natural theology > notes > 9 september 2001

Notes

[Notebook TTC, DB 54]

[Sunday 9 September 2001 - Saturday 15 September 2001]

[page 125]

Sunday 9 September 2001

Monday 10 September 2001

Tuesday 11 September 2001

Wednesday 12 September 2001

TTC/About/impartiality.html.
TTC/About/evolution.html

[page 126]

Reading the history of Luther we see the importance of economic imperatives

economics.html

ECONOMIC IMPERATIVE --> INPUT (PHYSICS)

Every open dynamic system has inputs and outputs.

Physics: matter/energy, action/entropy

energy of motion vs energy of structure.

The greatest evil is impecuniosity, which leads to abandonment by the economic system.

SURVIVAL = MEMBER OF ECONOMIC SYSTEM

LOCAL vs GLOBAL.

[page 127]

tolerance/freedom

Replace the historic concept of law with symmetry (the same thing arising from a different point of view). Laws have to be made but symmetries are imprinted by the simplicities of evolutionary origins.

Luther 452 FREE WILL Friedenthal.

The theological question: how do we have free people and a free god?

Among the tolerances that we accept (on methodological grounds) is that absolute certainty is beyond us. We must always maintain a critical and practical attitude to all data, allowing ourselves the headroom to deal with unexpected errors and situations. [what if they don't pay me? Will I starve?]

[page 128]

. . .

Every person born deserves a living (vs survival of the fittest).

Luther 455: Peace and quiet are desires of the flesh.

'I came not to bring peace but the sword". (Matthew 10:34) Matthew.

MINIMUM ACTION == MINIMUM ERROR

How much freedom can the whole allow the parts? The parts the whole? How do we phrase these questions mathematically? We look for clues in politics and quantum mechanics. In fact the exponential growth of complexity with the production of Hilbert spaces suggests that the whole can give the parts all possible freedom, that is all freedom that does not involve contradiction, which is symptomatic

[page 129]

of error.

In time we have to cast the central conundrums of partiality and impartiality in formal language and derive a few principles which will guide us toward an optimal mix of partiality (locality) and impartiality (universality, non-locality). The reason for choosing formal language is that for it the question does not even arise, insofar as it is formal, it is a point isolated from dynamics. 1+1 = 2 is an eternally true sentence.

Formalism is equivalent to the actual surface of the light cone, mass shell 0, where there is no spacetime distance and everything exists superposed.

Thursday 13 September 2001

Friday 14 September 2001

Mixing drugs with flu to gain delirium?

[page 131]

Can we see that scale invariance in the Universe provides an argument for universal social security?

Theology, as science of the whole, includes itself, since the human mind which hold theology are parts of the whole.

Saturday 15 September 2001

Do I have any choice, or must I follow the fore that drives me, be the results ever so banal? What effect does knowledge have on desire? Why the long tendency to distinguish knowledge and will? Is it because knowledge generators wish to distance themselves from people of action? I feel that I can only become a politician (ie agent for action) when I have the backup of a theological model which I believe, in other words which I have accepted as a foundation for action. Promulgating natural religion over the web provides me with a publicly accessible foundation for

[page 131]

later action. Founding TTC is in effect the first move toward exploiting (applying) natural (= inconsistency free) religion.

What is mind? No matter.
What is matter? Never mind. Homer Simpson.

POWER = TEMPERATURE ⁴ .

Special relativity is the shell of the Universe. The shell of the bubble of creation.

TV: People seek drama: ie dynamics. Find it hard to deal with formalism (statics, kinematics)

Special relativity is a kinematic theory. It does not explain why things are as they are, it simply models their behaviour with fidelity which still surpasses the

[page 132]

state of the art in precise measurement, ie i part in 10¹⁸, one metre in a light year.

This is a radical attack on the religious establishment by the forces of good management, honesty and justice. Of course we may be as bad as them, but we hope we are not. In other words we wish to survive by fitting the noetic space of our age.

TTC is searching for privilege, the sweet spot in life where one has tapped a source of grace (profit) and has the ability to become powerful by selling the grace (INDULGENCE).

We can make the terms prayer and grace meaningful. Prayer is meaningful when one asks a favour of one capable of bestowing it (carpenter, doctor, banker) and pays for the service.

