Divine Principles

By Ken Ungerecht

The focus of Divine Principles is a determined and systematic search for important Universal Truth. It uses the tools of science to establish two fundamental principles of the spiritual nature of that universe. It then applies the same methods to examine and evaluate a wide variety of related ideas in light of those precepts. Book Review Some fa

• Language: English
• Publisher: ReadersMagnet LLC
• Release date: Nov 28, 2017
• ISBN: 9781947765276

Ken Ungerecht

Ken Ungerecht was born and raised in the lake country of northern Minnesota. He has taught high school biology, chemistry, and physics. He currently resides in Baltimore, Maryland, where he is employed as an engineer and training representative in the field of electronic communications. Among his many interests has been a lifelong passion to learn and understand more about the possible spiritual aspects of the human condition.

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Divine Principles

Copyright © 2017 by Ken Ungerecht.

Published in the United States of America

ISBN Paperback: 978-1-947765-26-9

ISBN eBook: 978-1-947765-27-6

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the author except as provided by USA copyright law.

Scriptures marked kjv are taken from King James Version (kjv): King James Version, public domain.

The opinions expressed by the author are not necessarily those of ReadersMagnet, LLC.

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Contents

Introduction

What is science?

Divine Principles

Religion, Politics, and Science

Beyond the Principles

Consciousness

Theories of Origin

The Physical Universe

The Holographic Universe

The Metaphysical Universe

Object Construction Review

The Illusion of Free Will?

Questions and Answers and Questions

Purifying Resources

Sharpening Tools and Reconnecting

References

One

INTRODUCTION

During the seven-day period between November 8th and the 14th of 2008, Dr. Eben Alexander lay in a coma brought on by a rare strain of E. Coli Bactria. But, while his physical body provided only the most subtle indications of life, the more real Dr. Alexander had an adventure most of us cannot begin to imagine and one impossible to describe. Dr. Alexander did his best in doing that, however, in his best-selling book, Proof of Heaven. It is clear from that experience Dr. Alexander has come to know with absolute certainty he is far more than he ever thought he was. I wonder how different things would be if each one of us would come to know the Truth of our eternal Essence to the same degree of confidence.

Most people would label the events described by Dr. Alexander as a religious or mystical experience. It is the kind that originates in the mysteries that lie somewhere beyond science and beyond faith. There are many who would deny their very existence. They would label such stories delusions, exaggerations, or fantasies arising from brains gone haywire, not firing properly on all synapses.

But such refutations are becoming increasingly difficult to justify. The miracles of modern medicine have enabled it to bring back an increasing number of people who have been declared clinically dead. Many have returned with stories remarkably similar to that of Dr. Alexander’s.

One does not need to go through the process of dying, of course, to have such an experience. It would seem they can happen to just about anybody at any time. They do appear less likely, however, to those focused primarily on simply trying to get enough to eat or whose primary objective is to make sure their salary is greater than that of their neighbors. I don’t think they are something that can ever be forced, but the regular practice of meditation or prayer seems to make them more likely to occur. The one common result of those who report them is a sense of serenity not realized by most of us. They have come to know they are loved in a way they could never have previously imagined.

The Sunday morning preachers, Saturday Rabbis, Friday Imams, clairvoyants, mediums, psychics, and a whole lot of other people will all boldly tell us there is a God that loves us more than we could ever know. I believe all of them are right. If they are, then it would have to be the most fundamental of all spiritual truths.

Most of these people would, with equal boldness, proclaim what they believe are truths that extend beyond that most basic one. These can be heard repeatedly in the churches, synagogues, mosques, temples, and many other places around the world. Many of them are shared by virtually every spiritual organization. Strive to live a good and moral life. Treat all people with dignity and respect. Many of these shared beliefs have a very positive influence in our world.

But all of the proclamations heard in our places of worship cannot possibly be true. Many of them eliminate each other through the process of mutual exclusion. The problem we are facing is trying to determine which ones are genuine ideas of Truth.

The second most fundamental spiritual truth would have to be the answer to who else might contain at least some of the attributes of God. For example, are the Hindus and most metaphysicians correct when they assert that there is a spark of the Divine in every human being? Or, is the Islam faith right when it contends that characteristic is retained for God alone? Is the Christian belief that maintains Jesus is the only divine son of God, the one of Truth? Are those who would contend there is no God, that nothing is divine, and that there is no spiritual aspect to the universe, the ones on the path to truth?

These beliefs are mutually exclusive. At most only one of those listed above can be right. That means at least 70% of the world’s population are wrong with regard to this basic belief. And, not only are they wrong, they are very often passionately wrong. And that is something that has not been conducive to the planet’s good health. It won’t be an easy thing to do, but I believe it is imperative for us to make a greater effort to determine the answer to this question. One of the efforts of this book is to try and gain a sense of direction that might lead us towards that answer.

Anecdotal evidence has been the most common type we have used to try and determine truth in spiritually related ideas. This type of evidence is not good enough for science. However, if enough people have similar experiences, we may begin to accumulate sufficient evidence to at least cause some people to wonder about possibilities of what may be true.

There have undoubtedly been millions of stories that have been shared since the dawn of the human race that support the idea that God exists and that we will all survive the demise of our physical bodies. Many of these accounts have been recorded in such writings as the Bible, the Torah, the Koran, the Veda texts, and many other sacred religious documents. Many others have more recently been recorded in such books as Proof of Heaven, The Ghosts of Gettysburg, Death and Dying, Crossing Over, and thousands more.

