Hangover, heartburn, and coffee-deficiency. That's been my morning, but it was somewhat well-earned. Somebody had to have some fun last night, and it turned out to be me. We did our best to show our friend a good time at the most low-key, no-strippers, old-dudes-standing-around kind of bachelor party I've ever been to. The evening ended with me eating too many chicken wings but drinking just the right amount of booze.
"God" was put on the table for discussion last night by my new roommate, and through the blur and haze we determined that we have pretty different takes on the topic. Being the scientist, I first asked that we define the term before discussing whether or not God exists. My roommate (the artist) chose instead to declare God's existence, and then define it.
I am a man of reason, and he is a man of faith, but we managed to have a pretty decent conversation about "finding God." For him, the inner voice that we each carry within us, directing our actions and our morality- this is part of God. For me, I don't think it matters whether there ultimately is one or not, since our experience of living as human beings is a beautiful and mysterious thing all to itself, that doesn't necessarily require a creator's guiding hand. And even if there is one that started the entire universe in motion, it's beyond our consciousness' event horizon, our ability to either perceive or conceive it.
I believe that each conscious being exists within its own independent universe, really. Our senses open us to the world around us, and our minds allow us to interact with others experiencing their own reality. If we're lucky enough to share a sense of meaning with others, we have a cultural and spiritual connection that enriches our personal experience. But "Truth" and "Reality" are relative to the mind holding the idea, and will forever be singular to each of us. We share using crude language and more elegant forms of art, but the translation will always be that of the perceiver, which is once again singular.
I don't know that a God is necessary for the human condition to have meaning, but I also don't know if it's necessary to have meaning, either. More later.
"God" was put on the table for discussion last night by my new roommate, and through the blur and haze we determined that we have pretty different takes on the topic. Being the scientist, I first asked that we define the term before discussing whether or not God exists. My roommate (the artist) chose instead to declare God's existence, and then define it.
I am a man of reason, and he is a man of faith, but we managed to have a pretty decent conversation about "finding God." For him, the inner voice that we each carry within us, directing our actions and our morality- this is part of God. For me, I don't think it matters whether there ultimately is one or not, since our experience of living as human beings is a beautiful and mysterious thing all to itself, that doesn't necessarily require a creator's guiding hand. And even if there is one that started the entire universe in motion, it's beyond our consciousness' event horizon, our ability to either perceive or conceive it.
I believe that each conscious being exists within its own independent universe, really. Our senses open us to the world around us, and our minds allow us to interact with others experiencing their own reality. If we're lucky enough to share a sense of meaning with others, we have a cultural and spiritual connection that enriches our personal experience. But "Truth" and "Reality" are relative to the mind holding the idea, and will forever be singular to each of us. We share using crude language and more elegant forms of art, but the translation will always be that of the perceiver, which is once again singular.
I don't know that a God is necessary for the human condition to have meaning, but I also don't know if it's necessary to have meaning, either. More later.
