What do you think about your consciousness?

396 what do you think about your consciousness Among philosophers and theologians, it is called the mind-body problem (also called the mind-body problem). It's not about a problem of fine motor coordination (like swallowing from a cup without spilling anything or missing the dice game). Instead, the question is whether our bodies are physical and our thoughts are spiritual; or in other words, whether humans are purely physical or a combination of the physical and the spiritual.

Although the Bible does not directly address the mind-body problem, it contains clear indications of a non-physical aspect of human existence and distinguishes (in New Testament terminology) between body (physical being, flesh) and soul (mind, spirit). And although the Bible does not explain how body and soul are related or how exactly they interact, it does not separate the two or present them as interchangeable, and the soul is never reduced to the physical. Several passages point to a unique “spirit” within us and indicate a connection to the Holy Spirit, suggesting that we can have a personal relationship with God.Röm 8,16 and 1 Kor 2,11).

In considering the mind-body problem, it is important that we begin with a fundamental teaching of Scripture: There would be no human beings and they would not be what they are, beyond an existing, ongoing relationship with the transcendent Creator God, who is all Created things and maintained their existence. Creation (including humans) would not exist if God were completely separate from it. Creation did not create itself and does not maintain its existence itself - only God exists in itself (theologians speak here of God's aseity). The existence of all created things is a gift from the self-existing God.

Contrary to the biblical testimony, some claim that humans are nothing more than material beings. This assertion raises the following question: How can something as immaterial as human consciousness even arise from something as unconscious as physical matter? A related question is: Why is there any perception of sensory information at all? These questions trigger further questions as to whether consciousness is just an illusion or whether there is some (albeit non-physical) component that is connected to the material brain, but has to be differentiated.

Almost everyone agrees that people have a consciousness (an inner world of thoughts with images, perceptions and feelings) - which is commonly referred to as the mind and which is as real to us as the need for food and sleep. However, there is no agreement as to the nature and cause of our consciousness / mind. Materialists regard it solely as a result of the electrochemical activity of the physical brain. Non-materialists (including Christians) see it as an immaterial phenomenon that is not identical to the physical brain.

The speculations about consciousness fall into two main categories. The first category is physicalism (materialism). This teaches that there is no invisible spiritual world. The other category is called parallel dualism, which teaches that the mind can have a non-physical characteristic or is completely non-physical, so that it cannot be explained in purely physical terms. Parallel dualism views the brain and the mind as interacting and working in parallel - when the brain is injured, the ability to reason logically can be impaired. As a result, the parallel interaction is also affected.

In the case of parallel dualism, the term dualism is used to distinguish between observable and unobservable interactions between the brain and cognitive abilities. The conscious mental processes that occur individually in each person are private and inaccessible to outsiders. Another person can hold our hand, but they cannot know our private thoughts (and most of the time we are quite happy that God has arranged it that way!). Furthermore, certain human ideals that we hold within ourselves cannot be reduced to material factors. These ideals include love, justice, forgiveness, joy, mercy, grace, hope, beauty, truth, kindness, peace, human action, and responsibility—these give life purpose and meaning. A passage in the Bible tells us that all good gifts come from God. (Jak 1,17)Could this explain the existence of these ideals and caring aspects of our human nature – as gifts from God to humanity?

As Christians, we point to the unsearchable activities and influence of God in the world; this includes his acting through created things (natural effect) or, more directly, his acting through the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit is invisible, His work cannot be measured. But his work takes place in the material world. His works are unpredictable and cannot be reduced to empirically comprehensible cause-effect chains. These works not only include God's creation as such, but also the Incarnation, Resurrection, Ascension, the sending of the Holy Spirit and the expected return of Jesus Christ for the completion of the kingdom of God as well as the establishment of the new heaven and the new earth.

Returning to the mind-body problem, materialists claim that mind can be explained physically. This view opens up the possibility, though not the necessity, of artificially reproducing the mind. Ever since the term "Artificial Intelligence" (AI) was coined, AI has been a subject of optimism among computer developers and science fiction writers. Over the years, AI has become an integral part of our technology. Algorithms are programmed for all types of devices and machines, from cell phones to automobiles. Software and hardware development has progressed so much that machines have triumphed over humans in gaming experiments. In 1997, the IBM computer Deep Blue beat reigning world chess champion Garry Kasparov. Kasparov accused IBM of fraud and demanded revenge. I wish IBM hadn't turned it down, but they decided the machine had worked hard enough and simply retired Deep Blue. In 2011, the Jeopardyuiz show hosted a match between IBM's Watson Computer and the top two Jeopardy players. (Instead of answering questions, the players should quickly formulate the questions for given answers.) The players lost by a wide margin. I can only say (and I'm being ironic) that Watson, who only functioned as it was designed and programmed to do, was not happy; but the AI software and hardware engineers certainly do. That should tell us something!

Materialists claim that there is no empirical evidence that mind and body are separate and distinct. They argue that the brain and consciousness are identical and that the mind somehow arises from the quantum processes of the brain or emerges from the complexity of the processes occurring in the brain. One of the so-called "angry atheists", Daniel Dennett, goes even further and claims that consciousness is an illusion. Christian apologist Greg Koukl points out the fundamental flaw in Dennett's argument:

If there was no real awareness, there would be no way to even realize that it was just an illusion. If awareness is required to perceive an illusion, then it can not be an illusion itself. Likewise, one should be able to perceive both worlds, the real and the illusory, in order to recognize that there is a difference between the two, and thus identify the illusory world. If all perception was an illusion, it would not be recognizable as such.

The immaterial cannot be discovered through material (empirical) methods. Only material phenomena can be determined that are observable, measurable, verifiable and repeatable. If there are only things that can be empirically proven, then what was unique (not repeatable) cannot exist. And if this is the case, then history made up of unique, unrepeatable sequences of events cannot exist! That may be convenient, and for some it is an arbitrary explanation that there are only such things that can be detected by a specific and preferred method. In short, there is no way to empirically prove that only empirically verifiable / material things exist! It is illogical to reduce the whole of reality to what can be discovered by this one method. This view is sometimes referred to as scientism.

This is a vast topic, and I've only scratched the surface, but it's also an important one – consider Jesus' remark: "And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul." (Mt 10,28)Jesus was not a materialist – he clearly distinguished between the physical body (which includes the brain) and an immaterial component of our humanity, which is the very essence of our personality. When Jesus tells us not to let others kill our souls, he is also referring to the fact that we should not let others destroy our faith and trust in God. We cannot see God, but we know and trust him, and through our non-physical consciousness, we can even feel or perceive him. Our faith in God is, in fact, part of our conscious experience.

Jesus reminds us that our capacity for reason is an essential part of following him as his disciples. Our consciousness gives us the ability to believe in the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It helps us to receive the gift of faith; this faith is “assurance of what we hope for and certainty of what we do not see.” (Hebr 11,1)Our consciousness enables us to know and trust God as Creator, in order to "realize that the world was created by God's word, so that everything seen was made from nothing." (Hebr 11,3)Our consciousness enables us to experience the peace that surpasses all understanding, to recognize that God is love, to believe in Jesus as the Son of God, to believe in eternal life, to know true joy, and to know that we are truly God's beloved children.

Let us rejoice that God has given us the mind to know our own world and to know Him,