower of Babel we built would crumble down if we would eradicate the role of God in our struggle through life. All our efforts to triumph over the limitation of the world would end up in vain. That is, if we fail to ascertain the source and the fountain of Happiness, who is God.
Progress in the world, on the other side of the coin, implies something for man. If we say that man progresses from simple to complex, then, there’s a point in history when the world and man, are at its most simple (not taken philosophically) state, meaning, all of man’s development is still in potency to happen for the next centuries of his existence on the earth.
Thus we can say that the evolution of human life gives us the foundation that he and his world have a beginning from one point in time. A diagram is made to better explain this, graphically:
1 2 3 4 5 6
A B
Two tapered lines represent the progress of man in history. These two lines meet at
certain point in time (going left). Meaning, man has an origin, and yet
develops himself gradually in time.
Line
A represents the threshold of time when
man started to date his activity on earth. It’s unknown. Line B represents the
unknown time of the end of the world or death in particular. However, taper
lines still extends beyond line B. Progress of man continues after death or the
end of the world.
But who is the origin of the world and of man himself? We know it is God. Graphically speaking relation between God and man will be this way:
BC AD
eternity time
State of God: In eternity State of man: In time
God did not, does not and will not evolve, develop or progress. And if He is immutable, He must be the one responsible for the origin, sustenance and the progress of man, as shown in the development of man’s world.
Man will continue to progress and develop his nature, into a more transcendent person. Human life evolves in order to attain that perfection of happiness. The reason of evolution is God - the most Happy and the Most perfect Person.
Indeed, there would also be an end to man’s struggle to overcome the suffering he experienced in the world of matter. But that would only be an apparent end, and apparent perfection. When the human person frees himself from the limits and the suffering of the world (at the moment of death), he would still evolve into a more perfect being in order to reach the fullness of the state of the Perfect Happiness. However, he now undergoes a different change. Before death, man evolves in the state of suffering and imperfections of the material world. After death, he still evolves, but in the state of happiness, in the state of God. This transformation is relational and therefore does not involve physical change. This is not a change in its proper sense, for it does not involve time. This points out, instead, to the state of the human person in reference to God. It’s just that relationship and union between God and man become closer and closer and more intimate.
But the happiness we experience in that state is not yet the fullness of it. As a subject, we shall always strive to perfect the happiness we presently experience. And the fullness of it is only in God. That’s why no matter how we transcend, we continuously and eternally evolve into the fullness of God’s happiness, as long as God wills it. Thus, in eternity, we experience an ongoing perfection of our human life.
However, we have to take one consideration. That our essence is not our existence. If we would experience the perfect Divine happiness, then we will evolve into God, which is impossible to happen. Constant transformation is our vocation.