{"id":157,"date":"2006-10-15T21:30:52","date_gmt":"2006-10-15T21:30:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/summametaphysica.com\/ge\/9000-eternal-origins\/9002-fault-line-gap-in-western-philosophical-and-scientific-formulations\/"},"modified":"2018-04-23T20:22:16","modified_gmt":"2018-04-23T20:22:16","slug":"9002-fault-line-gap-in-western-philosophical-and-scientific-formulations","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.summametaphysica.com\/ge\/9000-eternal-origins\/9002-fault-line-gap-in-western-philosophical-and-scientific-formulations\/","title":{"rendered":"90.02 Fault-Line: Gap in Western Philosophical and Scientific Formulations (pps.57-58)"},"content":{"rendered":"

hard cover 57<\/p>\n

90.02 Fault-Line: Gap in Western Philosophical and Scientific Formulations<\/p>\n

One may argue that the development of complex philosophical structures predicated on this unfathomable premise is severely flawed by its failure to explicatein even the broadest of strokes-the existence, or emanation, of a “Somethingness” out of “nothingness,” or the wherefore of “eternalness.” Whether this entity is finite or infinite, existing in-time or outof-time, holy or Holy, where is the bridge from “nothingness” to “Somethingness”? In particular, how does one begin to explain, in even the broadest of strokes, the existence of an infinite Somethingness?<\/p>\n

This severe philosophical “fault-line” runs from Plato through Philo through Spinoza. The gap is not bridged. The situation is somewhat analogous to erecting a magnificent skyscraper with no idea of the parameters of the foundationtheoretically possible, but somewhat inelegant and risky.<\/p>\n

Those who postulate a creation at the hands of an inexplicably eternal God merely shift the origin question to another plane. Whereas before the origins of the universe were unfathomable, now the origins of the Creator of the universe, the Divine, are unfathomable.198 This situation, in turn, is somewhat analogous to that faced by those who “solve” the problem of the origin of evil by postulating Satan as the source of evil. But wherefore Satan?<\/p>\n

It is interesting to note that the problem faced by science regarding the initial origins of the universe, and the problem faced by religion regarding the initial origins of the universe, are strikingly parallel.<\/p>\n

The “Big Bang” theory postulates the origin of the universe in a tiny point of incredible mass. However, science does not go beyond this point. It does not address what existed before the “Big Bang.” Current research in physics leads scientists into searches for smaller and smaller subatomic particles. Refiners of the Big Bang theory postulate that at one point the total matter and energy in the universe fit into one very small point,<\/p>\n

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198 <\/sup>See Davies, God and the New Physics, p. 47.
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hard cover 58<\/div>\n

the ultimate atomic explosive. But where did this point come from? Wherelwhy did the smallest subatomic building block originate? Where\/why did the first pulse of energy originate?199<\/sup><\/p>\n

Why should quantum physics exist at all? As the contemporary physicist Stephen Hawking asks: What “breathed fire” into the equations?<\/p>\n

Mainstream religious doctrine posits the universe as having its origin from an infinite God.200<\/sup> Gersonides maintains that God created the world out of “body which does not preserve its shape.”201<\/sup> But where did this “body” come from? Many religious philosophers, including the early Kalam,202<\/sup> John Philopnus,203<\/sup> Maimonides,204 <\/sup>and the mainstream view of the sages of the Torah205<\/sup> maintain creatio ex nihilo-<\/em>creation by God out of nothingness. However, wherefore the Divine?<\/p>\n

Thus, when stripped to their essentials, both science and religion face the same formidable hurdle. What actualized that which you posit as having always existed? What\/where was the essence of the initial actualization?206 <\/sup>How can any “entity” be posited as having always existed?<\/p>\n

Classic philosophy is caught in a similar trap. Some philosophers maintain that the world has been generated and has passed away an infinite number of times.207<\/sup> But where did the first world originate from? How was the first world actualized? The Neoplatonists maintain that the world was generated by God from something.208<\/sup> This “something” is often referred to as primal matter. But where did this primal matter originate? What are the origins of the God who fashioned this primal matter? Some philosophers, most prominently Aristotle,209<\/sup> maintain that the universe existed eternally. But wherefore the universe? Whyfor this universe? Whyfor any universe? Indeed. whyfor anything at all?210<\/sup><\/p>\n

