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Revelation vs. Discovery

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Big Questions Every person is a religious being. A religious being asks the big questions Are we (humans) alone, or is there something greater than us? Comic books, science fiction, instincts say Yes Is there another world? A world after death? A world of invisible souls or beings? How did everything begin? And why? Who is God? Does he care about us? Why are we here? Whats the point? What are some possible answers?

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Big Questions The answer to these questions are a mystery. These mysteries are solved either by Natural reason We try to figure things out on our own using whatever information we can get Usually relies on empirical data Divine revelation What we dont know and cant figure out is made clear to us The hidden is revealed Both We use our minds to figure out what God has revealed to us

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Discovery Natural reason can lead on to discover god This discovery of god is made on the basis of Empirical data Looking at the world Reflections on human psychology, human instincts and innate knowledge Logical Reasoning (natural reason) Natural reason, if rigorously followed, opposes Animism and pantheism Atheism Agnosticism

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Discovery Natural reason, if logically followed, reaches these conclusions: There is an Ultimate Being or Ultimate Reality The Ultimate Being is one, not several Discovery may also conclude that The Ultimate Reality is person (not I) monotheism The Ultimate Reality is personal but detached and uncaring Deism The Ultimate Reality is a force or flow theism

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Discovery Discovery also leads to the conclusion that Humans are god Humans need to escape the material word to be god When humans are perfected or enlightened they become god True enlightenment is when a human loses himself in god Like a drop of water in an ocean Discovery reaches these conclusions from the bottom up By mystical experience (looking inward, reflecting, meditating) By logical reasoning (thinking)

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Discovery Discovery, using natural reason, is the method used by the major Eastern religions Hinduism Buddhism Daoism

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Revelation Revelation admits that we cant know what we cant know We learn partly by discovery, but mostly by being told Example: We discover the round bouncy object, but someone must tell us that it is a ball Example: We discover simple arithmetic (quantity, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division), but we must be told about mathematics Example: We discover our own selves, but must be told who are parents are and how we came to be Revelation requires two things: Being told what we dont know and cant figure out Believing what were told

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Revelation The JoHari window helps us understand the importance of revelation

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Revelation Revelation of God works from the top down God tells us about Himself God tells us how things came to be God tells us about ourselves What were really like inside Why we do what we do The point of our existence God tells us the goal

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Revelation God must reveal Himself Directly Speaking directly to humans Indirectly Speaking through mediators Specific humans (prophets) Oral tradition (stories handed down) Through events Miracles Omens History (sacred history) Sacraments

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Revelation Revelation concludes that There is one God God is the cause of all things God is a personal being (an I) We are not God We are separate beings from God There is a visible world and an invisible world Material dualism The goal of life is to be in relationship with God

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Revelation Revelation is what three major religions depend upon Judaism Christianity Islam

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The Christian Understand of Revelation God Reveals Himself in the Old Testament

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Word God Reveals Himself through His Word Logos Torah Pen-ultimately, the Scriptures Old Testament: the curtain slowly pulls back New Testament: the play is plainly shown Ultimately, Jesus

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Scriptures: Old Testament God reveals Himself in Myth Fiction or non-fiction stories that explain origins Origin of all things (Gen 1) Origin of humans (Gen 2) Origin of sin (Gen 3) Origin of death (Gen 4-5) Origin of second chances; the reboot (Gen 6-10) Origin of languages (Gen 11) God reveals Himself in Sacred History History is told or arranged to point to God Not made up, but told with God in mind

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Scriptures: Old Testament God reveals Himself in types Hints left, on purpose, to point ahead Genesis 22 God reveals Himself in Covenants Adam (Gen 3.15) Noah (Gen 9) Abraham (Gen 22) Moses & Israel (Ex 19 & 20) David (2 Sam 7)

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Scriptures: New Testament

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The Christian Understand of Revelation God Reveals Himself in the New Testament

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