MATTER/DARK MATTER – DOES IT MATTER?

What is matter anyway? Einstein theorized that all matter is simply constructed from energy. Does that make sense to you? We think of objects in the terms of the whole. Certainly, we understand that a car, for example, is constructed from many parts, but where is the energy? If two cars collide, pieces of the car are scattered in the area. There is also sound and a certain amount of light and heat associated with the collision. Sound is really energy traveling through the air, and if loud enough it can cause damage. We usually can understand that heat is energy; who has not been cold in a very overcast day, only to be warmed if the sun suddenly breaks through the clouds and sunlight hits us. So, light, too, is a form of energy traveling through the air.  

Back to the wrecked car that is now in pieces. We pick up a piece of metal, which is now simply a mass of iron, or maybe aluminum, with, perhaps, a few other metal s mixed in. We pick up a piece of glass, which is silicon. We pick up a piece of plastic, and know it is made of carbon and oxygen, maybe with a few other constituents. All of these elements are much too small to see individuals, but working together they form a solid piece called matter.

Now we take our car pieces to a laboratory. It takes some pretty elaborate equipment, but we separated and look at a few element atoms. We discover that each atom consists of a positively charged nucleus and surrounding negatively charged electrons. We also discover that the nucleus is actually made up of positively charged electrons. The only real difference between our iron, aluminum, silica, carbon, and oxygen atoms is the number of positive electrons in the nucleus!

The number of laboratories in the world that can go farther begins to decrease, but we can actually continue breaking down the wrecked car pieces. We find, for example, that the oxygen nucleus is about five femtometers in diameter. I don’t know about you, but I can’t think that small! I can think down to one millimeter, because a ruler is divided to that extent. However, there are 1 billion femtometers in one millimeter! (I can’t think that large either!) The electrons are only about one hundredth of the size of the nucleus. Yet, now equipment exists to study the properties of electrons, and it turns out they are made up of even smaller particles. So far as I know, there is only one lab in the world that can study these smaller particles by causing them to collide at near the speed of light. When this happens, they are, basically, dissipated into energy!

Conclusion: Einstein was correct and matter is nothing more and nothing less than organized energy!

What about the so-called dark matter? Astrophysical measurements and calculations during recent years indicate there is something in the universe that can’t be seen or measured in any way. It has been labeled “dark matter,” but what is it? How does it differ from solid matter? 

Matter can be seen, felt, and measured, but is it really solid? What is “solid” matter, anyway?  It has been concluded that matter is nothing but energy, but matter sure feels solid! It feels solid simply because the energy is organized, and the organization is controlled by a balance between attractive and repulsive forces. For example, gravity is simply a convenient way to express the attractive forces between bodies. We stay on the surface as a result of repulsive forces between bundles of energy. If this balance were to disappear we would either migrate to the center of earth or fly off into space. In either case we would likely disintegrate into our component energy. 

 Returning to dark matter, apparently, these attractive and repulsive forces do not exist. As a result, there is nothing to reflect light and therefore nothing to see, either visibly or with any instrument currently available. Were we to touch this dark matter, our hand would pass through it and we would never know it was there. Likewise, it could be constantly passing through us unknown. We do know there are cosmic particles that pass right through the earth unchanged without having any effect on it.

One can only conclude that dark matter may be no more and no less than a collection of unorganized energy. It could be left-over energy from the beginning, or it might be the result of some matter having been annihilated.

Thus, whatever its source and make-up, whether dark matter matters depends on its role in the universe (and, of course, whether funding agencies feel it important enough to provide scientists with the funds necessary for its study).

The greatest questions are: 1. What is the source of all this energy?  2. How would it have appeared suddenly into nothingness? And, greatest of all, 3. How would this energy have spontaneously become organized into our universe’s many forms of matter?

{Additional comments on this subject can be found in “Scripture Versus Science: Reconciling God’s Ancient Wisdom With a Modern World View.”}

WAS IT EVOLUTION?

(Excerpted from "Scripture versus Science: Reconciling God's Ancient Wisdom With a Modern world View")

Many of the world’s biologists claim that the fact of evolution is settled. They hold firmly to evolution being a provable fact. In another blog I have pointed out that there is no physical evidence of an evolutionary process, let alone a testable hypothesis of how it happened. Their conclusion is based primarily on two general observations. Similarities between divergent species have long been considered an indication of a relationship of some kind. Now that the human and many animal genomes have been mapped, the striking similarities between the DNA of all animals is taken as proof of evolution. The high correlation between the DNA of humans and primates in particular has been taken as evidence of common ancestry. Let us consider the DNA observations.

