A wrong turn at Uncertainty
Life > Freedom > Uncertainty > Religion > Certainty > Oppression > Death
Life
‘Life is so precious.’
The platitude is almost an obscene sacrilege compared to the reality of that statement. My life, your life, the life of all the animals, insects and trees. All precious. One day we have it, the next we don’t.
Life is so precious.
Freedom
Life is also free. We didn’t ask for it, we didn’t pay for, but we have it. Precious and free.
Life is free, and it gives us freedom. We can do what we like with this life. There are limitations placed on us but we work around them as best as we can. We try to do whatever we want. What do we really want?
When people look at a baby they generally get a big smile on their face. Not just because it’s cute or innocent. But also because it’s a little life filled with maximum potential. Things could go almost anywhere for that baby. Its future is so full of promise, so … uncertain.
Uncertainty
We can now build particle accelerators, yet what happens tomorrow is still largely a mystery to us. Since Einstein, science has made massive leaps forward in our understanding of the nature of space, time and matter. For the general public, it’s all just incomprehensible jargon and impossible mathematics. Which is a pity, because so much of the experimental evidence points to a profound conclusion which is relevant for all of us: uncertainty is a central part of the fabric of reality.
Existence is and always will be uncertain.
Of course, you don’t really need to know astronomy or quantum physics to appreciate life’s uncertainties. Even that most stable of civilisations, ancient Egypt, had to contend with the occasional misbehaviour of the Nile – resulting in drought or flood. The Egyptian solution was usually to invent another god. Or pray harder to an existing one.
For some of us, this uncertainty can look like a joyous infinity of possibilities – a rolling wave of chance to be surfed. But for the majority, it’s been an unacceptable and perplexing aberration. Somehow, the uncertainty of existence has had to be turned into certainty – at all costs.
Religion
Throughout history, the way we have grasped at certainty has usually been through religion. Religion allows us to draw the curtains on that infinite uncertain blackness. Down through time we’ve sat behind those curtains, believing the comforting light is ‘up there’ somewhere. In the afterlife, in heaven, with God. And, because of this, most of us missed a simple truth.
We are that light.
There are two fundamental beliefs which define all religion. God and immortality. These beliefs are so closely intertwined, they are almost inseparable. In fact, neither makes much sense without the other. A God who creates us to die without ever knowing Him seems pretty cruel and pointless. And immortality without a God waiting on the other side, with welcoming arms, looks like an eternity of loneliness. But put the two ideas together and you have an almost invincible belief system which gives your existence certainty.
Certainty
The problem with certainty is that it really has nowhere to go. Uncertainty can expand infinitely, but certainty is frozen in one place. There’s no room to move. This is fine, unless you encounter a fact, idea or person that disagrees with your certainty. Then the trouble begins. Then that fact, idea or person has to be altered or eliminated. The history of our species is largely the sad and terrible tale of what we have done to manufacture and maintain certainty. Because there’s a horribly logical conclusion to the special certainty you get from believing in immortality and God. It goes something like this. If we are all immortal, then life here and now ceases to be precious. If death is not the end, then death is no big deal – your death or someone else’s. At first glance this seems to be a message of hope: it’s OK, we all go on. But history has shown that this is actually one half of a blueprint for mass murder. If death is not the end, then killing someone is not depriving them of the only life they will ever have. It’s merely sending them on to an ‘afterlife’ where they can be properly judged and processed.
Immortality is only half the story, though. The concept of immortality can give you the logical basis for slaughter, but not the ultimate incentive. That’s where God comes in. If there was ‘no-one here but us humans’ then we would all have to take responsibility for our actions towards each other. But bring a higher authority into the picture and suddenly we can get rid of anyone who disagrees with our beliefs and we're doing ‘God’s work’. And what a piece of work it’s been so far.
Oppression
The certainty that comes from a belief in God and immortality almost inevitably leads to the abuse of other humans. From cruel words to cruel deeds. The stronger the belief, the greater the abuse. When the belief becomes all-consuming and entrenched within government, you have the Inquisition.
The world is now entering its second “dark ages”. Really. Will it merely be a George Orwell nightmare (with added fundamentalism), or will they have mass burnings at the stake – televised nightly on Fox? Just how bad it gets is up to you. Right now.
Do you march up and down? Do you mobilise politically? Do you put up another blog? It might help a bit or it might even make things worse, but the greatest battle will be in your own heart. When they say jump, don’t jump. When they say hate, don’t hate. When they say panic, don’t panic. When they say fear, don’t fear. The greatest thing any of us can aspire to is not Faith, Hope, Love or Financial Independence. It’s kindness.
You are the light.
Death
Death is not the end.
No, you’re not going to live on in some ethereal realm. Deep down, you know you’re not. But your death is not the end of you. All your actions, all your ideas, all your humour, all your generosity, all your creativity, all your hard work, all your honesty – and yes, all your fears, deceptions and wickedness; they all live on. The world tomorrow will live with what you have done today.
That’s why life is so precious.
