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Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

prospectmagazine.co.uk

191–200 of 376 posts

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#191

In math there is the concept of having a first element of a series and no one questions what was the element before the first element because if you can find an element before the first element then by definition that element you thought was first is not the first. In light of this when people try to disprove God by saying then who created God. God is the first element so if you find out that who you think your God i…

In set theory maybe, but in category theory the universe can create itself.

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#192
post #189

In math there is the concept of having a first element of a series and no one questions what was the element before the first element because if you can find an element before the first element then by definition that element you thought was first is not the first. In light of this when people try to disprove God by saying then who created God. God is the first element so if you find out that who you think your God i…

> In math there is the concept of having a first element... There is also the mathematical concept of not having a first element of a sequence, where each element has an infinite number of elements indexed before it. You seem to be arguing that the existence of a mathematical concept implies that the universe must follow it. In this case, you have one concept that implies a first element and another that implies no f…

No, he’s implying that an infinite series doesn’t have to be infinite in both directions to be infinite.

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#193

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that there might be a god, but why would such a god that can transcends time and logic.. care about humans? Humans are just a type of animal, an advanced organism, in biological terms we are not too different from bacteria, trees and sheep. That there is a first element seems natural, however why should this first element to care about the 100010847238384392938474934th element?

I’ve never understood this argument. What else would god “care” about, if not the only truly sentient creature that we know of? Trillions of light years of pointless rock with a few Apes in the middle who can contemplate God. Seems pretty damn special fo me.

Look at your kitchen sink. On that metal lives a billion bacteria cells. Maybe some of them are even sentient. Do you even care to find out? Not really - its far beneath you. Humans are infinitely inferior to a god. We are no different to a moving rock.

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#194

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that there might be a god, but why would such a god that can transcends time and logic.. care about humans? Humans are just a type of animal, an advanced organism, in biological terms we are not too different from bacteria, trees and sheep. That there is a first element seems natural, however why should this first element to care about the 100010847238384392938474934th element?

I’ve never understood this argument. What else would god “care” about, if not the only truly sentient creature that we know of? Trillions of light years of pointless rock with a few Apes in the middle who can contemplate God. Seems pretty damn special fo me.

I think God just cares about self reproduction, not of a specific species but in general. But I would rather consider this a natural force like a locally reversed entropy instead of a sentient agent who acts on the world.

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#195

In math there is the concept of having a first element of a series and no one questions what was the element before the first element because if you can find an element before the first element then by definition that element you thought was first is not the first. In light of this when people try to disprove God by saying then who created God. God is the first element so if you find out that who you think your God i…

I agree that there might be a god, but why would such a god that can transcends time and logic.. care about humans? Humans are just a type of animal, an advanced organism, in biological terms we are not too different from bacteria, trees and sheep. That there is a first element seems natural, however why should this first element to care about the 100010847238384392938474934th element?

In terms of the Islamic tradition, Allah [lit. The God] is both transcendent and immanent.

Quran 50:16 states that Allah is closer to man than his jugular vein and Quran 2:115 states that wherever you turn, there is the Face of Allah.

Now to answer why He cares, the Quran states that He specifically created mankind to know Him.

And indeed, the recurring injunction in the Quran is to remember Allah, because you already know Him—Quran 7:172 states that we testified to His Lordship in a pre-birth state.

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#196

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve never understood this argument. What else would god “care” about, if not the only truly sentient creature that we know of? Trillions of light years of pointless rock with a few Apes in the middle who can contemplate God. Seems pretty damn special fo me.

Look at your kitchen sink. On that metal lives a billion bacteria cells. Maybe some of them are even sentient. Do you even care to find out? Not really - its far beneath you. Humans are infinitely inferior to a god. We are no different to a moving rock.

You're assuming God's values though.

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#197

In math there is the concept of having a first element of a series and no one questions what was the element before the first element because if you can find an element before the first element then by definition that element you thought was first is not the first. In light of this when people try to disprove God by saying then who created God. God is the first element so if you find out that who you think your God i…

I was raised in the evangelical Christian tradition and have since had my views broken down and rebuilt numerous times. I am still seeking. I am ignorant about Islam, other than the way it is represented in popular media and from some basic readings.

Your descriptions of God are interesting. Are these concepts that come from reading the Koran?

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#198
I have a problem with this article because of the sentence, "He loathed groupthink and thought most organised religion, not least of the Judeo-Christian kind, fuelled delusion and sectarianism".

I don't have the words to unpack the problems with the term "Judeo-Christian" myself, so I'll leave it to Emily Burack at Alma: https://www.heyalma.com/the-myth-of-judeo-christianity-expla...

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#199

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that there might be a god, but why would such a god that can transcends time and logic.. care about humans? Humans are just a type of animal, an advanced organism, in biological terms we are not too different from bacteria, trees and sheep. That there is a first element seems natural, however why should this first element to care about the 100010847238384392938474934th element?

In terms of the Islamic tradition, Allah [lit. The God] is both transcendent and immanent. Quran 50:16 states that Allah is closer to man than his jugular vein and Quran 2:115 states that wherever you turn, there is the Face of Allah. Now to answer why He cares, the Quran states that He specifically created mankind to know Him. And indeed, the recurring injunction in the Quran is to remember Allah, because you alread…

This is a tangent, but I don't have many opportunities to speak to people knowledgeable of Islam. Is there a concept of original sin in Islam? Do we need to seek forgiveness or salvation?

Re: Spinoza’s God: Einstein believed in it, but what was it?

#200

In math there is the concept of having a first element of a series and no one questions what was the element before the first element because if you can find an element before the first element then by definition that element you thought was first is not the first. In light of this when people try to disprove God by saying then who created God. God is the first element so if you find out that who you think your God i…

The problem you describe works in both directions though. If God is introduced to explain, say, the existence of the Universe, and you’re not allowed to ask what created God or why God exists, then why not just say you’re not allowed to ask what created the Universe or why the Universe exists?
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