Week two of our seven week series, PAUSE: Make space for God; and this week’s topic is, Why did God create me? First of all, how am I meant to answer this in a blog? Aren’t blogs meant to be short? : ) Perhaps to get us on the right path we can start with the slightly simpler question, Why did God create anybody?
The key to understanding why God created anything, is to first understand that God is Love Itself. If you believe this you can quite easily see why God created. It is the very essence of love to want to have others outside of oneself to love. If God did not create people, like you and me, His love would have no one to extend towards. So the basic and very logical answer to this question is that because God is Love Itself, He created people (and you specifically) so that He would have someone to love. How would you like being a loving person, and yet not having anybody to share your love with?
Now I’m going to throw you for a little loop and talk for a minute about aliens. Yes, there is a connection. If God is Love Itself and He is also infinite, it makes sense that He wouldn’t want to create one or two people to share His love with. He would want to create many people: Hundreds, millions, trillions, quintillions…..how many would be enough for an infinite God of eternal love?
While acknowledging that this is by no means a scientific proof, this is one of the arguments used in the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg to logically say why there must be life on other planets. The amazing vastness of the universe mirors the infinity of God and His infinite love. Would a God that created such a vast universe really be content to populate only one small planet with people? Love does not just want to create others outside of oneself; love also wants to be one with the people created and to make them blessed and happy. As finite human beings we find ourselves loving many different people. Can we even begin to imagine how many people God is capable of loving?
“People may believe that in the universe there are more earths than one, from this, that the starry heaven is so immense, and the stars therein are so innumerable, each of which in its place, or in its world, is a sun, and like our sun, in various magnitude. Whoever duly considers, concludes that so immense a whole must needs be a means to an end, which is the ultimate of creation, which end is the kingdom of heaven, wherein the Divine may dwell with angels and men; for the visible universe, or the heaven resplendent with stars so innumerable, which are so many suns, is only a means for the existence of earths, and of men upon them, of whom may be formed a heavenly kingdom. From these things a rational person must needs be led to conceive, that so immense a means, adapted to so great an end, was not constituted for a race of people and for a heaven thence derived from one earth only; for what would this be to the Divine, which is infinite, and to which thousands, yea, ten thousands of earths, all full of inhabitants, would be small and scarce anything.” (Swedenborg – Earths in the Universe 4)
Why did God create me? I’ll have to think about that one a bit more. But to start with, it’s quite inspiring to think about why God created anything in the first place and how vast and infinite a loving God’s creation must be. Do you believe that there is life on other planets?
You betcha there is life on other planets. Talk about something unique to New Church teachings! A question I like to ask about this topic is, so what do aliens have to do with my life? How does this topic change anything for me? Do we need to become UFO watchers and join the conspiracy theorists? No, I don’t want to do that. Human beings are spiritual beings clothed in a physical body. Aliens are, likewise, spiritual beings clothed in a different-looking physical body. The body is temporary. By looking at aliens, thinking about them, reading about them in the fantasy section of Barnes and Nobles, I see the reality of my own spiritual being more intensely.
Great question – so what do aliens have to do with my life? A similar question that I like to ask is: With all the wonderful things about the life after death, marriage, faith, etc that Swedenborg wrote about, why on earth (no pun intended) would he be led to write about life on other planets. As you ask, what’s the point??? For me two things come to mind besides the simple point that God and His love is infinite.
First, it speaks to the oneness of God. Not only is the first commandment true for people on this planet, it is true throughout the universe. There is one true God wheather you live on earth or on some planet 5 million light years away. “Hear, O Israel: Jehovah our God, Jehovah is one!” (Deuteronomy 6:4) “In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. Say (O Muhammad) He is God the One God, the Everlasting Refuge, who has not begotten, nor has been begotten, and equal to Him is not anyone.” (Quran 112) These truths take on a whole new meaning when I reflect on how they are true throughout a universe that is too big for me to comprehend.
Second, I’m very interested in how this speaks to what it means to be human. All people throughout the universe were created in the image and likeness of God. What does this mean? Perhaps I should re-read “Earths in the Universe” as well as watch some old episodes of star trek for some answers : )
According to Dr. Steven Greer people from other planets are already visiting us but most of us are not yet spiritually ready to see them. If anyone is interested here’s a web site that is linked with people that are trying to disclose the fact that “they” are already here: http://www.disclosureproject.com/…enjoy! I think that this proves that without a doubt Swedenborg can be trusted in what he says is from the One true God of the Universe.
May the One True God of the Universe Bless You All!
Hi PJ. Interesting sign off concidering what I just wrote in response to Stephen! I’m interested in what Dr. Greer means by being “spiritually ready to see them.” Do you know? I still need convincing that they are among us.
Swedenborg wrote a neat little book called “The Infinite and Final Cause of Creation” in 1734 – before his theological works – that provides a philosophical explanation of creation as an act of the infinite to initiate the finite natural world – to “finitize” existence apart from the infinite. To my simple way of thinking, this means that without the “finiteness” of the natural world and the limited and imperfect sentient beings that inhabit it, existence is not complete. God needed to create the world and humans for existence to be complete. Another analogy is to think about what the world would be like if you were the only person – or unable to perceive any distinction between yourself and “others”. Such a state would be “formless” and “void” – nothing by which to recognize and define your own existence. Just as God needs the finite to complete existence, we need other people to complete our existence. And, of course, we need to recognize and connect with God to complete the circle of creation and to touch the infinite.