What Really Exists?

What fundamental things actually exist? An *ontology* answers this question. It analyzes what kinds of things these are. We can ask why we would pursue this: What difference does it make to discern their characteristics? Every intellectual inquiry -- whether scientific or philosophical -- must presuppose at least implicitly an ontology. This ontology shapes the nature of the understanding achieved by an intellectual inquiry.

Consider the most elemental realities: What exists? Each of us can say, 'myself' and 'my surroundings'.

How do you know that your surroundings are distinct from yourself? Because you must explore, physically and intellectually, and are repeatedly surprised. Even if we invent mentally a complex world, our perceptions of things which are external continually clash with our imagination. This process, which psychiatrists call 'reality testing' because it's the key to sanity, causes us to quickly learn that are surroundings have existence independent of ourselves, in which events occur and objects are discovered that are unexpected from prior experience.

In this exploration, as toddlers we learn in a similar way that other people are distinct from us because they disagree with us and with each other. They do and say things that we have not anticipated: surprise is convincing evidence that their existence is independent.

As we explore our surroundings, we discover 3 types of objects: non-living (non-reproducing) things, living things ("plants" and "animals"), and products. Products are evidence of cognitive activity, and include such categories as tools, useful objects, decorative objects, and products of abstract expression - music, art, and literature.

Importantly, there are many kinds of non-perceived objects, whose existence is implied from their effects.

We gradually learn that our surroundings have verifiable existence independent of ourselves and are complex, and most objects are evidently transient. This existence, and transience requires a question: what are their origins? We discover that our surroundings existed before us, and realize that we had an individual beginning, implying the parallel question: What are *my* origins?

This implies that all things that exist -- which we call the cosmos -- have at some time, in some way, have come into being, and we ask, What began the beginning? Was the cosmos self-starting, or was it started by an external influence?

Let us call this first cause the originator, as if it were an entity. Yet, we fail to encounter this entity as we explore our surroundings. Hence this originator must belong to the class of non-perceived objects.

We must then ask, What effects exist might imply or reveal the existence or nature of the originator, especially including whether it is distinct from all things?

There are two classes of effects: one class is the cosmos itself, which includes human beings. It is reasonable to ask whether humans' unique ability for abstract expression, essential need for social connection and interaction, and universal moral sensibility, might not imply that the originator is an entity characterized by abstract expression, social need, and moral sensibility.

The other class of effects is in product objects, the most important of which, for the Christian, is Scripture - for it explicitly proclaims the existence of God, as a social triad of spiritual individuals that is characterized by abstract expression (logos) and moral accountability (both from and toward humans). We must either reject this claim or explore its validity and implications.

Scripture clearly and explicitly identifies God as the originator, and is the basis for belief that the originator is the God of the Christian scriptures. Our project is to understand how this reality blends with scientific descriptions, observations, and syntheses of the cosmos (including humans) that is external to scripture.

Thus, the persistent background issue for Christian theorists is this:
What might a Biblically-informed ontology usefully contain, undergirding the study of physical science; of mathematics; of consciousness?

In other words, what might be a possible, integrating connection between the Biblical doctrines of Christology and Creation, and the concepts and presuppositions of (1) physical science...

From here, read Dr. Schultz's book.
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/what-really-exists-a-dynamic-christian-ontology/7256528