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Question Title	Posted By	Question Date
Change	Dominic	Friday, June 15, 2007
Question: There exists in our world a certain number of physical laws that, even if we stubbornly reject them, regiment our everyday lives whether we like it or not. There are certainly many things yet to discover but we know these laws are universal. We also know that the universe is in perpetual change. ‘Without change, there would be no growth, no life, no death _ nothing.’ (in “Confirmation”, page 258, by Khephra Burns and Susan L. Taylor). Time is perpetual change. We are the children of Time. If Time didn’t exist, neither would we. If time were to ‘stand still’ at this very instant, I would be “frozen” in front of my typewriter forever and ever. I would no longer write, no longer grow, no longer breath, no longer live. The Earth would be an inert chunk of matter forever stopped in its orbit like some sort of ball pinned to a giant blackboard. Time and metamorphosis are one and the same. Nothing really dies or is newly born. Everything merely changes incessantly from one form to another. That is the magic of Time and Nature. We can comprehend that there is no change without time and no time without change. We can ask, what came first, time or change? Did time appear at the ‘big bang’? One thing is certain, if time appeared at the ‘big bang’ so did change. And if time existed before then, there must have been change there too, where ever ‘there’ was. If there is a relation between time and God, and between God and creation, then we can establish certain connections. If God exists (in the unique God hypothesis) and if God is timeless (a-temporal or eternal) then God is not of this universe. This world being of change and therefore temporal, an eternal God cannot be of this world. Secondly, if God is of this world, if He is temporal then God is of change. In other words, God must also follow the laws of change. Whatever the forms, shapes, and matters He may be made of, accumulated or condensed into one ‘bundle’ or not, He must undergo change. He will undergo changes in aging, deterioration, regeneration and so on.
Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM Dear Dominic: God is not part of this universe. He is beyond it, outside of it. An artist is not part of his sculpture (although an image or fingerprint of the artist can be found in the sculpture), the sculpture is part of the artist; the artist is outside of the reality of the sculpture. God always existed; He is eternal. He does not live within the time/space continuum. He is beyond all that, He is the creator of all that. Thus, time (and space) came into existence because God created it. If the beginning of that existence began with the Big Bang or some other beginning then so be it. Whenever, and however, God created the material world, that is when time began. Time will end eventually when this material world comes to an end and we are all in eternity in which time will no longer exist. Thus, time and space belongs to the material world and exists only as long as the material world exists. When God became man, God entered the material world and did, in fact, subject himself to the changes of there material world -- birth, growth, pain, suffering, joys, sorrows, persecution, deterioration, death. Jesus, however did not remain locked into the material world. He resurrected from the dead, and ascended back into heaven and thus conquered the limitations of the material world and of death and returned to a state outside of the material world. Someday we will join that state beyond the material world when we are resurrected at the end of time and entered into eternity with God or without Him as the case may be. God Bless, Bro. Ignatius Mary Footer Notes: This forum is for general questions on the faith. See specific Topic Forums below: Spiritual Warfare, demons, the occult go to our Spiritul Warfare Q&S Forum. Liturgy Questions go to our Liturgy and Liturgical Law Q&A Forum Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office) Questions go to our Divine Office Q&A Forum Defenfing the Faith Questions go to our Defending the Faith Q&A Forum Church History Questions go to our Church History Q&A Forum

Question Title

Posted By

Question Date

Change

Dominic

Friday, June 15, 2007

Question:

There exists in our world a certain number of physical laws that, even if we stubbornly reject them, regiment our everyday lives whether we like it or not. There are certainly many things yet to discover but we know these laws are universal. We also know that the universe is in perpetual change. ‘Without change, there would be no growth, no life, no death _ nothing.’ (in “Confirmation”, page 258, by Khephra Burns and Susan L. Taylor). Time is perpetual change.
We are the children of Time.

If Time didn’t exist, neither would we. If time were to ‘stand still’ at this very instant, I would be “frozen” in front of my typewriter forever and ever. I would no longer write, no longer grow, no longer breath, no longer live. The Earth would be an inert chunk of matter forever stopped in its orbit like some sort of ball pinned to a giant blackboard.

Time and metamorphosis are one and the same. Nothing really dies or is newly born. Everything merely changes incessantly from one form to another. That is the magic of Time and Nature.

We can comprehend that there is no change without time and no time without change. We can ask, what came first, time or change? Did time appear at the ‘big bang’? One thing is certain, if time appeared at the ‘big bang’ so did change. And if time existed before then, there must have been change there too, where ever ‘there’ was.

If there is a relation between time and God, and between God and creation, then we can establish certain connections.

If God exists (in the unique God hypothesis) and if God is timeless (a-temporal or eternal) then God is not of this universe. This world being of change and therefore temporal, an eternal God cannot be of this world.

Secondly, if God is of this world, if He is temporal then God is of change. In other words, God must also follow the laws of change. Whatever the forms, shapes, and matters He may be made of, accumulated or condensed into one ‘bundle’ or not, He must undergo change. He will undergo changes in aging, deterioration, regeneration and so on.

Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM

Dear Dominic:

God is not part of this universe. He is beyond it, outside of it. An artist is not part of his sculpture (although an image or fingerprint of the artist can be found in the sculpture), the sculpture is part of the artist; the artist is outside of the reality of the sculpture.

God always existed; He is eternal. He does not live within the time/space continuum. He is beyond all that, He is the creator of all that.

Thus, time (and space) came into existence because God created it. If the beginning of that existence began with the Big Bang or some other beginning then so be it. Whenever, and however, God created the material world, that is when time began.

Time will end eventually when this material world comes to an end and we are all in eternity in which time will no longer exist.

Thus, time and space belongs to the material world and exists only as long as the material world exists.

When God became man, God entered the material world and did, in fact, subject himself to the changes of there material world -- birth, growth, pain, suffering, joys, sorrows, persecution, deterioration, death. Jesus, however did not remain locked into the material world. He resurrected from the dead, and ascended back into heaven and thus conquered the limitations of the material world and of death and returned to a state outside of the material world. Someday we will join that state beyond the material world when we are resurrected at the end of time and entered into eternity with God or without Him as the case may be.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary

Footer Notes: This forum is for general questions on the faith. See specific Topic Forums below:
Spiritual Warfare, demons, the occult go to our Spiritul Warfare Q&S Forum.
Liturgy Questions go to our Liturgy and Liturgical Law Q&A Forum
Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office) Questions go to our Divine Office Q&A Forum
Defenfing the Faith Questions go to our Defending the Faith Q&A Forum
Church History Questions go to our Church History Q&A Forum