Why is God a Fractal 3.

As we venture further into the unknown speculative recesses of my internal imaginative flux, we will first look at the decision making process for all sentient creation from a bottom-up perspective before we take a god's-eye-view (mainly because I find it difficult to conceptualise what the latter would entail). When we last left this topic we spoke of monkeys. I just can't help myself.

It's been said that a million monkeys typing for a million years would at some point reproduce the entire works of Shakespeare. An astute commentator observed that with the advent of the internet this notion has been proven false, but just imagine if they did, would it mean anything?
I think it was Camus who used a similar example to tease out how we go about creating meaning for ourselves in life. Some dude lives forever and reproduces the Iliad or the Odyssey, can we say that this event has any merit, given that on an infinite timeline it's inevitable that someone would produce an identical work (I guess it depends on how much you like Homer). Looking at things on a mortal scale, because we're working with a literal deadline -- whether we like to acknowledge it or not -- we face the prospect of being limited in what we can do for purely practical reasons. This makes our choices (like writing an epic poem) a lot more meaningful, because they are now subjected to some form of prioritization, which in all likely hood isn't arbitrarily driven. Our discriminating tastes come into play using the time we have in whatever way we see fit. Like the old saying goes "time is what stops everything from happening at once." We may want it all and want it now, but conditions don't favour the disciples of instant gratification here. We're left to make our way in the world slowly but surely one decision at a time. How we go about choosing is a whole 'nother can of worms that I'll deal with later, the why (as in why our choices matter) will have to do for now.

Sorry eternal monkeys your efforts seen through this paradigm don't amount to much. The limitations of mortality open the way for meaning to mean something. However, when we open our scope and include God in the domain, unfortunately this model doesn't fit. God is an infinite being who does far more then write about heroes with tragic flaws, he makes them. Which doesn't bring us any closer to the celestial selection system. Perhaps I've been asking the wrong question, Why is God a fractal isn't big enough, it's just a less general version of why is there something instead of nothing?

next: extrapolations that could lead to a resolution of the mysteries of the universe, but probably not.

Manhood, Mormon style

Donny Osmond threatens to make a man out of me

If there's one thing I like doing here it's recycling old journal entries...

I woke up one day this week and decided I wanted to be a man. This was surprising news to everyone. Vince Lombardi (of the green bay packers) said: " winning isn't a sometime thing, it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while, you don't do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit, unfortunately so is losing." Substitute winning for man or manhood and you'll get some idea of how I felt. Do I wake up some days and think, you know what I don't feel like being a man today? Sure, happens all the time. I don't exactly say those words but my actions reflect that thought process: I don't feel like waking up early or doing the dishes or being nice to people or whatever. Lehi reminded his wayward sons " arise from the dust my sons and be men and be determined in one mind and one heart united in all things, that you may not come down into captivity." The saviour gives us an understanding of what true manhood is... asked:" what manner of men ought ye to be?" & answered: "Even as I am." Remember manhood isn't a some time thing it's an all the time thing. So what are you waiting for? Be a man.

An addendum, the attributes of manhood:

1 THOUGH I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
(New Testament 1 Corinthians 13:)

The Real Jesus

One of the great inadequacies of my personal spiritual experience is the inability to imagine the difficulty of a God having difficulty with the human experience. Jesus was half man, half amazing (or God if you prefer), of course he was going to be better equipped than us at deflecting temptation and enacting all things righteous. It was all part of the plan, as they say. Yet in my attempts to humanize the being whom I've accepted as my deity (with the desire to better understand him) I can't say that I have been inordinately successful nor hopelessly disappointed. Jesus was how he was, I am that I am, what manner man ought I to be? Like him. I can only process this in momentary fragments of insight that seem underwhelming on reflection, mainly because they seem to do an injustice to subject under consideration. Take for instance, when I play rugby league and receive for my troubles an exceptionally hard tackle, which momentarily disables my entire person. My immediate thought upon regaining consciousness would be to retaliate in kind (or worse), which I'm guessing is a result of my humanness. Jesus on the other hand would, first of all would not be playing a violent contact sport and if tackled under any circumstance would no doubt be puzzled, yet willfully tolerant of the offender. This is truly amazing to me, and not in some incredulous way, but in a truly wondrous manner. To reward aggression with mercy rather than retaliation is doable once or twice or even for the very best of us several times, but to do it consistently, without fail, always seems to reside, for me, in the realms of the almost unbelievable. It was not fantasy though, it was Jesus, he provided a better way than where our natural inclinations would normally lead. I don't fully understand it, but I'm grateful for it.

