Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Love from Logos

[ A reply to Ryan, regarding the marriage of mathematics and metaphysics ]

The Divine Order, or "Logos" (500BCE version) would seem to include an important ontology, one that can be analyzed via information theory.

Specifically, game theory: The strategy for maximum benefit for all players in games of iterated Prisoner's Dilemmas is to "cooperate" with everyone but the "scorpions" in the game.

Like logic itself, this is a fundamental factor in how our universe operates. I've lately been calling this the "Golden Rule Ontology", and I think it has a profound influence in how we, and our universe, has evolved.

For instance, this ontology may explain how we have evolved a cooperative and (dare I say it?) loving instinct.

In other words: Part of the Divine Logos is "natural selection" for love to evolve in our universe. The source of love, then, is the Logos.

(brb, gotta hug my fiance, dog, & cats...)

1 comment:

  1. Interesting ideas. When you say that "Part of the Divine Logos is "natural selection" for love to evolve in our universe."...do you think that perhaps love wasn't a natural trait in the beginning, but something that evolved over time?...

    I'm not sure...I think since we are in the image of God and in the beginning, before sin, man had the perfect covenant with God. There was no sin.

    So...the way I've read it and the way I've been taught is that "being in the image of God" doesn't mean God looks human, it means that we reflect the characteristics of God. This was so before the fall of man, but sin messed everything up. The more and more we conform to the likeness of Jesus the more and more we reflect the true image of God. (There is a point for all of this rambling, I promise!) The point that I'm trying to make, is if in the beginning we really did reflect the true nature of God in our character, and the Bible tells us God is love..then love must have been in us since the beginning...I'm not sure it evolved...though I do think that our understanding of people's differences and our compassion as a people in general..as this world is becoming more of a global community, that compassion is evolving in a way..that we are moving from a modern way of thinking to a postmodern..which to me ,is a lot more loving.

    Hope that makes a little sense! :) Any thoughts?

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