Most latter-day saints are familiar with the first law of thermodynamics. It is the law of conservation of energy which states that energy can be transformed, but never created nor destroyed. Fewer of us are familiar with the second law of thermodynamics which is unfortunate because the second law provides rational, scientific-based evidence for the existence of God.

The second law of thermodynamics states that matter in a closed system will move toward a more disorganized state until it reaches equilibrium. If we assume, from an atheistic viewpoint, that all matter in the universe came from a closed system that was the Big Bang, and that there is no Creator, then the overall level of disorder in the universe should be increasing. However, we see evidence of highly organized planetary and biological systems all around us. Does this prove the atheists wrong?

Not quite. Disorder, or entropy as it is sometimes called, may decrease in areas of a system by chance alone. Put differently, it is possible for matter to randomly coalesce into highly ordered states (low entropy) by chance.

I am reminded of a Star Trek Next Generation episode where “Q” (an omnipotent and chaotic being from another world) took Captain Picard back in time to when a primordial soup of inorganic material coalesced to form the first proteins that started life on earth (a process called abiogenesis). Q looks into the soup and says, “See this? This is you.” Then he regretfully informs Captain Jean-Luc Picard that his actions inadvertently disrupted the chance ordering of protein molecules, thus halting the formation of life on earth.
While this Star Trek story is fanciful fiction, it bears some truth. All inorganic material necessary for forming complex systems capable of sustaining life is present in the physical universe. And it is possible that inorganic matter could randomly arrange itself into complex, life-sustaining systems. The second law of thermodynamics allows for this possibility, but it also suggest that such an event is unlikely. 

Here's an example that illustrates the improbability of this sort of thing happening.
Look around the room you are in. Draw an imaginary line through the center of the room. Oxygen molecules are dispersed throughout the room keeping you alive. If we think of your room as its own system, we would say that the oxygen molecules are in a highly disordered (high entropy) state. They are more or less evenly dispersed.

Now, what are the chances of the oxygen molecules randomly assembling on the opposite side of the room from where you are seated, assuming no outside force is at work? If this happened, the oxygen molecules would have moved to a more ordered (low entropy) state and you would suffocate and die. Thankfully the chances are nigh to impossible, but it could happen.

The same goes for the creation of life (abiogenesis). There is a chance that inorganic particles could randomly form complex systems capable of sustaining life; it is, however, improbable. It is less likley than oxygen molecules randomly gathering on the other side of your room. The chances of abiogenesis happening by chance are so slim that it is rational to look for an outside entity like God to account for the presence of life.

Warwick University philosophy professor Roger Trigg agrees. He said, “It’s much simpler to believe in God who created the one universe, rather than saying there are an enormous number [of universes] and we just happen to be the one that’s come up in this way [by chance].”
 
 
Picture
Like me, I am sure many of you have said prayers for the victims of the earthquake in Haiti. We cannot know the full impact of our prayers. We only know that prayer is a real force in petitioning God for blessings. James 5:16 teaches that “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man [and woman] availeth much.”

I think the prayers of the righteous are availing much for people in Haiti. Here is a story that supports that assertion. 

How long can you survive without water? Scientific estimates on how long we can survive without water vary, depending on conditions such as temperature and exposure to sun. Most estimates seem to be around a week, give or take a few days. A website on survival puts the estimate at about 8 days when the average temperature is about 85 degrees Fahrenheit. http://www.survivaltopics.com/survival/how-long-can-you-survive-without-water/

Yesterday in Haiti, rescuers pulled a 5-year-old boy named Monley from his collapsed home. The boy endured 8 days without food and water in a small, dusty space buried beneath the rubble. After the rescuers pulled him out, he spread his arms and put on a big grin that touched the hearts of hardened US rescuers and energized everyone present with feelings of thanksgiving and hope.

Perhaps your prayers on behalf of Haiti played a role in preserving the life of this precious child. His survival is a miracle. May God continue to bless him with the peace and courage he will need to live on without his parents who died when their home collapsed.
 
