Intelligence

               The scriptures teach that the only thing that we get to take with us after this life is the intelligence that we gain. “Whatever principle of intelligence we attain unto in this life, it will rise with us in the resurrection. And if a person gains more knowledge and intelligence in this life through his diligence and obedience than another, he will have so much the advantage in the world to come” (Doctrine and Covenants 130:18-19).

               It is often believed that science and religion do not coexist, that either you believe in scientific ways, or in God’s way. It is a notion that science often disproves God. I do not believe that this is the case. If we look from our perspective of limited knowledge, it is all too easy to doubt the existence of God. Man-made philosophies try to grasp the notion of an omnipotent being that controls the universe, but when they can’t, doubt sets in.

               I propose that the solution to this is to flip the perspective. Instead of attempting to prove a higher intelligence from a lower intelligence, what if we instead tried it the other way around? Besides, wouldn’t a higher intelligence completely understand the lower?  While the lower hardly comprehends the higher. I have learned that while science proves God, the correct perspective would be that God proves science. The moment we begin looking with this new perspective it becomes clear that behind all the complex processes in the biological world, it would certainly be impossible for every particle to come together to create a beautifully flowing universe in which even the tiniest of particles obey predetermined laws.

The reason I bring this up is due to my new understanding of the complexity of many instantaneous, but all too crucial biological processes that I have studied in my biology course. The smallest of things has then been contrasted with the largest of things in an astronomy course that I am also taking. I have developed a sense of awe and wonder at God’s creations. Even in a fallen state, they seem so perfect, from the atoms of our mind to the galaxies that it imagines. It is difficult to imagine matter in a celestial and exalted glory as that of the Father.