it's all good

I was sitting in Sunday School and our teacher offered this profound insight: whether you're suffering through life (experiencing trials) or enjoying it (receiving blessings), in the end it's all good. I'd never really looked at it like that before, sure challenges are useful, they help us to grow, but stating that 2 diametrically opposed conditions lead to equivalent outcomes. Wow. And I agree with him. Double wow.

It's all there in the scriptures, a few of my favourites...

And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more.
(Doctrine and Covenants 78:19)

we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things
(Pearl of Great Price, Articles of Faith 1:13)

Therefore, dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed.
(Doctrine and Covenants Section 123:17)

One day a long time ago I read about a quantum theory where someone postulated that every time the universe or one of its constituents makes a decision a new universe pops into existence (actually I may have been watching star trek). So there's a multiversal exponentially expanding animal out there tracking all of the different possibilities that could have happened ever. One of the problems with this theory aside from universes being created out of nowhere, was that different causes could lead to the same results. My memory's a little hazy but this affect may have been called "True Chance."(it was probably something else, but this will have to do for now).

The question is, with respect to blessings and cursings (or just plain hurtings), do we have a True Chance scenario operating here? Maybe, it could also be one of the many marvelous paradoxes which we face in life, even if it is True Chance with a slight rejig, purely to satisfy my own philosophical inclinations, this can be made workable in the real world. If we are to be grateful in all things, good and bad than a redefinition of the word blessing may be in order, the 'blessing' that I carry around in my personal lexicon states: instances where God dispenses good things in my direction and I'm ready and wise enough to catch them. It may need to expand to encapsulate anything that happens depending upon your response. It's possible that this generalisation has become so vague now as to encompass everything, but I don't think that diminishes it potency, mainly because we humans are strange creatures and operate differently from almost everything else in the universe. Intention is a powerful thing and I'm afraid I'll have to invoke the great Stephen R. Covey, peace be upon him: for normal matter there's action and reaction, for us there is a stimulus, a space, then a response. What we choose to do with that space is entirely up to us, the next time I stub my toe or someone pulls out in front of me in traffic (yep most of my 'trials" are pretty prosaic), I'll remember that we're here to learn from our experience and choose well. Instead of cursing I may be inclined to thank God for the blessing of this slight irritation which helped me to understand existence a little more and point me in his direction. It ain't much, but it's a start.

coming soon: an attitude of gratitude.

born again leanings?

Being saved is one percent perspiration (on our part) and ninety nine percent grace. And this is almost certainly understating the Saviour's role in our personal salvation. Obedience is an important part of the process but it's not the active ingredient in redemption.

Back in the good old days at the Hamilton MTC a guest speaker delivered what was for us, the missionaries, a somewhat polarising talk. He taught mostly from the Book of Mormon, things like whenever we do any good we are borrowing from Jesus or God, who is the source of all good, whose merits are mighty to save. Many of the boys preferred a works based interpretation of salvation. I can see where they're coming from.

