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InquiringMind wrote:
I think that we can agree that there is a Higher Power in the universe than you or I because we certainly aren’t the most powerful entities in the universe. The laws of physics are more powerful than me because they control me, but I cannot cannot control them. We are all governed by these laws, and so I consider them to be a Higher Power.
I like that idea. I hadn’t thought of it that way before.Who’s the picture in your avatar?
InquiringMind wrote:I think that we can agree that there is a Higher Power in the universe than you or I because we certainly aren’t the most powerful entities in the universe. The laws of physics are more powerful than me because they control me, but I cannot cannot control them. We are all governed by these laws, and so I consider them to be a Higher Power.
Great point, InquiringMind. I will say, though, that it all depends on your perspective. I believe the human race is the highest power that we know of in the universe. The Laws of Physics are wonderful and awesome, but pale in comparison to human consciousness and intellect, IMO.Our sun burns bright in our little corner of the galaxy, supplying light and warmth, and its gravity-well neighborhood provides a long-lived environment to our planet, giving it plenty of time for life to develop here. In that regard, the sun is greater that us. Yet the sun doesn’t know it’s doing it. The Laws of Physics don’t act, they just are. People… us… our ancestors and our children… we have something so unusual… so precious… so rare. We ourselves are the miracle of creation or our Earth. Are there other living creatures out there that will someday soon stop by to eat us all? Maybe. But, even if so, they aren’t any more self-aware than we are. And just to underscore the point, I think I’ll hit ‘submit’ and then go put my arm around my wife and tell her how much I love her. Eat your heart out Laws of Physics!
On Own Now wrote:InquiringMind wrote:I think that we can agree that there is a Higher Power in the universe than you or I because we certainly aren’t the most powerful entities in the universe. The laws of physics are more powerful than me because they control me, but I cannot cannot control them. We are all governed by these laws, and so I consider them to be a Higher Power.
Great point, InquiringMind. I will say, though, that it all depends on your perspective. I believe the human race is the highest power that we know of in the universe. The Laws of Physics are wonderful and awesome, but pale in comparison to human consciousness and intellect, IMO.
We are significant because we are a way for the universe to know itself. We have consciousness and can step outside ourselves and contemplate ourselves. We can do things that the laws of physics cannot.I submit that the laws of physics are a higher power than us because the laws of physics can change our lives, but we cannot change the laws of physics. I suppose it depends on your definition of power, but I’m satisfied with that.
I find prayer in the Mormon fashion an exercise in talking to myself. I prefer study and contemplation to solve issues and get answers. Prayer was always an act of desperation on my part. Cadence wrote:I find prayer in the Mormon fashion an exercise in talking to myself.
I feel the same. I found it a bit interesting to re-read the lord’s prayer from that perspective.
InquiringMind wrote:I submit that the laws of physics are a higher power than us because the laws of physics can change our lives, but we cannot change the laws of physics.
The laws of physics can’t even change the laws of physics. It’s true that people can’t change the laws of physics but they can use the knowledge they have gained about the laws of physics toward their own ends. Physics becomes another tool, it has no will and is bound. We do the math, set up the environment to split the atom, and it has no choice but to split an atom for instance.
In a way people can define the laws of physics. They appear to be the same as they ever were, but are understood completely differently now from Newton’s time, and there’s plenty of dubious stuff in current physics like dark matter. Dark matter’s supposed to make up the majority of the universe, and supports the big bang theory. Only problem is that no one’s found any, let alone proved its existence. Scientists can be guilty of conformity and illusion as anyone else.
I just saw this thread which would have been good for me to read before my “My God Problem” post. Here’s what I just posted there: Hawkgrrrl said:
Quote:A couple of thoughts. I believe prayer works differently for different people and at different times in one’s life. I do pray, like a conversation. Sometimes it improves my mental clarity or gives me comfort. Sometimes it just makes me feel better. I do think for the most part prayer and meditation are similar: both calm the mind and improve our ability to make decisions and solve problems. But I also feel comforted in prayer when I have been very upset or down about something. To me, meditation doesn’t work quite the same in those cases. Meditation comes from a position of inner strength, but prayer comes from a position of inner turmoil. So I find prayer to work best for me when in turmoil.
I said:Quote:My feelings about prayer have been very similar until very recently. I’m probably over thinking this and should go back to what has worked before. I remember the liberating feeling I had when I dropped the “prayer formula” we’re taught in church and just started talking to God, a real conversation. If God is real and omniscient, He knows my thoughts and feelings anyway.
PS – I’ve been researching astronomy/astrophysics lately and I’m loving this thread.
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