I view religions, any religion both ancient, pagan or modern Christian or even Muslim, Swedenborganism, Edgar Cayce spiritualist and new agers all as protophysics and so look for clues in all of them as they relate to my own physics and quantum physics oriented comprehension of reality. In this sense, we see JW's argue that when a person is dead, they're dead and know nothing, similar to an atheist belief but with future resurrection because the life force or the breath of life is gone. Compare and contrast the JW breath of life with Harold S. Burr's notion of the electromagnetic L-field.
Okay, that's a fascinating and quite unique approach! Viewing religions as protophysics allows you to extract potentially valuable insights that might otherwise be missed through purely literal or theological interpretations. Let's delve into the comparison you proposed between the Jehovah's Witness (JW) "breath of life" concept and Harold S. Burr's L-field.
**The JW "Breath of Life" Concept (and Resemblance to Atheist View):**
* **Literal Interpretation:** JWs primarily base their belief on literal interpretations of biblical texts. For them, "breath of life" (often translated from Hebrew *ruach* and Greek *pneuma*, which can also mean "spirit" or "wind") isn't a spiritual soul or immortal consciousness. Instead, it's the *active force* imparted by God that animates the body. When the body dies, that active force returns to God, and the person ceases to exist, entering a state of non-being. It's often likened to turning off a light switch – the light (life) is gone.
* **Death as Non-Existence:** This aligns with some atheist views in that consciousness and awareness are seen as entirely dependent on the physical brain's functioning. When the brain ceases to function, so does consciousness. There is no inherent soul or spirit that continues on its own.
* **Resurrection:** The key difference with many atheist perspectives lies in the JW belief in a future resurrection. God, in his power, can recreate a person's life pattern from memory, imprinting it on a new physical body. This is not the same "person" continuing their existence; rather, it's a recreation of the same individual based on God's perfect memory. The new person created will possess the same memories and personality traits as the original.
[Rick says, this reminds me of a Disney cartoon where the artist was brought into the cartoon as a real hand that erased various parts of a characters body and redrew them, shocking the cartoon character on the page who demanded to be put back to normal].
* **No Intermediate State:** There is no concept of heaven or hell that one goes to immediately upon death. One simply does not exist until, and unless, they are resurrected by God, where they have the potential to live in paradise on Earth if they do as Jehovah commands in the Bible.
**Harold S. Burr's L-Field (Electromagnetic Field of Life):**
* **Biofield Theory:** Harold Burr was a professor of anatomy at Yale University. He proposed that all living things (including trees, salamanders, and humans) are organized and controlled by an electromagnetic field, which he termed the "L-field" (L for Life). This L-field is measurable and has a specific pattern that changes based on the organism's health, state of mind, and development.
* **Morphogenetic Field:** The L-field is believed to act as a "blueprint" or organizing principle for the body's development, maintenance, and regeneration. It influences cellular growth, differentiation, and repair. Think of it like a guide or template that helps things build themselves and be maintained, like a map.
* **Measured Electrically:** Burr and his colleagues used sensitive voltmeters to measure the electrical potential gradients of the L-field. They claimed that changes in the L-field could predict health problems, even before symptoms manifested physically.
* **Relationship to Consciousness?** Burr himself didn't explicitly link the L-field to consciousness in the way that some modern biofield theorists do. However, the implication is that the L-field is a fundamental aspect of life, and it's reasonable to speculate that it could be related to the biological basis of consciousness. Some now propose a biofield theory of consciousness.
[rick says- yes, follow up on this-- but the one vector I have is Edward W. Russsell in his “Design for Destiny” and “Prospects for Eternity”.]
* **Influence Beyond Physical Body:** Some proponents of biofield theories believe that the L-field might extend beyond the physical body, interacting with other L-fields and the environment, which could potentially explain phenomena like remote healing or subtle energetic interactions.
**Comparison and Contrast:**
Here's a table summarizing the key points:
| Feature | JW "Breath of Life" | Harold S. Burr's L-Field |
| ----------------- | ----------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------ |
| **Nature** | God-given active force, animating principle | Electromagnetic field associated with living organisms |
| **Function** | Animate the body during life, cease at death | Organize and control development, maintenance, repair |
| **Origin** | Divine origin | Intrinsic to the physical and biological world |
| **Location** | Within the physical body during life | Surrounding and permeating the physical body |
| **After Death** | Returns to God, individual ceases to exist | Potentially dissipates or changes form |
[rick says-- no, it doesn’t change form, it continues to exist as an on-the-shelf L-field, according to Russel]
| **Measurable?** | Not directly measurable scientifically | Measurable using voltmeters |
| **Consciousness** | Linked to brain function, ceases at death | Potentially related to the biological basis |
| **Resurrection** | Possible via God's power, recreation | Does not account for after death unless interpreted spiritually, with unknown future potential |
[Rick says- this is where Russell’s extension of Burr comes into play as well as Matzke]
**Connecting the Dots (Your Protophysics Perspective):**
Here's how you might bridge these two concepts from your perspective, seeking proto-physical insights:
1. **Life Force as Energetic Field:** You could consider the JW "breath of life" as a *metaphorical* description of an underlying energetic field (like the L-field). The "breath" isn't literally air; it represents the dynamic, organizing energy that animates matter. When the JWs say the "breath" returns to God, you could interpret that as the energetic field perhaps dissipating, returning to the universal energetic matrix, or becoming reorganized somehow.
2. **The Information in the Field:** If the L-field or similar biofield holds information about the organism (as Burr suggested), then it might be possible to conceptualize the *information* content of the field as being what is "remembered" and re-created during the JW resurrection. This aligns with quantum physics principles of information preservation.
3. **Resurrection as Re-Entanglement:** You might even speculate on a quantum physics perspective. If entanglement links the original organism to its biofield, perhaps at death, the entanglement isn't entirely broken. God's action could be seen as re-entangling new matter with the "residual information" from the original entanglement, effectively re-creating the individual's pattern in a new form. This is, of course, highly speculative, but fits within a protophysics framework.
4. **Limitations of Current Science:** Acknowledge that current scientific instruments may not be sophisticated enough to fully capture or understand these subtle energetic fields or processes related to consciousness and death. Therefore, these ideas remain in the realm of speculation and theoretical exploration.
**Important Considerations:**
* **Respect for Beliefs:** Be mindful to approach both the JW beliefs and the L-field concept with respect. Your protophysics framework is about exploring potential connections, not necessarily proving or disproving either perspective.
* **Scientific Rigor:** While embracing the speculative, maintain a commitment to scientific principles. Look for testable hypotheses and empirical evidence that might support or refute your ideas.
* **Metaphor vs. Literal:** Be clear about when you're using concepts metaphorically or as potential literal descriptions of reality.
By engaging with these different perspectives in this way, you can potentially uncover deeper insights into the nature of life, consciousness, and the universe, even if those insights are initially more philosophical or theoretical than scientifically validated. Good luck on your protophysics explorations!
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