 
Picture
Sheldon Killpack’s recent DUI arrest created a lot a buzz on Utah talk radio shows these last few days. On January 15th a Utah Highway patrolman spotted Killpack driving in an erratic fashion in the Millcreek area. Killpack was pulled over, failed a field sobriety test, refused a breathalyzer test, and was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail.

What is so shocking about this arrest?

Killpack is Utah’s Republican Senate Majority leader (he has since resigned).

Killpack is a member of the LDS church.

Killpack is a married man with 4 kids, ages 11 to 20.

Killpack’s father was killed by a drunk driver several years ago.

Killpack has been an advocate for Mother’s Against Drunk Driving

People are scratching their heads and asking, “Why!?”

As a psychologist and someone who has studied the characteristics of addiction, I’ll give an answer.

Addiction (or dependence as it is often called in clinical circles) has two dimensions. There is (a) physical dependence and (b) psychological dependence. Most people who become addicted to a substance, food, lifestyle, and behavior must learn to cope with these two facets of dependence. 

Physical dependence is short-lived, in most cases lasting only a few days to a few weeks. In the case of alcohol/ethanol dependence, physical dependence is short-lived, usually ending after the ethanol has completely left the body. If Killpack wasn’t drinking on a frequent basis, then I doubt that physical dependence was his problem.

It is more likely that Killpack has a serious problem with psychological dependence. Psychological dependence is a strong emotional attachment to a substance or activity. Psychological dependence can last a very long time, sometimes years and even a lifetime. Its length and severity varies significantly from one person to another. This type of dependence is what causes people to relapse into old habits. 

They say, “Once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic.” This saying is a stark warning of the dangers of psychological dependence. In the case of Killpack, it was apparently strong enough to make a politically successful conservative LDS family man screw up in a major way. 

I wish him all the best in overcoming his problem.
 
 
Picture
There is a man who once had a drinking problem and a foul mouth problem. But he has two redeeming values that made up for his personal shortcomings – he believes in the sanctity of marriage and he believes in living within your means. It was the latter, his commitment to fiscal conservatism, that catapulted him from a local news reporter to one of the most successful provincial premiers Canada has ever known. 

(For those unfamiliar with Canadian politics, a province is the equivalent of a state, and a provincial premier is the equivalent of a state’s governor.)

During the early 1990s when most Canadian provinces where growing their provincial debts with massive deficit spending, a different kind of politician ascended to the premier’s office in Alberta. His name is Ralph Klein. “Ralph”, as he preferred to be called, campaigned on the promises of cutting deficit spending and repaying Alberta’s 23 billion dollar debt. 

After he was elected premier in 1992, Ralph quickly went to work cutting wasteful government programs. He reduced spending on the arts and on burgeoning social programs for welfare recipients. He even offered to buy bus passes for welfare recipients who wanted to move to other provinces with more generous welfare programs. Ralph closed expensive and outdated medical facilities, laid off unneeded health care workers, and even rolled back the salaries of all government funded employees a few percentage points, including his own. 

I was a student in Alberta when all this was happening. I saw an old hospital in Lethbridge, Alberta named St. Marks get torn down because it was an old building and services could be absorbed by a newer medical facility nearby. I worked in social services with handicapped adults to pay my bills, and heard many people at work gripe about Ralph’s policies of fiscal restraint. Ralph got on a lot of people’s nerves with his unusual ways, but I sensed that what he was doing was good for Alberta, and history has shown this to be true.

True to his campaign promises, Ralph eliminated deficit spending and, in 2005, paid off Alberta’s 23 billion dollar debt. Thanks to Ralph’s fiscal conservatism, Alberta is now one of the most prosperous provinces in Canada. It is the only province without a provincial sales tax. His brand of fiscal conservatism has spread to other provinces that are trying to come to terms with deficit spending and massive debts.

Finally, rather than becoming a life long politician, Ralph voluntarily stepped down as premier in 2006. He went to the premier’s office to bring fiscal responsibility to Alberta. Once that mission was accomplished, he resigned.

Ralph Klein was an unusual politician. I wish there were more like him, especially during these times of life-long politicians and out-of-control deficit spending.
 
Google Analytics