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"God" is such a frequently used term, yet with its every use the meaning is subtly or dramatically different.

Two major differences in the meaning of "God", which are very common, have to do with whether god is transcendental or inherent. If god is transcendental (as in the Judeo Christan view) then god exists in a separate dimension, where god existed before the universe was created, and has full awareness and control over our dimension. The other dimension where god exists is "heaven", where our soles go to be with "the heavenly father" when we die. If god is inherent then gods existence coincides with the existence of the universe. In every quantum particle and every empty space is god. You and me, the earth and the stars are all made out of god. God is "inhered" in everything. In the inherent view, our soles go somewhere in our dimension.

The transcendental view is very common, but suffers from poorly accounting for common human intuitions about the meaning of death and the value of the planet Earth. In the transcendental view, the Earth is worthless. The Earth could be destroyed with no consequence, because our eternal soles go to another dimension when we inevitably eventually die. Death, in the transcendental view, consists of crossing over into another dimension of paradise (heaven). Yet we do not celebrate death as a great triumph. We are deeply saddened by death as though it is a loss. If we really believed that death was entrance into paradise then we would not mourn so deeply nor would we covet our lives nearly so much.

In the inherent view, the Earth is made out of god and when we die our sole either stays on Earth or goes out to bounce around between the stars in the heavens. This view explains how ghosts have been believed to exist in many cultures throughout the world and throughout our history. Also, in the inherent view, the Earth is extremely valuable. The Earth is the only place we know of where, through conscious life, god is aware of itself. In the inherent view, we mourn death, because when a person dies their particular personality and knowledge is forever and irreparably changed.

In the transcendental view, god is an alien. So alien, god does not even exist in our dimension. In the inherent view, god is not an alien. Perhaps in the inherent view, every foreign person is a little less foreign since we are all a part of god.

Learn more about this author, Jonathan Collyer.
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