This is the first draft of my Essay/Theses of “God: The Essence of Everything”. Please provide constructive criticism, thoughts, opinions and ideas. I am interested in a lively discussion and debate.
From the moment our brains evolved the ability of questioning the world around us and our place in it we have had gods. It does not matter where you go or what you do, the essence of something more than ourselves - an existence greater than ourselves - is prevalent from the dawn of our first human thoughts. From tribe like peoples to modern civilizations this belief is still prevalent. Why? Why is something we cannot understand so rooted within us? More importantly how and why did so many cultures, separated by language barriers and distance develop this belief that there is something more? The spirits? The gods? Why? What makes us - what drives us - to learn and understand our greater existence? Or is it all an illusion? Do other animals seek out this greater existence? If not, then why not? Why is it so important to us and yet seemingly unimportant to a domesticated animal? What has made us so different and why are we driven by this need - a never ending hunger and thirst for understanding?
This thirst for understanding manifests itself all around us. Scientists seek to understand the world, the religious among them seek to understand how their version of ‘god’ or the ‘greater existence’ put everything together and what makes it work. The belief that some how by picking everything apart they will find themselves a little closer to the answer, and yet as always the more they discover the more they realize how little they truly know.
I am not like most people. This is a blessing and a curse. I am driven by a hunger - a need to understand and comprehend. Most people look at a religion, often the one they grew up with, and accept it as their own. They may make slight modifications to it so it adjusts to their needs, but ultimately the over all arching belief is the same. Yet that is too simplistic. It is settling for something that is inferior.
For example, one might believe as many Judio-Christians do, that the world was created in seven days and that humanity was formed in the image of God. That the world is only a few thousand years old. Yet, all the science in the world disproves this belief. Many Christians doubt it and have taken on the scientific belief, looking at the old as a metaphor. Still, there are those that cling to that thought and I must question it.
First of all, what is God? Where is God? What does he do? Is he even a he? Does he think like we do? If he created the world or at least played a major part in its creation then why do we not see more direct evidence of his existence? Wouldn’t there be some big giant neon-sign in the sky saying “GOD WAS HERE”?
There are too many questions to answer. Too many variables and possibilities. However, if one takes the belief that God created everything as many religions do then we cannot obviously be made in his image. We cannot create planets, stars; I have no knowledge of how to make another Jupiter or Saturn. Yet, simple logic dictates that if God made these things he must be far greater than ourselves. In fact it even throws his entire identity into question.
Many religions around the world try and humanize their representation of god or their various gods. The Greek and Roman Gods of old for example all had personalities and duties. It was somewhat like an on going drama of the heavens. The Judio-Christian God is more abstract and detached. It (often referred to as a male) has a set of things it wants you to do, it has outlined them in 10 Commandments and some believe there will be punishment to anyone who fails to please this entity.
Yet even in the Judio-Christian version of God one can see him exhibit a personality. He has clear likes and dislikes. He is sometimes consistent and sometimes he is not. In the representation of him he appears to be almost a super powerful human trying his best to be abstract and transparent, but to anyone who is willing to scrutinize the belief he fails at his abstractness and transparency.
This, for me, is not satisfactory. It seems ludicrous to believe that a powerful entity that created everything even thinks on a remotely human level. It would be as if someone claimed that ants think on the same level as we do, and to a being such as god we would be even smaller and less significant than ants. Who are you, a single person, compared to a being that created the very universe - something that we struggle constantly to understand? Is it not self righteous and egotistical to put yourself on the same level as a supposed creator of everything?
Yet, can humanity be wrong? Is there a God? Is there something greater than ourselves out there? If we are wrong then why do we feel so strongly that there is something more? What has driven humanity to not only believe but also seek out this entity?
To those questions, I can only speculate. If there is a God one has to be willing to admit that it will be forever out of their understanding. At best, we may only learn to understand certain aspects. At worst, we will forever be left in the dark. Our minds are not built to comprehend something so magnificent and powerful - it is as if we are ants trying to comprehend and think on a human level.
I must speculate on the actual existence of the deity itself. In our daily lives, we do not see great miracles being preformed. We don’t look up into the night sky and see the stars magically re-arrange like a mystical wegie board spelling out the deities latest commandments. We are left alone to figure out things for ourselves. Perhaps the deity is simply disinterested in us. Perhaps it simply looks upon us as we look upon ants. It is a possibility.
Another possibility is that the deity itself does not exist at all. It is something that we wish to be true. It is something that we desperately grasp toward to make our meaningless lives somehow meaningful. That, too, is a possibility.
It is also possible that at one time there was an all-powerful being that created everything, but like all living things, it ultimately died thus creating everything that we see and leaving us all alone. Perhaps in its death it created the big bang, started time itself and everything that has happened since is simply an echo of the final moments of the deity.
Or perhaps a greater power, a greater existence, does indeed exist. Perhaps it is abstract and does not have cohesive thoughts as we do. It does not see time and space as we do. In fact it has seen everything and nothing, it is everything and nothing. It flutters in and out of existence - it is existence and non-existence. It is the essence of everything from the rocks on planet Earth, to the dust storms on Mars, to the swirling clouds of Jupiter, on into deep space and beyond, it is every particle of every atom, it is our thoughts, our dreams, our aspirations. Perhaps, we are God and in trying to understand God - the essence of everything - we struggle to understand ourselves.
It is my opinion that if there is a God, if there is a greater existence beyond ourselves, then it must be the latter version. It seems almost elegant and beautiful. It would be a realization that everything is a part of something greater and that humanity’s mission to understand ‘God’ will ultimately lead to the understanding of ourselves. That every thing we do, that every step we make, we draw ourselves closer and closer to that understanding. The belief that the universe and the world we know, including ourselves, is simply a greater entity struggling to understand itself. As if its very own mind is so powerful and immense that it had to fragment into billions and billions of other minds - in our universe and perhaps even others (if others exist) - to struggle to understand itself. The belief that even the tiniest of particles are struggling in their own way to understand itself.
If this belief holds true then perhaps humanity should stop looking outwardly for ‘God’ and instead begin looking inwardly. For if the deity exists in this fashion the only logical thing to do is look to yourself. To understand yourself and then once you understand yourself set out to understand others. You may never reach the goal of understanding the deity, but perhaps it will draw you a little closer and paint the clearest picture possible.
If this belief is true then it opens up many possibilities and opens the door to many questions. It is fascinating to consider, even if it may turn out to be incorrect.