The Multiverse
On Evangelization in an Age of Science
And God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. (Gen 1:1)
The very beginning of our universe was, according to our current understanding of the Big Bang, a flash of light, accompanied by thermal energy perhaps equal to the Plank temperature (the highest possible temperature, about 26 orders of magnitude hotter than the core of our sun). As the universe expanded it cooled, so it is now under three degrees above absolute zero (the lowest possible temperature). That flash of light has been redshifted by the expansion into the microwave region of the electromagnetic spectrum, where it was first detected by Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson in 1965 because it interfered with the microwave long distance telephone towers operated by the Bell system.
When I was young, I amused myself during long distance phone calls by listening to the faint background hiss and imagining it to be an echo of “Let there be light.” Now that the microwave towers have been largely replaced with fiber-optic cables it is impossible for us today to easily enjoy such an inspiration. Again, Genesis is not proved by such observations, but we can still enjoy them.
As mentioned before in an earlier essay, we have evidence that indicates the possible existence of a multiverse, a realm of unknown extent that is the ‘bedrock’ upon which our universe depends. In principle we will never directly observe it, but we might have evidence to infer its existence:
· The possible existence of a fourth dimension of space into which the universe is expanding
· The fact that the net energy of the universe (total mass-energy plus total gravitational potential energy) is near zero. There is no reason why, except one. In our universe we observe so-called virtual particles come into existence on the quantum scale and then self-annihilate; the closer their borrowed energy is to zero the longer they survive. This indicates our universe may have begun as one such quantum fluctuation inside a multiverse
· The fine tuning of the universe and the derived anthropic principles, which require parallel universes for a naturalistic explanation. How many? There is no way to know, but at least be consoled that most such universes self-destruct and the rest are lifeless. Thankfully there is probably no other me in the multiverse
At the 2023 Word on Fire Wonder Conference, the philosopher of science Fr. Robert Spitzer stated that there are physical studies published since 2015 which cast doubts on the multiverse. I have not seen these or any writings based on them, so I cannot judge them, but I do take Fr. Spitzer’s statements as a warning.
What I find interesting is the reaction to the multiverse hypothesis.
There is an element in the scientific world that seems to take delight in the idea that a naturalistic explanation for the Big Bang is now available, and we can get rid of that “Let there be light” silliness. The steady state universe and the oscillating universe both excluded a Creator, the first was disproven by the Big Bang and the second by Dark Energy, and so we have seen believers appropriate the Big Bang for themselves. Thank God that’s over! This delight goes beyond that of a celebration of human invention and cleverness, which we all should admire and support.
And once again we see religious believers rise to take the bait. The reaction by believers against the multiverse hypothesis seems to be heavily based on a defense of the congruence of the Big Bang with Genesis as a near-proof of God. And once again we see a ‘God of the gaps’ defense in play while a gap is possibly being filled.
If this is an accurate assessment, then both sides are wrong.
The existence of a multiverse does not disprove God in the slightest. So, a multiverse now allows for a naturalistic explanation of Genesis? So what? Religious faith survived the invention of such explanations for the formation of the solar system and the galaxies. This situation is really no different.
Also, recall Thomas Aquinas on the matter of a prime mover. Ultimately, God is responsible for beginning everything. So, God didn’t directly begin the universe? So what? Unlike the universe, it is extremely unlikely we will ever scientifically know what began the multiverse. In a way the atheistic project is now worse off, since a natural explanation for the multiverse is in principle almost impossible.
Then there is the issue of free will. To the believer, especially the orthodox Christian, free will is a gift from God. How great a gift? It turns out that each time we step farther into the past and push back the point at which God endowed the universe with the means to ensure our freedom, the gift grows in magnitude. Free will granted as a consequence of a multiverse is a greater gift than free will granted as a consequence of only one universe. Kicking the can further back in time should not distress anyone of faith. It should with reflection only enhance faith and gratitude.
Finally, there is the New Heaven and New Earth. We know that our universe will end in the Big Rip, the Big Chill, or the Big Crunch. None of these futures are compatible with a blissful eternity. So, there are at least two possibilities. Either God will directly intervene in our universe and change it to have a happy forever, or He will provide a new home elsewhere which could conceivably use the multiverse as a foundation. Again, we cannot presume to know what God will do, there certainly could be other options, but again knowing there could be more than one approach can be taken as another beautiful sign of God’s power and majesty.
Perhaps a more appropriate title should be “Multiverse, so what?”