Hi Marie, glad to hear you are listening. I hope to keep posting about the Divine Milieu in the coming days as I learn more about it. I like to absorb Teilhard's ideas and integrate them into my life before I post any new stuff. My next installment is almost ready. Take care.
The Divine Milieu - Idea 2: Approximately 96% of the universe is dark matter and dark energy. Whatever it is, this unknown stuff surrounds everything in the universe. Without it, the galaxies would fly apart. It is called dark because it cannot be detected by any instruments. Bottom line: science only understands 4% of the universe; the other 96% is a mystery. We are surrounded by this dark stuff like the fish in a water tank. It’s possible that the dark stuff is Teilhard’s Divine Milieu. If not, it is still an excellent metaphor for the Divine Milieu since it is a mysterious unknown that surrounds and permeates everything in the universe. A final point. Don’t see the Divine Milieu as dark stuff. Instead, see it as warm white light. Feel yourself surrounded by this white light as it guides, nourishes, comforts, and loves you unconditionally. This is how Teilhard sees the world.
Anyone who has had an out of body experience has no feeling of surroundings, but we know there is something that fills the void aka space around us. Even water as you said has this. Its just wet. Ever notice when you close your eyes you see flashes of light inside the space of your vision? I am amazed just how much we don't know.
In trying to follow Teilhard's advice "Make the World a Better Place", I have been looking for something new to add to my daily prayer routine and found a good one. It was created by a Christian minister's wife. It gives 40 daily conversations with God. It only takes a few minutes to read a daily. If you are interested in learning more, Amazon offers a Kindle version and a paperback version along with excellent reviews of how good it is. Here is the cover of the book and one of its daily readings.
I haven't thought of De Chardin for a long time. Way back when I was interested in his odd conjunction of faith and atheism. I never did quite figure it out. I wouldn't call myself a fan. Sort of along those lines, when Prince Chuck was anointed King, his royal decree claims that The King is both the temporal AND spiritual leader of the empire. Given how much the royals have always despised their subjects, that's a little scary.
Hi Dwight, I read Teilhard's most famous book called "The Phenomenon of Man" back in the 1970s and never got the impression that he was an atheist. But he did have a more modern idea of creation based on evolution. The Catholic Church was not ready for his new view of the world, so they forbid him to publish. Teilhard obeyed the Pope and his works were only published after his death. I have read a lot about Teilhard's life and everything I found confirms that he was an extremely devout believer in God.
It's been a while - 50 years or so. I guess I'm confusing his unorthodox faith with lack of faith. Wrong again. Sigh.
No problem. I can summarize his philosophy in six words: "Make the world a better place". I think it's his golden rule.