Philosophical Speculations

@ScottRoberts, You have sidestepped my observation that denying potential leads to block-universe determinism, which undermines both will and reason. The acorn and the oak tree are both actual, as all of existence past, present, and future is actual in the simultaneity of eternity. If you’re correct...

@ScottRoberts, If potential doesn't exist, then the universe is entirely actual, past, present, and future, in a single frozen block, which means that all is determined, which means mankind has no more will or reasoning ability than a pebble on the beach. In this case, reason itself is invalid becau...

@ScottRoberts, I agree about constructed time, so, we can set that aside. The crux is experiential time. Eternity would experience experiential time, or, rather, an incomprehensible analogue of experiential time. We can say eternity lacks past and future, existing timelessly, rather than in a bad in...

@ScottRoberts.

Pondering, will reply tomorrow.

@ScottRoberts, I agree that change is ever-present to our minds. However, the fact of the ever-presence of change itself does not change. If it did, then change would cease, and, once ceased, could never start up again because change had changed into changelessness, which by definition never changes...

@ScottRoberts, I see what you are saying. Your essay on divine and local simplicity and the question of will I found most interesting. To address your points: First, we use the word "conscious" in different ways. I treat consciousness as a quality of the mind (monad), the field of words an...

@ScottRoberts, Bear with me as I expound on the nature of God, which I will apply to mumorphism at the appropriate time in this post. Also, although I don’t resent your chop-and-reply style, I endeavor to reply to everything as a single flowing post, so my quotations from you will be minimal. So, I ...

@ScottRoberts,

Thank you for the challenging response. I am digesting it and will endeavor to reply hopefully tomorrow.

@ScottRoberts, Embracing an ontology involving the Totality (God + universe) forever changing (as per Heraclitus) is essentially Nietzschean: all is Becoming, there is no Being. The deadly practical social implications of such a philosophy aside, such is metaphysically problematic because it implies...