Philosophysm Daily - Nikolaus Von Kues

in #philosophy7 years ago (edited)

Ever wondered what God actually is? This dude did and gave up - enter Nikolaus Von Kues!

Nikolaus was an avid mathematician, astronomer, and even dabbled in politics - but what was most profound about this German philosopher was his theological deep-diving into the christian faith, and subsequently his conclusions on God.

He was quite stunned by the whole chicken-or-egg dilemma which naturally poses a problem when trying to rationalize an all-powerful creator. How could there be an omnipresent, eternal being without some kind of backstory? If there was a God, which he believed there to be, then he must be credited with the knowledge of his origin, if in fact there was one, right?

Well, this is about as far as our little friend got before concluding that it would be impossible for us to fathom the nature and origin of God. He suggested that God and time can not be seen as co-existing variables . That any conclusions made around God would inherently be wrong, because they are made with feeble, puny, people brains, and God is just way too cool for that!

To a degree, Nikolaus made a very powerful point. Sure, there are beliefs around God, billions follow theological stories designed around understanding him (or it), but we still do not have a concrete, scientifically viable explanation of God - and its been over 500 years since Von Kues was popping about with this idea.

On a personal note - I agree with Nikolaus, if God exists, any concept we have, any beliefs around the subject are relevant to the context of Man, and not the context of God. We can't know the context of God, but we can follow a faith that's fitting to us, and still grow from that in spite of its probable inaccuracy, and that's pretty awesome!

Thanks for reading, and if you enjoy learning about crazy, old bastards who thought too much, then please follow me @migzillion. Till next time, stay woke!

Sources:
http://pamelacouvrette.com
http://en.bernkastel.de

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To me, God is a word, my beliefs have more the names Universe or Goddess, but it ultimately is all the same thing. My mother says multiple names sometimes when talking to different people, so we can all relate to each our word in our mind. The name we give the higher power, we believe in it because we relate to it, to what it represents. People shun other religions but in reality it's all belief systems. We need to follow what feels right for us, what helps us become greater versions of ourselves. It doesn't matter to me what the moon scientifically is, what it might be to a conspiracy theorist, or that it's just a moon. To me it's a goddess, a goddess which my name embodies, I am inspired at night, I feel good at night, my energy is vibrant at the full moon. To me this coincidence is significant. I have a direct connection to the moon, and I thank her for what she proves for me. I thank mother earth, nature, I thank the god and goddesses of the world, the elements. To me, all this helps me be a truer and happier me, a healthier and kinder me. My mother is a devout Christian, she believes in God, but we both know that he God and my Goddess could very be one and the same, could very well be neither, but that we related to certain words and certain beliefs or concepts. This is how we can both talk of either God or the Goddess and still understand each other, still be one the same page, or compare differences, and know that when one says the other, it means the other, God means Goddess, Goddess means God.

Ultimately, God, or Goddess, as a male or female entity, is a personification. To give a gender is to personify. We do this so that we can relate. The Universe, the Force, the energy around us, could be God/Goddess, could be something else. There is the tangible and the intangible, but there is always proof that creation exists, in many different forms, from many different sources. I relate to the forms that will help me in my life.

When people try to convert me to belief system, it can be frustrating because they want me to use specific terms, use certain concepts, want me to believe those things. They don't understand that I can have my own words, own concepts, and that each our own beliefs can be fluid and meet somewhere and yet be every changing and different, in a sort of harmony.

I agree with you, we all have different ways of understanding the same thing - there's a force/energy which nurtures the way life unfolds, and to every human being there's a different way of relating to it - even without thinking about it. Thanks for sharing your story with me!

It's my pleasure :)

We cannot understand God from a human or scientific point of view, but God reveals a lot about Himself in the Bible, all we need to do is to believe.