Jeremiah it told to "go to the potter's House." (Jeremiah 18:2), so let's do likewise. What do we see there? A potter throws an appropriate quantity of clay onto a spinning disk and begins to shape it into the desired form. As skilled fingers work, an urn, for example, begins to take shape. If that isn't working right the potter may decide to make a cup instead. The process remains exactly the same, but the slight changes create a different product.  Only the quantity of clay used and the finishing touches differ.

The finishing touches are what make each product unique. Each piece of pottery is one of many, perhaps a group of containers or perhaps a group of gallon jugs. In all pieces the production process is identical. Whether a part of a generic group or a specific use group, however, the potter imparts a unique personality onto the piece. Every living organism, whether under the classification of the animal kingdom or Homo sapians has some degree of similarity. Likewise, every living organism is unique in some small detail. Humans are all basically of the same form, and at a larger scale we are even similar to all mammals. Two people may look similar, but there is always some difference between them. Every individual on the earth is unique in some way.

As biological scientists have unraveled the complexity of DNA, they have discovered that all animals have a similar pattern, and human DNA differs only slightly from that of primates. This has been used to “prove” that humans did not arise through intelligent design, but evolved from an ancestor common to the primates. However, this proves nothing other than a person’s inability to consider the option of intelligent design. If one applies a bit of logic, would it not make sense to find that all animals have similar DNA? Why would a designer alter the basic structure of a successful design? A potter does not redesign the entire process when embarking on production of a new piece. Does a builder redesign the basic structure for every new construction project? Would a scientist design a new protocol for every potential research project? Of course not. No matter how simple or complex a project may be, the starting point is the same for all similar endeavors. Only the details are altered to fit the requirements of the project at hand.

Despite the claims of biological scientists, similarities in animal genomes do not prove they were created in an evolutionary process. In fact, sections of the genome that have been considered “junk DNA” have recently been found to be the instructions for creating a unique individual, so our DNA is not so similar to primates as scientists had previously assumed. It must be recognized that whether humans were formed through intelligent design via DNA manipulation (supposedly evolution) or by some kind of spontaneous creation process, similarities in the gene sequence would be logically expected.

As pointed out in another blog, a major problem with the traditional evolution theory is that it requires a series of mutations to explain the transformation of one species into another. Theoretically, slow change is a possibility, but since any hypothesis of the formation process is based on observations, we must consider the observation that only very rarely do mutations result in a viable organisms. Mutations are almost always fatal to the offspring. Any evolutionary process should be supported by finding organisms with properties intermediate between the assumed parent and offspring. This criticism is answered by assuming that changes occurred rapidly, so few intermediate species existed from which fossils would be formed. The problem here is that a series of nonfatal mutations would have been required, and if single nonfatal mutations are rare, a series of such mutations over a short period of time would be extremely improbable, unless controlled through intelligent design.

To compound the problem at hand, and to enable the reproduction system, similar evolution had to happen simultaneously to a woman and a man; otherwise their children would be some kind of hybrid and could not create human offspring that were duplicates of themselves. On the other hand, if the genes were carefully adjusted to form a human, would it not be a simple matter of changing the Y-DNA that defines a man into the mitochondrial DNA that defines a woman?

Within either the plant or animal kingdom, one would expect DNA commonality to increase with the degree to which two organisms share similarities. It should be expected that humans share some DNA characteristics with cows or elephants.This similarity should not be used as proof of a common ancestor. It can be considered as evidence of intelligent design. In reality, evolutionary changes by natural alterations of DNA to form humans are infinitely improbable. When biological scientists insist that all life forms are the result of an evolutionary process, they are actually admitting that there is an intelligent designer in charge of things.

The Big Bang Theory

As you hear talk about The Big Bang, you need to realize and remember that this is not a fact, but only a theory of how the universe was created. Over the years there have been many theories put forth, and there are currently other theories. The Big Bang is only the currently most popular theory, and as such it has, since the mid-1900s, been the most studied theory. As it has developed, the theory does have many points in its favor, but like all other theories it contains some problems. The most problemic is in the event proposed.