It is not the purpose of this book to either reiterate or attempt to conclude what may or may not be ideas of truth from this vast store of literature. They speak for themselves and anyone is free to evaluate and conclude for themselves which ones, if any, contain pieces of eternal truth.

There is a relatively small number of people who would say there is no truth in any of these writings. They would say they are all figments of imagination, delusions, or lies. But after a while it does become a little difficult to conclude that all of the people who have told these stories are crazy, liars, or delusional. The vast majority of people would either believe some of them or at least allow for the possibility some may contain elements of truth.

Most people who would consider all of them to be fantasies would also say their beliefs are supported by reason and science. They would contend that science has conclusively demonstrated our universe is the end product of a natural and mindless process. A large percentage of people working in the various fields of science would agree with that position. Interestingly enough however, this view is not supported by the majority of people who would consider themselves to be scientists. That alone suggests we need to take a closer look at the science of spirituality. This is something the Institution of Science has been reluctant to do. It has consistently maintained the study of God lies outside of its realm of study. I think this has been a major error in judgement and that it is beginning to come to a realization of that mistake.

Science is the most reliable tool we have for both determining and validating truth. But there have been far too many ideas proclaimed as scientifically proven that have turned out not to be. No scientific conclusion can be more valid than the least valid component of the process that was used to arrive at the conclusion. If the premise, assumptions, or method used in the scientific application is not valid, then the conclusion cannot be either. However, if all of the components of a scientific process are valid, then the conclusion must also be. That is the way science works, and the technological wonders of our world amply demonstrate it has worked quite well indeed.

In spite of its efforts to remain aloof from the spiritual fray, science has from time to time run head on into strongly held religious beliefs. In these instances, if the science is valid, the conclusions it has demonstrated have always prevailed. For example, four hundred years ago the vast majority of people believed the sun traveled around a stationary world. It was also a central tenant of the Catholic faith. But along came men like Copernicus, Galileo, and Kepler who said Wait a minute. I think the world rotates and the sun only appears to go around it. These are obviously two contradictory beliefs. This is an either or situation. In other words, one of them must be true and the other false.

Most assertions are done with either confidence or arrogance. Sometimes it could be a little of both. Sometimes it may be hard to determine which it is. Was it confidence or arrogance that induced the church to be so certain in their faith that they tried Galileo for heresy, found him guilty, and made him a prisoner in his own home for the final twenty years of his life? Was it confidence in the validity of his science or arrogance that persuaded Galileo to argue against this particular component of church doctrine? I think history has answered those questions, even to the satisfaction of the church.

The primary aim of this book is to help promote a more reasoned search for spiritual truth. The primary reason for doing that is because we are running out of time. Our planet is being threatened on multiple fronts. Global warming, international terrorism, dwindling resources, and overpopulation are testing its very limits. I think the president said it best on his recent trip to Alaska when he went there to highlight the effects of global warming. At that time, he said to the effect, that if you are driving a car at a hundred miles an hour towards the edge of a cliff you will probably want to begin hitting the brake before you get there. That makes sense to me. I think the time has come to take the foot off the accelerator and move it a little to the left.

There are many reasons for optimism. Spiritual leaders are calling attention to greenhouse gasses and encouraging conservation. World leaders are holding international summits to pledge greater resources to confront the crises we are facing. But Armageddon is also a real possibility. If it does happen, it won’t be an act of God. It will be a collective choice we all will make.

Whatever we decide, it will be a complex choice. One of the most important elements helping to make that choice will be our willingness to conduct an open search for truth. Will we be strong enough to be wrong in our pursuit of being right? We know we are going to be wrong. It is a part of being human. We know there are some who won’t acknowledge when that happens, even to themselves. But we don’t need everybody to do it. We only need enough people to do it. Will enough of us be strong enough to begin the transformation of our world into the kind of place it was always meant to be? When we’re gone, will it be a place in which our children and grandchildren can grow and prosper? I think these are, without doubt, the most pressing questions of our time.

This book focuses on a search for spiritual truth. That has been my primary passion for more than 40 years and I think I have learned a few things about it. If there is a spiritual aspect to the human condition, then it has to be the most fundamental one there is. Everything that exists would precipitate from it. I believe there is such a feature and we could solve a lot of problems if we would come to understand and utilize it better than we do.

The Reader’s Digest magazine reminds us every month that laughter is the best medicine. I think it is a pretty good cure for most ailments and we sure can use all of it we can get. But I didn’t find much to laugh about in the History Channel’s recent presentation of their version of our planet after humans. My recent trip through the Holocaust museum in Washington DC didn’t even bring about a smile. Neither do I find much humor in the deliberate use of airplanes to destroy buildings and human lives. The images I have seen of polar bears drifting out to sea on chunks of ice they thought would never do that don’t strike me as funny either.

Laughter can be a good antidote for what ails us, but it needs the friend of reason. If that is not around, the laughter can sometimes be mighty cruel. I’m not sure how close we are to the edge of that cliff. But I think we are still heading pretty fast in the wrong direction and we need to start hitting the brake pretty quickly. This book is my contribution towards that effort. It is a science book designed primarily to exercise the art of contemplation. That can also be a cure for many things. The science will be applied in an effort to determine answers to spiritually related questions. We will examine some of the discoveries and theories that science is beginning to come up with related to these questions. The goal would be that some of them might