Hello Dave,
Even while recognizing that God "stands" outside of time and space, the
question of God's intent while working in time and space is valid, I think.
The Incarnation speaks to the importance of understanding God's plan within
the confines of time and space. Just as it is reasonable to ask why God
created humans or what humans were like prior to the fall, I think it is
just as reasonable to ask why God chose the processes of evolution to give
rise to humans. I don't disagree with the gist of what you wrote, but
unfortunately, I fail to see the error in my questions.
Adrian.
-----Original Message-----
From: David F Siemens [mailto:dfsiemensjr@juno.com]
Sent: Monday, April 16, 2001 3:49 PM
To: ateo@whitworth.edu
Cc: bivalve@mail.davidson.alumlink.com; asa@calvin.edu
Subject: Re: The Future of Evolution
Adrian,
Let a different David put in a word. I believe that the phrasing of the
question indicates an erroneous view of the deity. We are so totally
restricted to time that we try to apply the notion universally. This was the
problem with the prelapsarian-postlapsarian controversy in early Calvinism.
The question dissolves when one realizes that the before and after is human
and has no relevance to God's knowledge and purpose. It is also relevant to
notice that knowledge is not causal. So God's foreknowledge does not
determine human action, a matter overlooked in some of the current
"evangelical" theological climate. However, this is not a restriction on
what God can do. His will is eternal, like his knowledge, though each event
is perceived by us in time--our restriction. So God knows me as glorified,
but I am waiting for the revelation of the children of God with the promise
and foretaste, for I do not yet perceive the reality.
If I try to think of something, it has to be sequential. The closest I can
come to the nontemporal understanding of something is perhaps the "aha!"
experience. But that still involves a gestation period that I overlook in
what seems to be a sudden total insight. As I try to think through or
explain this understanding, I am clearly back in the strictly sequential,
however much I minimize it in the process.
Augustine was already aware that time began with creation, which is the act
of God free of the result. In God's eternal view, which is nontemporal
because it is outside of time, the whole is comprehended "before" the
beginning. This is different from our eternity, the endless time of the
creature. We look forward to the "ages to come" rather than to an end of
time and a timeless existence.
This also solves the problem of prayer. At the moment of creation, God
already knew when and if we would pray, and what we would pray. So the
answer was already built in at the time the world began. Also, God has no
problem with deterministic chaos and quantum indeterminacy, for he is not
waiting for the states to kick in. Whatever happens is already known to him,
whether determined or not is irrelevant. It's all eternally open to him. God
can never be surprised. This means that the pain he feels at our
disobedience is an eternal pain. Impassivity does not mean that he does not
feel.
Dave
On Mon, 16 Apr 2001 10:00:34 -0700 Adrian Teo <ateo@whitworth.edu> writes:
David,
Do you think that evolution was a result of the fall or was it part of the
pre-fall design? If evolution has always been there even prior to the fall,
then what do you suppose is God's purpose for designing such a process?
Adrian.
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Apr 17 2001 - 13:24:44 EDT