[page 133]

We take the old language and give it new meaning by giving the words new meanings and relying on the integrity of the linguistic shell to give a consistent interpretation of the new meanings, at least to a first approximation.

. . .

GRAPHIC DYNAMICS - from pendulums through athletics and sport in general (dynamic excellences)

eg MOMENTUM: quantity of motion (Newton) - precision of spatial defininition (quantum mechanics.

ACTION: integral of energy.time = integral of momentum.space = frequency

ENERGY: temporal resolution.

POWER: flow of resolution, flow of information.

GRACE: Divine download = fitness added from environment.

Lonergan on operative grace.

GRACE = Communication = help from the outside = help from god, the environment of us all.

Special relativity and trinity: Spacetime has four independent personalities?

POLITICS and PUT-DOWNS. Graham page 230. Graham.

People are naturally ordered by wealth but justice demands an equal floor.

[page 135]

This is so good. Every insight is a grace from god.

We are all free to navigate the seas but we lose that freedom (at least temporarily) if we run aground (or sink).

The ultimate outcome of this line of development must be a legislative program upon which to send people up for election to executive power.

Power: the ability to entrain other systems, ie to act as a 'condensation nucleus'. eg Kennedy (and all other politicians whose aim is ultimately to be ruler of the world). Power may be exercised gratuitously or for reward. In the reward mode, it may grow exponentially and like a black hole reduce complexity to simple number (spin) (?). Absolute (ie exponential) power corrupts (simplifies) absolutely.

Related sites:

Concordat Watch
Revealing Vatican attempts to propagate its religion by international treaty

Copyright: You may copy this material freely provided only that you quote fairly and provide a link (or reference) to your source.