Stephen Hawking ranks right with Einstein as a primary theoretician of recent centuries, and he is one of those who have been studying the theory. His calculations have said that, prior to the event, there was nothing: no space, no time, no mass . . . nothing! In microseconds, out of nothing the foundation of our entire universe suddenly appeared! This is a major problem with The Big Bang theory, as well as with every beginnings theory ever developed. Things simply don't arise from nothing! Reason says it can't happen. Research says it can't happen. Thermodynamics says it can't happen. If you asked him, Hawking would probably tell you it can't happen - yet, his calculations say that it did!

The underlying problem is that we are trying to explain something of which we have no knowledge and we have no way of gaining event knowledge. Our attempt to understand the event can only be through examining events which occur today and gradually work our way backwards to the original event. This requires a paradigm that all reactions are unchanging through time. But what if they have changed? Many calculation involve the speed of light. What if the speed of light approached infinity during the first microsecond of the creation event, and has been hyperbolicly slowing since that time? (This has been suggested by a few.) By now it would be effectively constant over the several centuries since it was first measured, and all historical measurements using speed of light would be in error. Light travels in a straight line and it's path can only be altered by passing through a boundary between substances of differing density. What if the boundary at the edge of our universe actually reflects light? In this case the universe might be much smaller than calculated. Both events are unlikely, but we cannot know they are absolutely impossible, because we have no way to test the possibility. What these points do demonstrate is the problem with using an incorrect paradigm when making theoretical calculations of events that can not be reproduced.

When it comes to the origin of the universe, we have only theories and calculations - we have no real knowledge. In the bible the Lord asks Job, "Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?" (Job 38:2) He then goes on to ask a series of questions, to which no human, even today, has the information necessary for an answer. A few astrophysicists have suggest the existence of multiple universes, some of which may actually coexist with ours. While this seems unlikely, most, if not all, societies believe in some kind of heaven supervised by a god. Would not a heaven be a coexisting universe? In the Judaeo-Christian tradition, an all powerful God is recognized and worshiped. To fit all biblical descriptions of God, there would need to be no space, so time, and no mass in heaven. So far as we know, there is only one thing remaining upon which a universe might exist, that being energy. Einstein theorized that all mass is, basically, organized energy, and this has been proven true. Could initiation of our universe possibly be the result of an all-powerful God simply gathering some energy from what we call heaven and, in an event we are calling The Big Bang, setting into motion the organization of this energy to form mass? All of time and space are mass dependent, so would follow that event.

Just something to think about!

"Scripture Versus Science" on YouTube

The name of the game is marketing. A video trailer for my book, "Scripture Versus Science," has now been produced.
http://youtu.be/eMRuhvAj4F4

WHAT IS HEAVEN LIKE?

    Some physicists have been suggesting that there may be other universes co-existing with us. Would they be describing Heaven and Hell? To fit biblical descriptions, Heaven and Hell would need to be entirely spiritual in nature. For all descriptions of God and Heaven to be accurate, Heaven’s reality would have to exclude both time and space. (see chapter 4 of Scripture “Versus Science: Reconciling God’s Ancient Wisdom with a Modern World View”) It can probably be safely said that both are something completely different from anything we have experienced in this world. The Bible does contain hints of what we will find.

    The popular idea usually expressed is that St. Peter will meet us at the Pearly Gates. The probable source of this concept is Rev. 21:21 “The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate made of a single pearl.” The 12 gates of the heavenly city are made of pearls, but they will be guarded by angels, not Peter.

    (Rev 21:10-12 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates.)

In other words, we may not see the pearly gates when we die, but when the New Jerusalem appears at the end.

    The Book of Life will be opened to check whether we should be there, but that might also occur at the end.

    (Rev. 20:11-15 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.)

    You will commonly read or hear that everyone will get a harp. There is evidence that we will be spending a lot of time praising God. Psalms lists the harp as one of the instruments of praise. In Rev 15:2-3 (I saw what looked like a sea of glass glowing with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and its image and over the number of its name. They held harps given them by God and sang the song of God’s servant Moses and of the Lamb) It has been claimed that we will be is constant worship of God, but this is not completely clear. It may be only the four living creatures and the elders who are in constant worship. However, we might also ask what constant would mean in heaven, since this indicated time.

    The only other reverence to harps in Rev indicates they are held by the living creatures and 24 elders. (Rev:5:6-8 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits[a] of God sent out into all the earth. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. 8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.)  

    Everyone dressed in white, indicating purity. This is consistent with the bible, mentioned a number of times in a variety of situations.

    We will receive “our” wings upon arrival. Doubtful. It appears that only a few angels and the four living creatures have wings. It would appear that even angels do not commonly have wings. Who/what does?