However, I feel and the spirit seems to accord (name that apostle) that there is no actual eternal significance to dipping ourselves in water except that God deems it so. Christening could have been a valid method, but God chose another way. Obedience, keeping the commandments aren't what gets us into heaven, not exactly. Obedience is the language we use to communicate to Jesus that we accept his sacrifice, that we accept him as our Saviour. He did the real work. Our work is a nice gesture but our pitiful offerings pale in consequence when juxtaposed with the atonement. As I have said before we can qualify for exaltation, by adhering to the generous conditions that God has laid out, but that doesn't mean we earned it. "Salvation is free", because he paid the price, all we have to do is show up and collect.

My Favourite Church Song Ever

Why is God a fractal? The Aesthetic of God, Agency and a mishmash of many other things 2

Where was I? That's right, God's form and evolution.

We hold ourselves to be higher than monkeys (and by monkeys I mean the great apes, their relatives and ancestors). To address anyone ready to condemn us of being speciests, there are reasons for this bias, we allegedly have a few things that monkeys don't (a 1-2% difference in DNA!? for starters), large frontal lobes, language, culture, 5th order intentionality, maybe even morality (all these are somewhat debatable I suppose except for our brain size). On a purely superficial level we look and on occasion behave very differently from these creatures. As theists or humanists we seem to have inclinations, prima facie or otherwise, that humans have a unique position in the universe.


Thanks to the The Enlightenment we officially live in the age of reason. One consequence, is that we follow the evidence where ever it takes us and in this case, our ancestral trail leads back to the plains of Africa and a lady nick-named Lucy. Science tells us that we came from the apes, this is the reasonable thing to believe. The bible teaches that "God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." We take the scripture to mean that God looked like a man then and now and that we bear some resemblence to our spiritual progenitor. It would be blasphemy in most circles to infer that God is or was great ape either during his mortal life or now or that his ancestors were anything less than human(I think it was Xenophanes who said that if horses could draw, their gods would look like horses) . Although we often dismiss judgement of a person on appearance as shallow, we as (orthodox) mormons, have no qualms about zealously safe gaurding the sanctity of the human-god form from any would be iconoclasts. Right or wrong what does this teach us about ourselves? I believe hypocrite is an overused word, it relies too heavily on a strictly black and white world-view, things are often more complicated than that. What we can say for those who believe, and I count myself in this category, that in some ways image does matter. Who would have thought?

To Be Continued...

Next: more monkeys, as far as answers go I'm not making any promises.


side notes>>

• the church's official position on evolution is that it has no position on evolution (see "evolution" entry in The Encyclopedia of Mormonism).
• I don't really see how evolution can be reconciled with Genesis unless we severely restructure our interpretation of scripture to fit every liberal Mormons new favourite line: inspired fiction. I understand that as it is Genesis isn't a how to guide on creating an earth, but some of the conditions found therein are fundamental to our doctrine, like there was no death before Adam. If the fall is a fairy story, what does that say about the atonement, the pillars of eternity don't look so stable when their foundations are merely metaphorical. Personally I prefer a literal interpretation of scripture, mainly because of a spiritual witness I had once. Yet, I also believe evolution has merit. I think I just blew my mind.

**update** actually I just changed my mind, evolution is correct as far as we can tell, the bible isn't.

Why is God a fractal? The Aesthetic of God, Agency and a mishmash of many other things 1

"Only a Sith deals in absolutes."

Add to that list the gods and demons, in between all that there's a large spectrum of possibility. With this ample wiggle room to operate we can theortically touch on all aspects of the human experience. As I go about my business I sometimes wonder with all the variantions available why are certain options privelaged above others. I'm not advocating relativism just examining how and why the universe picks its favourites.


Ten fingers and ten toes help make up the mormon conception of the form of God. This is an astonishing doctrine. Because of this heritage we reverence our bodies out of respect for deity and treat them as temples. Why not twelve fingers and twelve toes? Why is God a fractal? The Mormons have a large healthy blogging community where (probably )this and many topics which I'm interested in have already been examined, I want to explore all these well tread "difficult issues" in the church. Well tread by others maybe, but I've never really explored the teritory myself, now is as good a time to start as any.


to be continued...next: evolution