Free The Living Universe by Duane Elgin Page A

Bible. In Genesis 1:1, we read that G-d (a deity beyond words and whose name cannot be written) created this universe out of nothing. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth.” 1 The word
created
comes from the translation of the Hebrew word “bara” and means to bring forth out of nothing. 2
    In Exodus (3:14), God reveals his name as “I AM THAT I AM.” God is without limits or boundaries. God simply is. Also in the Jewish Bible (and Old Testament), we find this powerful description of a spiritual presence creating and sustaining the universe:
    The heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands . . .
    â€”P SALMS 19:1 3
    Another translation of this Psalm is written differently. Instead of saying “the heavens
declare
the glory. . .” it says, “the heavens
are telling
of the glory. . .” The phrase “are telling” suggests the heavens are being presented to beholders as an active, ongoing process. 4 The heavens are proclaiming the magnificence of their creator as a continuing dynamic.
    Here is another Psalm that describes an infusing spiritual presence throughout the universe:
    Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your
presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my
bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the
dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand
will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
    â€”P SALMS 139:7-10 5
    Overall, Judaism views the universe as a divine creation and humans as having a direct relationship with its creative unfolding. Christianity has drawn from these roots and, with roughly one-third of humanity as adherents at the turn of the twenty-first century, it is the world’s largest religion. To explore the connection between Christianity and the cosmos, it is important to begin by acknowledging thetheological complexity of Christianity, with its many voices, institutions, and shifting emphases over time.
    As theologians reexamine Christian history, one of the themes being explored is the idea that God not only creates and sustains the universe, but that the universe actually participates in the
being
of God. Here are quotes from the Bible that suggest a view of “God” as a divine spiritual presence that creates the universe and continues to be present within it.
    In him we live, and move, and have our being . . . . We are his offspring.
    â€”Acts 17:28
    Through him all things came to be, not one thing had its being but through him.
    â€”J OHN 1:3
    Christianity sees the universe as a divine creation permeated by a spiritual presence that celebrates the glory of its creator. In the New Testament book of Hebrews 11:3 we read, “. . . the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.” 6 What we see around us is not made of anything visible. Recalling the preceding chapter, this is congruent with modern cosmology describing the birth of the universe from nothing as a “vacuum fluctuation.”
    The idea of a living universe is found explicitly and powerfully in the Eastern Orthodox Churches that comprise the world’s third-largest Christian community after Catholicism and Protestantism. Eastern Orthodox Christianity holds the view that God’s energies are vital for anything to exist at all and, for things to continue toexist, God’s active involvement is essential. God’s active presence is required to sustain the universe at every scale, from the most minute to the most grand. Because everything is upheld equally and without favor, this means that the entirety of creation is equally valued and sacred. God’s energies sustain even those beings who reject the idea of God. God will not abandon creation, as nothing is viewed as existing separately from God. Beings may not be conscious of their communion with God, but God is ever