as one that accepts CDU credits.
Updated 04 Mar 2022: Added link to term paper article
Friends, family and followers:
I’m sorry I haven’t been writing much lately, but as many of you know, I decided to enroll in a graduate level class, for a Master’s degree (MA) in Theology, and I’ve been quite busy. Why in the world would I do that? I’m supposed to be retired and I already have an MS, an MA and a Ph.D. And I have no intention of finding a job, so a degree will not help me like that. Well… I decided to go for it for several reasons.
First of all, it’s there… and I have the funding. I have my VA benefits (Post 9/11 GI bill) just sitting in the VA’s bank account. So rather than doing my own independent study and research, which I’ve been doing for a long time with nothing (no kind of credentials) to show for it, I figured I’d get to work on another degree. For me, a degree program just helps me with my self-discipline. Secondly, one of the main sections in the book I’m writing (Holomorphosis and the Hologenetic Universe) goes through the process that I’m describing, stepwise as follows:
- From Logical to Physiological
- From Physiological to Biological
- From Biological to Psychological
- From Psychological to Theological and
- From Theological to Sociological
Long story short: I sent the first draft of the book to a publisher and it was rejected on the basis of what I had written in section 4 about theology. Actually, I gave my opinion of religion, and it wasn’t good. It’s embarrassing to talk about now, but I was a bit insulted by the rejection and the fact that the publisher didn’t explain, so I asked his what the hell? Simply put, he said that I didn’t know what I was talking about and what I had written had no value other than to reveal my ignorance about theology. Still insulted, I let it sink in and it suddenly came clear that he were absolutely right; I needed to get educated about theology rather than religion. Turns out, there’s a difference. Theology is the critical study of the nature of the divine; more generally, Religion refers to any cultural system of worship. As a scientist, I wanted a critical study.
Coincidentally (meaning about at the same time), I got into a conversation with a guy that I met at the 20th 9/11 memorial ceremony. He was a friend of a friend (actually her husband was a friend of my friend Alan) and I don’t even know how we got into the conversation about theology. I think he just happened to mention that he had attended a Catholic Seminary and had a degree in Divinity, but I’m not sure. Anyway, I mentioned that, even though I was raised Catholic, I rarely went to church and when I did, it was usually because we were visiting Alan and his family and they went to a non-denominational church. So he began to tell me things about what he had learned in the seminary that made more sense to me than anything I had ever heard about religion or spirituality. One of the first things was about something he called “apologetics”, which is how Christians learn to justify their belief in Jesus and Christianity in general. He actually talked about how he justified Catholicism to other Christians who don’t understand it.
Just a few high points: he started by saying that all people who call themselves Christians believe that Jesus is the son of God, so logically, they have to concede that he would have known what he was doing when he established his Church, as the universal Christian Church. That was actually enough for me to feel like I needed to know more about catholicism. So if I were to go to graduate school, it would be Catholic. Well, I knew that the original Christian Churches were all Catholic, but I never knew that the word “Catholic” means “universal”. I also knew that there had been a rebellion (he corrected me and said “reformation”) back-in-the-day, but didn’t know what it was all about. That’s probably enough to clue you in… I was extremely ignorant, and I felt like a big fool. It was like I could hear school bells ringing and I couldn’t wait to start class. He recommended one (Augustine Institute I think) but when I checked, they didn’t accept VA funding. A quick Internet search turned up the Catholic Distance University (CDU), which is physically in Charlestown WV, but entirely online. They accepted the funding so I enrolled and started in the Fall term 2021.
My first class was THEO 503, Catholic Theological Tradition, taught by Dr. D’Ambrosio. (Check him out at his website https://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/dr-italy/) It was fascinating! The first lecture included the concept of historical critical method, referring back to the primary sources and using scientific methods to verify sources the best ways available! I learned sooo much in that class about things I had no clue to even ask. If you are interested, you can find most or all of the lectures for free by searching “catholic theological tradition youtube videos”. The first one is just 7 1/2 minutes, an introduction to the course formerly called “Catholic Cultural Tradition”.
I have to confess… I have never felt so humble and continue to be humbled by what I am learning in my current class, SCRPT 530, Scripture and Salvation History. I constantly think about, “if I only knew back then what I know now…” and that sounds like I regret having lived my life the way I did. But it’s not an expression of regret; it’s an expression of how I’m beginning to understand God as the form of conscious that is the projection whereas we are the collective reflection created in His image. Remember, the holomorphic process is Separation, Projection, Reflection, Reintegration.
The more I learn about the Catholic interpretation of scripture, the more it resonates with the physics and metaphysics of holomorphosis. In effect, it’s proofing the model. I am currently working on my term paper for SCRPT 530 on the theology presented by St. Thomas Aquinas and OMG! it too is resonating beautifully. I will be sure to post it here after it’s graded and polished up if necessary. In the meantime, I started attending mass every week, getting immersed in the Catholic culture, attending RCIA (Rites of Catholic Initiation for Adults) classes (sorta like Bible and catechism study) and respecting the seven sacraments. I am finding more and more people that I can relate to on an intellectual and spiritual level so I joined the Society of Catholic Scientists and the Knights of Columbus (KofC). One of the deacons who teaches RCIA actually understood and used some of the information from this website to teach one of the RCIA classes.
So there ya go. I’ll get back to my studies and try to post here more often. I could be posting from the class discussion sessions, but I don’t want to overwhelm this site. I need to keep it focused on the holomorphic process, holomorphosis and the hologenetic universe. Of course, if you want it, just comment below, or contact me and I will try to send you some.
The Holomorphic Process 