For
many years I have believed in the theory that the outer universe was a
macrocosm similar to the microcosm that is our human body. I saw the structure of our body—the cells,
atoms and molecules—like a universe of stars and galaxies. Science has informed us that the space
between the atoms that comprise our bodies have the same relative space as
exists between the stars in the Cosmos.
We are more “space” than “substance.”
Over
40 years ago, in a newsletter I published at the time, I wrote about an
experience I had one Sunday morning. I
arose early, retrieved the Sunday paper from the porch and sat down in my study
to read it. At some point I looked up
from the paper and out the window I saw Colfax Avenue, a main east/west street
in Denver. Traffic was light due to the
early time of day and the fact it was Sunday.
As I saw a car heading east on Colfax I suddenly had the vision of the
city as a nervous system in the body.
The car became the “carrier” of signals to parts of the body from the
brain. Then I imagined the various
other systems of the body expanding on the concept of how the body was like a
small universe. The cells and tissues
were like a solar system. All of the
elements of the body connected one part of that micro universe to other
parts. The whole process of imagining
this took just seconds, but it profoundly affected my sense of connection with
all that is.
Since
man first contemplated the make up of the universe and how it all began, there
have been competing discussions about the “Big Bang” theory and others. Einstein, in his theory of relativity,
posited that gravity bends light, which would result in the creation of ripples
in the fabric of space and time. Such
an activity of waves of light would support the “Big Bang” theory of how the
universe began. These “waves” have
never been able to be seen before. This
morning, however,
USA Today reported that scientists at the South Pole, using special
telescopes in the clear, dry atmosphere there, believe they have discovered
those actual waves of light rippling out from the center of the creation of the
universe in an ever-expanding flow.
As
I envisioned those ripples moving outward in an infinite flow like ripples in a
pond after a tossed stone breaks the calm surface, I could not help but imagine
a What if scenario. Since the
dawning of conscious awareness in humankind we have wondered if we are alone in
this vast universe. To many of us it
seems impossible that in the vastness that comprises our “home” we have no
neighbors. What if by looking out
into the universe for those neighbors, we are actually looking back in
time. Again, science informs us that
everything we see in our skies happened millennia ago and is just now
registering in our sight.
What
if in the ripples of that
pond humanity is placed at some point within the concentric circles that move
outward into infinity? If we see
ourselves as a kind of midpoint in the evolution of life, then in the ripples
beyond where we are there might just be other probable points on the
evolutionary scale representing further evolved forms of life. What if we are looking back at life
forms less developed than we are? What if looking forward there are
other civilizations more advanced than we are?
What if there is an evolutionary continuity of life from the
simplest beginning wave outward, infinitely, to more complex forms in waves
advancing before us?
Life
seems to constantly move from the simplest forms into ever-increasing complex
forms. What if this really is
how life unfolds? What if this
is the “heaven” we have before us? What
if there is an ability to recognize both the history and the future of life
and to communicate with those aspects of “Reality?” Our consciousness has only scratched the surface of its full
potential. Much more lies beyond our
current view. Scripture tells us, Faith is the substance of things hoped
for; the evidence of things unseen. (Hebrews 11:1 KJV) I am also reminded of the words of
Browning: Ah,
but a man's reach should exceed his grasp, Or what's a heaven for?