The “eternal origins” question is in our view the twin intractable problem in religious philosophy to the theodicy question. In our view it is inextricably linked to the theodicy question: the correct solution to either question should yield the solution to the other.<\/p>\n

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199 <\/sup>And indeed, whyfwherefore does spacehime exist at all? While quan- tum physics attempts to address and answer these points, the infrastructure of the “quantum” dovetails neatly with a philosophical formulation predi- cated on the centrality of “(holy) potential” in the cosmic order-the crux of our philosophical construct to follow. See Davies, God and the New Physics, <\/em>chap. 3 (pp. 25-43).<\/p>\n

200 <\/sup>See Wolfson, Religious Philosophy,<\/em> p. 252. “In opposition to Philonism, emanationism denies that God, either after the manner of a potter created the world from a pre-existent matter, or after the manner of a stage-magician created it out of nothing. Emanationism maintains instead that, after the manner of a spider which spins its web out of itself, God caused the world to emanate out of His own essence.”<\/p>\n

201 <\/sup>See Staub, The Creation of the World According to Gersonides, <\/em>p. 51.<\/p>\n

202 <\/sup>Maimonides presents the view of the Kalam in Guide<\/em> 1:73-74.<\/p>\n

203 <\/sup>See De Aeiemitate Mundi, ed. H. Rabe (Leipzig, 1899). pp. 7 ff., as cited in Staub, The Creation of the World According to Gersonides, p. 129, fn. 11.<\/p>\n

204 <\/sup>Guide<\/em> 2: 13-30.<\/p>\n

205 <\/sup>See Staub’s discussion in The Creation of the World According to Gersonides,<\/em> p. 130, n. 13.<\/p>\n

206 <\/sup>See Stephen Toulmin, Foresight and Understanding<\/em> (New York: Harper & Row, 1961), p. 42. “There must always be some point in a scientist’s explanation where he comes to a stop: beyond this point, if he is pressed to explain further the fundamental basis of his explanation, he can say only that he has reached rock bottom.”<\/p>\n

207 <\/sup>Aristotle attributes this view to Empedocles and Heraclitus. Maimon- ides (Guide<\/em> 2:13) treats this as a view of some of the rabbis. For fuller treatment, see Staub, The Creation of the World According to Gersonides,<\/em> p. 129, fn. 8.<\/p>\n

208 <\/sup>Timaeus<\/em> 48-53c. For fuller discussion, see ibid., p. 129, n. 9.<\/p>\n

209 <\/sup>Physica<\/em> 8.1-10; De Caelo 1.10-12; Metaphysica<\/em> 12.6-1 0. Cf. Guide<\/em> 2: 13. As cited by Staub, The Creation of the World According to Gersonides<\/em>, p. 130, n. 14.<\/p>\n

210 <\/sup>See Davies, God and the New Physics, <\/em>p. 46.<\/p>\n

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hard cover 57 90.02 Fault-Line: Gap in Western Philosophical and Scientific Formulations One may argue that the development of complex philosophical structures predicated on this unfathomable premise is severely flawed by its failure to explicatein even the broadest of strokes-the existence, or emanation, of a “Somethingness” out of “nothingness,” or the wherefore of “eternalness.” Whether […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":50,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":[],"yoast_head":"\n90.02 Fault-Line: Gap in Western Philosophical and Scientific Formulations (pps.57-58) - David Birnbaum Summa Metaphysica I<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.summametaphysica.com\/ge\/9000-eternal-origins\/9002-fault-line-gap-in-western-philosophical-and-scientific-formulations\/\" \/>\n<link rel=\"next\" href=\"https:\/\/www.summametaphysica.com\/ge\/9000-eternal-origins\/9002-fault-line-gap-in-western-philosophical-and-scientific-formulations\/2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"90.02 Fault-Line: Gap in Western Philosophical and Scientific Formulations (pps.57-58) - 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