Speaking Without Words
The heavens declare the glory of God Psalm 19:2 (Hebrew text)
Declare – One of the faithful members of our worldwide community sent me this intriguing quote:
“The Mystery of Dark Matter
Something strange is afoot in modern cosmology. Scientists insist that 96% of the universe’s mass is actually invisible, detectable only through its gravitational influence on ordinary visible matter. So what is this mysterious “dark matter” and “dark energy”? While all kinds of theories abound, Deno Kazanis, author of The Reintegration of Science and Spirituality, believes that scientists may actually be stumbling upon the subtle energy bodies that mystics have spoken of for millennia:
Our ability to see, touch, taste, smell, and hear the world is really only due to atoms’ electric charge. And because objects on the atomic level interact through electric forces, if there’s no such force present, then objects can literally pass right through each other…. What intrigues me is that dark matter, being invisible and not able to produce light or any type of electromagnetic waves, means that this is a substance that is not composed of any electric charge. That’s what the invisibility tells you about it-it has no charge whatsoever. Its presence is determined by its gravity, which is an enormous amount, yet the material itself is totally invisible. So it occurred to me that when the mystics were talking about subtle bodies interpenetrating with our visible body, the only way that could be possible would be if these bodies were made up of something other than charged matter. And dark matter would fit that category quite well.”
Do you suppose the there is a connection between what can’t be seen but affects everything that is – and what can’t be heard but declares the God who made it? It wouldn’t surprise me. The deeper we are able to look into the physics of the cosmos, the stranger it becomes. But that doesn’t surprise me either. God does things in ways we could never imagine. In fact, even our words fail us when it comes to elucidating His complex simplicity. Maybe we need to be much more like the psalmist – and just look at it!
The Hebrew phrase is hashamayim mesaprim (the heavens declare). But the verb sofer means more than verbalize. Actually, this verb is used to describe taking a census, numbering objects, relating important information, recounting steps in the walk of life and communicating dreams. Think for a moment about the visible but unspoken aspects of these actions. All the faces of millions of people. The intensity and animation of the messenger. The passion accompanying the Lord’s intervention and guidance in life. The mystery of dreams. Wrap all that up and you might start to see some of the “dark matter” of God; the gravity of greatness surrounding all that is. Invisibly wonderful.
The heavens declare in ways that we cannot speak – but we can certainly know.
Topical Index: declare, sofer, heavens, Psalm 19:1, Psalm 19:2
There’s some mind-bending stuff here today! And yet I sense that it confirms God’s word in Psalm 8:1, “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Thy name in all the earth, Who hast displayed Thy splendor above the heavens!” God will NOT fit in the box we tend to put Him in. His greatness is unsearchable! (Ps 145:3)
6:44 am
“Mystery of Dark Matter” ties the last few “Skip Moen’s” together for me.
Speaking of “existential contingency,” I fancied myself a Sartrean existentialist atheist back in 1979 when I spent the summer in Madrid. (Still love Sartre BTW)
I had been teaching in the Humanities Department at UCSD for 6 years (Jews and Greeks, Rome and the Middle Ages, Renaissance, Enlightenment, etc) so I had seen the pictures and read the books.
But when I walked into the Prado or the great Cathedrals, I was overwhelmed by their spiritual impact and transcendent beauty.
I sensed the presence of God and something told me that this art and architecture was not the work of man alone.
At the time I found the Greek worldview most interesting (Odysseus + Socrates), but I was always attracted to the Jewish worldview as well – old and modern (eg Freud + Marx).
The spiritual connection I experienced so strongly in Europe on my first trip has always stayed with me to a greater or lesser extent (30 years).
But I must admit that over the last 5 years Skip has converted me to the Jewish world view and greatly increased my understanding and appreciation of the Bible.
Not to mention the significance of Yahweh and Yeshua.
And my sense is the dark matter is not so far away.
The watch I wear on my wrist declares a watch factory somewhere. It was first seen in the mind of someone, then all the tiny pieces and part were intricately woven to form a functional watch. Beauty was also part of the process to make a watch that was not only functional but also pleasing to the eye. If I were to painstakingly disassemble this watch and place it in a cup for a couple of million,billion or trillion years-even if all the proper parts were available, they would still need to be assembled by someone. The creation declares a creator. Someone with amazing creative power. This is a big world and yet it is also a speck of cosmic dust when compared with just the “known” universe. I personally believe one of the reasons for our “forever” life will be a constant discovery and delight of our Father’s creativity in what He provides for His children.
We love G-d’s creation. However, even though it is vast and complex, inviting and challenging, it is still only part of the story the Artist displays. Think of all G-d has invested in building the church- His chozim. Think of Calvary- known unto the mind of G-d from the beginning of creation. And then, behold what manner of love has been bestowed on us that we should be called the children of G-d and to address this mighty G-d as “our Father.”
Today, we too can say, “rejoice in the LORD always, and again I say rejoice!”
p.s. The Book also declares in the Brit Chadashah (New Covenant Scriptures),“by Him all things consist.” Colossians 1.17 What keeps those tiny atoms from collapsing or coming apart, seeing there is a positive charge at the center and a negative charge rotating at high speed around the positive center?
You guys are amazing. It’s so cool to see that really deep science comes face to face with the mystery of God.
Skip
I often wonder if God doesn’t find his creation totally amusing. Every time science “discovers” something amazing, He must chuckle at the “ah ha moment” much like a parent who watches her toddler playing peek-a-boo (where’d he go – HERE I am). May we ever delight in the mystery, the complexity, and the congruence of creation. May we ever seek the face of God!
I love Skip’s physics stuff! Being long interested in biological sciences, health and healing, it dawned on me one day that physics preceded biology. “Let there be light” Light is a weird thing that only physics can really explain, and then not very well. Light preceded everything except for “and God said”.
I believe we are going to see most of the true medical breakthroughs come not from trying to change a persons biology ala pharmaceuticals, but by changing their physics; brainwaves being one of the most significant. Check out http://www.brainstatetechnologies.com to see what I mean.
So do I. Before I started reading Skip about 5 – 6 years ago, I spent several years reading books like The Tao of Physics by Fritjof Capra. Capra’s book is full of little gems like the following from Lao Tzu:
‘The sage carries on his business without action and gives his teachings without words.’ (p. 117)
At the time, the relationship between Wu Wei and Yahweh came to mind. Guess I’ll have to get The Reintegration of Science and Spirituality. And return to the Tao 🙂