The joy of science is marred by the denial of
the divine.
Poetry is nothing but a social construct. Even
consciousness is a mere evolutionary accident, as is the fact that we enjoy
writing and reading poetry. Likewise stories, drama, art, music, science,
philosophy, mathematics, architecture, technology, craftsmanship. We way enjoy them and find them useful; but they have
no intrinsic significance. Even good and evil, right and wrong are mere
inventions of human beings and as for the universe - it created itself or is
eternal. And free will, too, is just an
illusion.
So what is a rainbow? ‘Nothing but’ drops of water suspended
in the air refracting light of different colours into our eyes. What are the
colours? ‘Nothing but’ different wavelengths of electromagnetic waves
interacting with our neurons to generate the sensation of colour.
And how did the phenomenon of the rainbow and its interaction
with conscious beings ultimately come to be at this stage of cosmic evolution? Blind chance and the laws of
physics. And where did the laws of physics come from? Er....
Apart from the irrationality of believing so much order and meaning can
be generated by chance, coming from a chain of events starting ultimately from
a point in space-time over thirteen billion years ago, such a worldview robs us of all wonder and awe
by side stepping a host of largely unanswerable questions.
Why at this moment do I experience the beauty of the
rainbow?
And the universe from which the rainbow emerges. Why was
that created?
What does it all mean? Where are we heading?
Why did our Creator give us life and hold us in being with
love?
Why has the Creator given us the power to invent machines, to
simulate the world through software and hardware?
Why do we increasingly seek to help the poor, the sick and
the hungry?
Why do we regard all humans as spiritually equal?
Why has the Creator given us the potential to improve ourselves
biologically?
Why does the Creator permit evil?
Why does the Creator give us the freedom to choose between
good and evil?
Why is life sacred?
What is love?
Why can the loss of one life be as important as the loss of
a million lives?
Why do we search for truth? What is truth?
Why do some sacrifice their lives, even for strangers? Why do we experience beauty? What is
justice? What is sin? What is
redemption?
Why is there eternal life? What form does it take?
Why do all forms of life have the will to survive?
All these questions can be avoided simply by postulating
that there is no God, or at least no transcendent source of being. In the
process we become smug, proud, without hope, without direction, with no desire
to explore or make progress, with no moral compass.
And mind numbingly
boring. The only remaining mystery is how the material world works. Beyond that
there are no questions to ask, no elements of a greater reality to wonder at and no real
reason to even explore the mysteries of the material world. All is pointless.
The rainbow is indeed drops of water and interactions of
light with neurons. But to the believer in the divine it is much more than this,
since it brings to mind questions. Questions like the ones above.
So those who seek to unweave the rainbow may wish to reconsider
their position.
See also
Why the future is unpredictable
Bridging gaps
The five-fold threat to science
The doctrine of chance
Our precious planet
Is there meaning behind random events?
Fighting fatalism
Distorting reality
Jean Paul Sartre: not the way to Peace on Earth
John
Author, 2077 AD
cosmik.jo@gmail.com