Aristotle, and (translated by H Tredennick and G Cyril Armstrong), Metaphysics X-XIV, Oeconomica and Magna Moralia, Harvard University Press, ; William Heinemann Ltd. 1977 Introduction III Aristotle's Metaphysical Theory: 'The theory of universal science, as sketched by Plato in The Republic, was unsatisfactory to Aristotle's analytical mind. He felt that there must be a regular system of sciences, each concerned with a different aspect of reality. At the same time it was only reasonable to suppose that there is a supreme science, which is more ultimate, more exact, more truly Wisdom than any of the others. The discussion of this science, Wisdom, Primary Philosophy or Theology, as it is variously called, and of its scope, forms the subject of the Metaphysics. page xxv
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Descartes, Rene, Rules for the direction of the mind: Discourse on the method, Encyclopaedia BritannicaB0006AU8ZG 1955
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Feynman, Richard, Feynman Lectures on Computation, Perseus Publishing 2007 Amazon Editorial Reviews Book Description 'The famous physicist's timeless lectures on the promise and limitations of computers When, in 1984-86, Richard P. Feynman gave his famous course on computation at the California Institute of Technology, he asked Tony Hey to adapt his lecture notes into a book. Although led by Feynman, the course also featured, as occasional guest speakers, some of the most brilliant men in science at that time, including Marvin Minsky, Charles Bennett, and John Hopfield. Although the lectures are now thirteen years old, most of the material is timeless and presents a "Feynmanesque" overview of many standard and some not-so-standard topics in computer science such as reversible logic gates and quantum computers.'
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Finke, Roger, and Rodney Stark, The Churching of America 1776 - 2005: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy, Rutgers University Press 2005 Amazon book description: 'In The Churching of America, 1776 — 2005, Roger Finke and Rodney Stark once again revolutionize the way we think about religion. Extending the argument that the nation's religious environment acts as a free market economy, this extensively revised and expanded edition offers new research, statistics, and stories that document increased participation in religious groups from Independence through the twenty-first century. Adding to the thorough coverage of "mainline" religious groups, new sections chart the remarkable development and growth of African American churches from the early nineteenth century forward. Finke and Stark show how, like other "upstart sects," these churches competed for adherents and demonstrate how American norms of religious freedom allowed African American churches to construct organizational havens with little outside intervention. This edition also includes new sections on the ethnic religious communities of recent immigrants &mdash stories that echo those told of ethnic religious enclaves in the nineteenth century.'
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Finke, Roger, and Rodney Stark, The Churching of America 1776 - 2005: Winners and Losers in Our Religious Economy, Rutgers University Press 2005 Amazon book description: 'In The Churching of America, 1776–2005, Roger Finke and Rodney Stark once again revolutionize the way we think about religion. Extending the argument that the nation’s religious environment acts as a free market economy, this extensively revised and expanded edition offers new research, statistics, and stories that document increased participation in religious groups from Independence through the twenty-first century. Adding to the thorough coverage of "mainline" religious groups, new sections chart the remarkable development and growth of African American churches from the early nineteenth century forward. Finke and Stark show how, like other "upstart sects," these churches competed for adherents and demonstrate how American norms of religious freedom allowed African American churches to construct organizational havens with little outside intervention. This edition also includes new sections on the ethnic religious communities of recent immigrants—stories that echo those told of ethnic religious enclaves in the nineteenth century.'
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Friedenthal, Richard, Luther, Weidenfeld and Nicholson 1970 Jacket: At midday on 21 October 1517, Luther launched the Reformation by nailing his 'ninety-five theses' against Papal indulgences to the door of the Schlosskirche at Wittenberg. The world has yet to come to terms with the issues he raised. . . . In this new biography Richard Friedenthal portrays the living human figure behind the accretions of pious and hostile legend. . . . Interwoven with the story of Luther's life is an intricate picture of Europe as a whole undergoing the agony of the Reformation, with centuries old beliefs and customs being turned upside-down in a chaos of furious religious controversy, social upheaval and constant clashes between bishops and princelings, imperial troops and mercenaries. . . .'
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Graham, Katharine, Personal History, Alan A Knopf 1997 'Jacket: 'An extraordinarily frank, honest and generous book by one of America's most famous and admired women - a book that is, as its title suggests, both personal and history.'
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Horney, Karen , Self Analysis, 1994 Introduction: 'Professional analytical help ... can scarcely reach everyone whom it is capable of benefiting. It is for this reason that the question of self-analysis has importance. Is has always been regarded as not only valuable but also feasible to "know oneself", but it is possible that the endeavour can be greatly assisted by the discoveries of psychoanalysis. ... It is the object of this book to raise this question seriously, with all due consideration for the difficulties involved.' (9)
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le Carre, John, The Secret Pilgrim, Random House Value Publishing 1992 Amazon customer review: 'Mr John LeCarre, with Len Deighton, is tops at writing about espionage and he deserves mention in the history of English literature of this century. I have all his books in my personal library. They all denote an insider's knowledge of the espionage world, the right dose of skepticism about human nature, tongue-in-cheek, sense of the plot, mastery of the language, eclecticism. The only flaw may be found in a pervasive melancholy and pessimism: there is never sun in these books, only a uniform and pervasive grayness - but I guess the world he describes is of that colour. However, he is one of the most entertaining writers I ever found and I always look for new production of his whenever I enter a bookstore.' A reader
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Matthew, and Alexander Jones (editor), in The Jerusalem Bible, Darton Longman and Todd 1966 Introduction to the Synoptic Gospels: '[Matthew is] a dramatic account in seven acts of the coming of the kingdom of heaven. 1. The preparation of the kingdom in the person of the child-Messiah. . . . 2. the formal proclamation of the charter of the Kingdom i.e. the Sermon on the Mount 3. The preaching of the kingdom by missionaries 4. The obstacles that the kingdom will meet from men 5. Its embryonic existence ... 6. The crisis . .. which is to prepare the way for the definitive coming of the kingdom . . . 7. The coming itself ... through the Passion and resurrection.'
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Qutb, Sayed, Milestones, Islamic Book Service 2006 Amazon book description: 'The author speaks about the unique Quranic generation, the nature of the Quranic method, the characteristics of Islamic society, jihad in the cause of God, and a Muslim s nationality and his belief among other things.'
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Rogan, Eugene, The Arabs: A history, Basic Books 2011 'In this definitive history of the modern Arab world, award-winning historian Eugene Rogan draws extensively on Arab sources and texts to place the Arab experience in its crucial historical context for the first time. Tracing five centuries of Arab history, Rogan reveals that there was an age when the Arabs set the rules for the rest of the world. Today, however, the Arab world’s sense of subjection to external powers carries vast consequences for both the region and Westerners who attempt to control it.'
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