    Ezek 1:4-9 I looked, and I saw a windstorm coming out of the north—an immense cloud with flashing lightning and surrounded by brilliant light. The center of the fire looked like glowing metal, and in the fire was what looked like four living creatures. In appearance their form was human, but each of them had four faces and four wings. Their legs were straight; their feet were like those of a calf and gleamed like burnished bronze. Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. All four of them had faces and wings,  and the wings of one touched the wings of another. Each one went straight ahead; they did not turn as they moved.

    Ezek 10:3-5 Now the cherubim were standing on the south side of the temple when the man went in, and a cloud filled the inner court. Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The cloud filled the temple, and the court was full of the radiance of the glory of the Lord. The sound of the wings of the cherubim could be heard as far away as the outer court, like the voice of God Almighty[a] when he speaks.

    Ezekiel’s descriptions are pretty interesting, and cherubim are certainly not quaint little sprite which shoots love arrows. They would be very frightening. Cherubim are mentioned frequently in the old testament, and there were two Cherubim mounted on the Ark of Covenant. Ezekiel indicates that the Cherubim have two wings, and the four living creatures have four, but he also indicates the two are the same thing. Any others?

    Isa 6:1-2 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.

    This is the only mention of Seraphim having wings.

    Rev 4:8 Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under its wings.

    Is there a Purgatory? There may be some justification of this concept in that The Revelation seems to indicate that all will be judged at the same time. However, experiential reports of those having had some kind of near death experience indicate that they went to Heaven before returning to life. It is clear, though, that everyone will be judged on the basis of their deeds while living. It is unlikely that family or friends can alter, in any way, a person’s fate while in this waiting period.

    I Thes 4:16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

Rev. 20:11-12 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.

    “90 Minutes in Heaven”, “Heaven is Real” are two highly recommended books for those who want to understand what happens. The author of the former found himself standing and talking to family, friends, and those whom he had somehow touched. They were outside a city wall, and he returned to life before entering the gate. “Heaven is Real” is about a 5 year old who was taken up while is a critical operation, and sat in the lap of Jesus during the procedure. The things he told his father after return agreed with scripture, and they were things that he had not yet been taught prior to the experience.

    John 14:1-3 Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

    This passage relates to church being the bride of Christ. There are a variety of New Testament passages comparing bride/groom relationships to our relationship to Christ.

Rewards: What we do on earth will not get us into heaven – only our belief and faith in Christ will do that. However, it is clear throughout the New Testament that our work here will be rewarded in Heaven. What the rewards might be is not known, but I Cor 3:8 says, The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. This is only one reference to treasures in Heaven, although the bible never really says what the treasures are, and there are references to receiving a crown, perhaps the nature of which will indicate our works here.

    So . . . what do we know?

1    1.      Heaven has to be spiritual – no space, no time. 

      2.    St. Peter will not be at the pearly gate, it will be guarded by angels.             

3.      We may not see any pearly gates until the New Jerusalem is revealed. 
4.      If our name is not in the Book of Life we will not be admitted to Heaven. This book might not be opened until the end, though.
5.      Our deeds are being recorded, and might determine our Heavenly rewards. 
6.      It is unlikely that we will be wearing wings. 
7.      Will we be given a harp and will we be in constant worship? Scripture is not completely clear, so this is unknown. 
8. we are accountable for our actions, but no one can stand before a perfect and Holy God and plead admission on the basis of their actions. No matter how good our life may be, not one person goes to the grave as a perfect individual. It is only through Christ that we will be considered perfect by our Holy and Perfect God.                        

What happened to the Ark of the Covenant?

     In 1981 a wonderful and exciting adventure film hit the theaters – Raiders of the Lost Ark. The production was Lucas and Spielberg at their best as they expanded on a mystery arising in Jewish History. Unlike other societies at the time, the Israelites were instructed to never make and worship idols. Instead, they were to construct a box (ark) approximately 27 inches wide, 27 inches high, and 42 inches long. This box was to be covered with gold, and the stone tablets given to Moses were to be placed in it. This was to represent the presence of God among the Israelites.

     The Ark traveled with the Israelites, often going to war with them, until finally being placed in the inner sanctuary (Holy of Holies) in Solomon’ newly built temple. After this event, there is only one historic record of the Ark. All other mentions thereafter were in terms of its memory. This has led to many theories regarding its movement or presence.

