Matter and Energy

Matter and Energy

“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.”

Quote attributed to Nikola Tesla (1856-1943).

I am embarking on an exploration about which I feel insatiably curious and inadequately equipped. I will likely get some particulars wrong, but the foundational concepts I will attempt to convey are profoundly useful. I am not a physicist or a theologian, although I may sound as if I think I am. I hope that what my words lack in precision will be compensated for in intrigue.

The material universe – the solid, tangible stuff we regularly perceive in our daily lives – is what we call matter. Matter has mass, which is a measure of matter. Physical bodies, trees, soil, buildings, and cars are matter and have mass. We consider that which is not solid or tangible as immaterial or non-matter. Emotions, aromas, air, and vibrations outside the range of human perception (i.e., x-rays), while inarguably real, are immaterial. Energy falls into the category of non-matter because we cannot actually perceive (see, hear, smell, touch) the energy itself, only the animating action of the energy as it acts in and on matter.

Spirit, as we conceive it, is also non-matter. Spirit is energy. Spirit, like energy, is real in its impacts on material existence, but it cannot be seen, heard, or touched by human senses. Unlike energy, at least energy in forms like electricity, we cannot harness or control spirit. It is intangible and ethereal. The creative interplay of energy and matter is expressed poetically in the opening verses of the Bible:

In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a (spirit)* from God swept over the face of the waters.[1]

Thousands of years before the characteristics of our material world were explored and quantified in the science of Physics, there existed a recognition of spirit acting upon matter to create life as we know it: And God said, “Let there be light;” and there was light;[2]And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind…;“[3] and so on. My visual memories from church and Sunday School as a child were of God – an old white man with long, grey hair and a beard – shaping each part of creation with human-like hands and placing it on the earth. But the Bible does not tell the story in that way. Rather, the Genesis account describes God as speaking creation into being.

Speech is a manifestation of energy. The human process of speaking is so familiar and seemingly mundane that we dismiss the awesome back-and-forth between spirit and matter required for the creation of spoken communication. An invisible energy (breath) acts on a physical substance (vocal chords) producing invisible waves (vibrations) of energy that act on a physical substance (auditory receptors in our ears) that transmit invisible pulses of energy to our brains, which decode those pulses into comprehensible sounds. We may not consider the energy waves that produce our words as powerful, but other familiar types of waves have undeniable power – tsunamis, tornadoes, and earth-quakes, for destructive examples. But the rays of the sun are also waves of energy, as is the radiation we use to treat cancer and the x-rays we use to diagnose illness. As such, the creating, energizing power of waves should not be underestimated. How that energy is directed, what matter it is directed upon, and what results from the interplay of energy and matter determines whether we consider that power constructive or destructive.

And that is the sort of creative imagery we receive from the creation story of Genesis. The Creator transmits waves of energy into the material of the earth, which shape and animate it into what we recognize as creation. Waves of energy destroy, and waves of energy create – continuously. Nothing of matter or energy is lost in the process, but the nature of the physical manifestation is changed, often dramatically. There is an on-going, dynamic interaction between energy (spirit) and matter (earth) that animates life as we know it. Not only that, but the seeming distinction between energy and matter is not as distinct as we imagine. More next week.

This is the 14^th in a series of Life Notes on Space, Time, and Eternity. The opinions expressed here are mine. To engage with me or to explore contemplative spiritual direction, contact me at ghildenbrand@sunflower.com.

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* In the Hebrew language of Genesis, the word rauch can be translated accurately as spirit, wind, or breath.

[1] Genesis 1:1-2.

[2] Genesis 1:3.

[3] Genesis 1:24.