What do we really ‘know’

[McBell]

Because I see the statement made is not true.

based upon what, exactly?

 

[Heyo]

From my perspective, humanity and our planet wouldn't exist today without a Supreme Being who maintains the Universe through established laws, with His servants ensuring those laws are upheld, much like traffic officers prevent accidents where there are no signs. Moreover, the earth's resources haven't been depleted despite human exploitation and the harshness of natural processes that seem to destabilize it. Jesus mentioned that God causes the rain to fall on both the righteous and the unrighteous.

Imagine a planet where "natural" processes are ruled by unchecked forces... Do you believe life as we know it could thrive under such conditions?

On earth, we can predict when the sun will rise and set each day. We know which stars will appear in any part of the sky at any given time of the year and even how they looked thousands of years ago or will appear thousands of years in the future. We understand these things because we have learned the laws governing celestial motions. We also know these laws will remain unchanged, as they have since humanity's existence, continuing by the will of the One who created them. We didn't do anything about it, God did and does.

That's an interesting belief system I haven't heard of, yet.
Do I understand you right, that you believe god made the natural laws, but they are unstable? Without it's constant maintenance, they would spontaneously change?
That's a wild mix of deism and theism, but the theism part is without magic, as god only maintains the order in the universe?

And, staying on topic, how do you know that?

 

[Spice]

On earth, we can predict when the sun will rise and set each day. We know which stars will appear in any part of the sky at any given time of the year and even how they looked thousands of years ago or will appear thousands of years in the future. We understand these things because we have learned the laws governing celestial motions. We also know these laws will remain unchanged, as they have since humanity's existence, continuing by the will of the One who created them. We didn't do anything about it, God did and does.

And what of shooting stars and meteorites? Are they governed/controlled by some lesser god? How and why do they move through the cosmos uncontained? Doesn't our own sun have the potential to become a shooting star and our planet and moon the possibility of breaking apart into meteors?

 

[Madsaac]

This is a question I have been reflecting on for a while now. Since birth, apart from natural instincts such as hunger, thirst and sleep we seem to all be born with a blank slate for those around us to write on. As life goes on we accumulate ‘information’ which we process. But hey, it’s all borrowed from outside sources. So throughout life what ‘knowledge’ do we actually have innately that is not from others?

So in all honesty how can any of us be knowledgeable if it is all borrowed from others? What knowledge do we really possess if any?

Do you ‘know’ anything that is not borrowed from others?

Everything we know is borrowed or comes from from somewhere, from our genes to the environment we live in. And some have better genes and environments than others. It’s part of natural selection or evolution. The intricate journey of life.

And so what, does it really matter if we gained our knowledge from other places?

We are what we are, intelligent animals that have an amazing ability to learn and know things.

 

[TransmutingSoul]

And so what, does it really matter if we gained our knowledge from other places?

It may not matter to some. Millions give their lives to thank and serve the ultimate source of all knowledge. They do that, as they embrace a transcendent knowledge.

Regards Tony

 

[Madsaac]

It may not matter to some. Millions give their lives to thank and serve the ultimate source of all knowledge.

Who, Donald Trump?

 

[IndigoChild5559]

This is a question I have been reflecting on for a while now. Since birth, apart from natural instincts such as hunger, thirst and sleep we seem to all be born with a blank slate for those around us to write on.

This was a popular theory for a very long time, but it has been discarded. We are born with a lot more than the instincts to eat, drink, and sleep. Just a few examples:

• Our genetics might make us more prone to certain diseases like alcoholism, and contribute to a long list of personality and behavioral traits such as activity level, empathy, intelligence, risk taking, sociability, etc.
• Epigenetics can affect us in many ways. It may increase our stress hormones, and make us more vulnerable to things like anxiety and impulsiveness.
• Hormones in the womb can pinpoint where we end up in terms of nurturance verses aggression.
• A stressful birth can result in a child that is more sensitive/reactive.

As life goes on we accumulate ‘information’ which we process. But hey, it’s all borrowed from outside sources. So throughout life what ‘knowledge’ do we actually have innately that is not from others?

It depends on how you define knowledge. If you are referring to understandings that are pondered by our conscious mind, we are certainly born with archetypes. Archetypes are themes and motifs that spontaneously appear around the world without one culture learning them from another. Common archetypes are the hero, the trickster, the wise mentor, the shadow self, etc.

So in all honesty how can any of us be knowledgeable if it is all borrowed from others? What knowledge do we really possess if any?

Certainly, we do learn a great deal from others. Although other primates have culture, none is so developed as human culture. Culture is all those things in our lives that we learn from the previous generations. It can be religion, math, or even dancing the conga. It is our capacity for culture that has made us one of the most successful species on the planet.

 

[loverofhumanity]

Everything we know is borrowed or comes from from somewhere, from our genes to the environment we live in. And some have better genes and environments than others. It’s part of natural selection or evolution. The intricate journey of life.

And so what, does it really matter if we gained our knowledge from other places?

We are what we are, intelligent animals that have an amazing ability to learn and know things.

It matters when we try and exalt ourselves over others. Because in reality we know nothing and nothing comes from us. Our so called knowledge is copied from others and our possessions, all of them come from another source such as the ground we walk on, nature and so on. Yet we are often so filled with pride and think we are better than others. We are all really nothing. A cow provides us with milk and meat, lamb with wool, a tree with fruit. What do we humans actually contribute to humanity and the world? We pollute the environment, destroy trees, kill fish with chemicals and start wars. Yes we love selling weapons.

What we could contribute? World peace and world harmony. Address poverty. Solve our problems around a table instead of on a battlefield. Are we then better than the animals? Even they have a better reason to kill and they only do so out of need. Until humans use their true potential they will not be any better than animals.