     During the twentieth century an interesting theory was developed, and Raiders of the Lost Ark used this theory as the setting for the movie. According to this theory, one of the things that King Solomon gave to the Queen of Sheba (1 Kings 10:13) was a son. Late in King Solomon’s reign the son came to visit him, having replaced his mother as regent of Sheba. At this time Solomon gave his son the Ark of the Covenant to protect it from the conflicts raging across Israel. The one thing that could support this theory is the record that Solomon was drawn away from God late in his reign (1 Kings 11:9-10). There are, however, several problems with this theory.

1) The land is recorded as being at peace during Solomon’s rule.  He did have problems with Edom late in his reign, but that does not seem serious enough to threaten Jerusalem.

2. When the Solomon’s temple was dedicated, the Glory (Spirit?) of God occupied the new center of worship (2 Chronicles 7:2). It did not depart the temple until Judea was conquered.

3) Considering that Uzzah died after simply laying his hand on the Ark to stabilize it (2 Samuel 2:6-7), taking it from the temple and transporting it to Ethiopia (the assumed location of Sheba) would have been dangerous and life threatening to Solomon’s son and his party. Solomon would have known this.

4)  The ‘nail in the coffin’ for this theory, however, is found in 2 Chron. 35:3:  And he [King Josiah] said to the Levites who taught all Israel and who were holy to the Lord, “Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built; you need no longer carry it upon your shoulders.”  This raises a whole series of new questions. Why was it not in the Holy of Holies, where Solomon put it? Who authorized its removal? Why was it being carried around on shoulders? Most of all, considering point 3), why was it possible to remove it? No one was to enter the Holy of Holies except the Chief Priest, and he could only enter it once a year. He did so with great fear that, if one thing was done wrong, he would likely die in the process.

     Another modern theory has its origin on a summer day in 1795. A young man was exploring on Oak Island in the Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada. He ran across a thirteen foot wide depression in the ground with associated definite evidence that someone had worked there. Thinking there might be pirate’s treasure buried there, he and two friends began digging.  It soon became obvious that they were digging down a refilled shaft.  At ten feet they hit an oak log platform. Below that the shaft continued.  They dug to 25 feet before feeling further digging was dangerous. Subsequently the shaft has been dug to about 100 feet, where it is “booby trapped” by tunnels to the ocean, causing the shaft to be flooded.  Probing has indicated a concrete chamber at 160 feet.  Obviously, there must be something of value down there, and the site became known as the Money Pit. During more recent years, however, a different theory has arisen. It has been theorized that, during the crusades, the Knights Templar found the long missing Ark of the Covenant, and this is the content of the chamber at the bottom of the Money Pit. It is, however, unlikely that, if the pit’s problems are ever overcome, the Ark will be found at the bottom.

     The legend within the Jewish community is that, when Jerusalem was being threatened by the Babylonians, some priests hit the Ark in a compartment under the temple.  Despite diligent searches, however, the ark has never been found. It seems more likely that the Ark was destroyed when the Babylonians destroyed the temple during the late sixth century BC. Ezekiel related a vision of God leaving the temple about the time that Jerusalem was conquered by the Babylonians (Ezekiel 10). It seems likely that he was no longer protecting the Ark when the temple was destroyed.  

     An intriguing passage occurs in Revelation 11:19. “Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, voices, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.” Three possibilities come to mind.

1)      The Ark of the Covenant was modeled after an item in God’s heavenly temple.

2)      The Ark in the heavenly temple is a model of that created during the Exodus.

3)       The Ark in the heavenly temple is actually the spiritual remains of the one that had resided in the earthly temple.

Someday we will know the answer to this puzzle.

     Returning to Raiders of the Lost Ark, what will we find if the Ark was, indeed, hidden away and it is found? It is unlikely to be anything like that depicted - a pristine Ark containing sand. The Ark, itself, is apt to be completely disintegrated by now, but the stone tablets contained therein (1 Kings 8:9, 2 Chronicles 5:10) are likely to be remaining intact. Anything is possible with God, but after Moses broke the original tablets in anger, he was told to create new tablets (Exodus 34:1). This would most easily be done with slate.  This rock is stable and writing on its surface would be durable. Slate is metamorphosed shale, which originated from clay deposits. Thus, if the tables were decomposed, they most likely would be clay dust, not sand.  What would appear on them? Not Hebrew writing, because that was not developed until about 300 years later. Most likely the writing would be in Egyptian hieroglyphics, since Moses was educated in the Egyptian pharaoh’s palace. It is unlikely that God would be still protecting the Ark, but were I to find it intact, as in Raiders of the Lost Ark, I think I would probably be reluctant to open it!