Audit of the Universe: Technical progress–Yes, Peace of Mind–No

Our Audit of the Universe reveals that humankind’s technical progress has been astronomic, but their peace of mind has not followed.

Audit of the Universe asked and answered the question, what’s up with all those pieces of Inventory of the Universe? How are they faring in 2019? Plus, we took a closer look at how humankind functions, their social institutions, endeavors, and ways of reasoning. I tried to leave it up to each reader to decide whether the glass of peace and prosperity on Earth is getting fuller or emptier.
(Origin of the Universe Preface 2)

Objectively, I think you were able to detect that while I feel technically the glass is without a doubt getting fuller, humankind’s way of life is getting emptier. Humankind possesses mental outlets, their interior fiber, that makes us a very particular species: our mind with its capacity to conceive and our body with its capacity to manufacture and create marvelous endeavors. Humankind is not using those remarkable abilities to blossom; we’re in a continual and perpetual search for an evasive, elusive something.

We’re progressing at an exponential rate, and at the same time, there seems to be a void, we don’t know where they’re headed, and the emptiness seems to be engulfing us. Something like accelerating into a black hole. We‘ve got all the gadgets for a life of ease, but inner peace and prosperity elude us. When humankind steps off the motorized treadmill where they’re running for health and well being in a stationary position, where do we stand? If we put aside all our life-toys, what do we have deep down?

In Audit of the Universe, we discussed Government, Science, Philosophy, Religion, and Mythology. The common denominator among these diverse disciplines is their search for answers. I concluded that given the present state of affairs, there’d been an awful lot of searching, which continues, but we’re short of answers, real answers about the fundamentals of life.

How do you explain so much worldwide depression? Why can’t we know the purpose of life? And a million other queries.

These interrogations touch on subjects like: Is there some external force out there of which we’re maybe not fully aware? You can name it whatever you want; the question is: is humankind alone in the universe? Whether we think there’s intelligent life on another planet or some spirit being, the question remains.

In Audit of the Universe, I discussed how we are thriving. We surveyed the immense inventory, the universe of animate and inanimate to see how it is faring. We asked the fundamental question: Is the glass of peace and prosperity in each of these fields getting emptier or fuller?

An intermediate conclusion concerns the singularity of humankind, who, alone, can take such an Inventory and proceed with such an Audit. We humans alone, have the culture to survey, evaluate, record, and transmit such conclusions.

Given this unique propensity of humankind, we discussed four characteristics that set us apart from and above all known creatures on Earth and, to this point, in the known Universe.

1. These include how humankind’s mind functions, their human nature, and free will that lead to their behavior. For any social interaction, there needs to be ethics and their application with justice for all. It includes the ability to modify one’s behavior and be forgiven allowing an individual not only to integrate society but contribute to its peace and prosperity.
2. We then touched on the social co-habitation of humankind. Our society is made up of individuals who sexually reproduce with other individuals. Each one, worldwide, going through a growth process in an environment of mother and father, family, extended family, village, city, nation, and beyond. Until we reached globalization, the 21st-century buzzword referring to migration and intermingling of peoples and cultures.
3. These combined individualities, with their human minds, rule Earth. We have accomplished incredible progress, particularly in the last 6000 years, with a strong emphasis on the 20th century. The development has accelerated, and it is mind-boggling to see where we are in agriculture, biology, technology, and so many other fields. The endeavors of humankind have led to the type of societies we live in today. Experimentation, conception, and realization of humankind’s thoughts, plans, and dreams have given rise to the 21st century way of life.
4. We ended our Audit of the Universe by considering the tools and methods at humankind’s disposition to reason and reach conclusions–find solutions; their basis for beliefs and actions to both live on Earth and promote peace and prosperity for all of humanity. I ended Audit with How humankind reasons including the four pillars:
   1. Humankind’s observations — Experience and lessons learned from government, leadership, and history
   2. Philosophy — Humankind’s intellectual approach to life
   3. Science — Humankind’s study and explanation of Nature
   4. Religion — Humankind’s incorporation of a Higher Powered Intelligence, of whatever sort, into their life

When it comes to humankind, the common denominator among Observation, Philosophy, and Science is how all of humanity searches for their answers. This method is in contrast to Religion, where humankind acquiesces to revealed knowledge from an OUTSIDE Higher Source.

Audit of the Universe is an analysis of the entirety of humankind’s answers to see how far we’ve come, what we’ve done with those answers, whether they’re yielding peace and prosperity, and opening up a bright future.

In Audit, we also, very briefly, looked at the impact of religion on our present state of world affairs. Can we say that religion is filling the glass with peace and prosperity? Even those within any particular religion would have a difficult time with that one. I’m not talking about what they think the impact of faith, in general, is going to be on world peace and prosperity. The answer to such a question is speculation. The real problem is, what is religion’s impact NOW?

I concluded that given the present state of affairs, after all this searching and sifting of data, which is on-going, we’re still quite short of answers, real answers about the fundamentals of life and what brings peace and prosperity. Witness the world around us. So many how-to books, So many rules-of-life books. So many opinions, so few real solutions.

And there are specific questions that none of the first three disciplines can answer. Many would include the 4th, religion: How do you explain Life? What is its origin? Why are we here?

I include in those unanswerable and unprovable questions: Is there some alien force out there of which we’re maybe not fully aware? You can name it whatever you want; the question is: Is humankind alone in the universe? Whether we think there’s intelligent life on another planet or some spirit being, the question remains. And the first three disciplines can only conjecture; they certainly cannot answer these types of metaphysical questions.

That’s why there’s a sequel to Inventory of the Universe and Audit of the Universe and Humankind, this book, The Origin of the Universe. We not only begin to question the why’s but also answer them.

This post is an excerpt from Preface 2 of Origin of the Universe.

You can read all of the book Origin of the Universe online. Sam blogs weekly at TheExplanation.com The Explanation masters Biblical Hebrew to help you unlock more in-depth Bible meaning.