The NU Model of a Science-inspired Religion

Imagine a collection of blind people attempting to determine an object’s identity through touch. A cacophony of contradiction rings out. The shortest participants passionately observe their findings: a series of stout, wrinkled columns; not to be out done, the tallest assert their facts: no columns, just a bowed, bristled wall.

These explorers aren’t wrong, only siloed by their evidence, gathered from divergent points of view. As long as each expert believes their side has a monopoly on truth, there’s no reason to listen to the other, and sadly, neither cohort conceives of an elephant. Furthermore, who accounts for those pesky anomalies – individual outliers who’ve touched the trunk, an ear flap, or toenail? When the debate is about columns versus walls, social pressure means valuable insights will likely be self-censored, even suppressed.

When we apply unbiased interest to each point of view, the larger puzzle begins to take shape, but even an accurate understanding isn’t the whole picture. A mind, widening its view and sharpening its focus, forever gathers new information, eventually finding that the elephant wasn’t real but a detailed replica. How? Novelty – one day, these participants touch a living version with its warm flesh, deep grunts, and unstoppable motion.

As with any religion, the Novel Universe Cult’s (NUC) asserts some truth underlies everything, and, therefore, believes a “theory of everything” (TOE) must exist. Our mission is not to draw conclusions or enforce dogma, but to rely on our unassuming curiosity to foster an exploration of reality through the lens of our doctrines and tenets. Our core assumption is that everything, at its most basic level, is data (the Instrument), and we either control that data (Power) or we don’t (Love). Beyond this unwavering point of view, every subsequent assertion is merely a perspective of reality through this foundational frame, and therefore, subject to reinterpretation with new information. Furthermore, we hold that a truly useful TOE must not only bridge science and religion, but must equally apply to particles, as well as, people, planets, and all other things.

Unlike those religions who claim a monopoly on truth, and therefore must convert everyone for their own good, we, instead, consider ourselves a global participant in conversation – while we learn from others, we openly share the Novel Universe Model (NUM). We have faith that the answers to the meaning and purpose of the universe are not only possible to find, but given genuine curiosity and open collaboration, will continue to emerge. How? Just as the identity of that animal is embedded in its form, we believe the truth of the universe might likewise be discovered in its structure, as long as we have a sufficient number of curious hands and minds engaged in its exploration.

Journalists tell stories with the 5 Ws and H questions – who, what, when, where, why, and how. Generally, answers come in two frames, objective facts and subjective anecdotes. What, when, and where can typically be nailed down, but who, why, and even how are often left to interpretation. Of course, that’s what makes a great story – combining these frames in compelling ways to equip an audience to solve the mystery on its own. Has the universe done the same for us, and has that answer been staring us in the face all along, from our own reflection?

The idea of anthropomorphizing anything is commonly seen as childish, inherently suspect, and likely inaccurate. However, a fractal lens suggests that from a human point of view, there’s more here than simply the assumption of self-similarity i at every scale of complexity, but further practical value in the practice. Projecting our species’ POV onto other things may not be totally accurate, but often allows for a more effective conceptualization of a novel idea. Asserting that a particle “wants” to interact with this particle instead of that may ascribe an emotional context that is clearly impossible without a brain full of neurotransmitters, but nonetheless, gets the general idea across to those attempting to understand the broader concept. Therefore, we do not shy away from using this psychological technique, as our ideas are geared to an audience with a human frame of reference, and feel there’s no better way to grasp the universe than to see it through a similar lens. We believe that what drives us as mortal beings – the evolution of relationships between peers in communication – is likewise reflected by every mind at every scale within the universe. Understanding ourselves, and how we relate to each other, sets us on the road to understanding everything.

Science seeks to describe the what, where, when, and how of the universe – everything is a meaningful coincidence, the measurable result of random happenstance. Religion attacks the fuzzier problem of the who, why, and also, how, asserting the opposite – every coincidence is meaningful, the product of divine design. Marrying science and religion into a theory of everything begins with the overlapping question in common: how.

How the universe works, as a whole, is reflected in the operation of its parts, the way a fractal’s seed ii is reflected, both by the form of its pieces, but also, throughout its structure. For example, an individual aspen leaf resembles the outline of the entire tree. Conceivably, any leaf might comprehend the tree’s complexity, as a whole, through a kind of mental mirror of itself, extruding its own, “two-dimensional” structure into three. In human terms, this implies that we need not understand anything beyond ourselves to begin understanding everything beyond ourselves – our bodies, communicating across the physical void between us, mirrors all connections at all other scales, albeit trees, leaves, or any other thing. Our first assumption, beyond our tenets, is the fractal nature of a universe in dialogue – an information interchange of competition and cooperation between a system’s parts, emerging at scale as a unified whole – emergent complexity, a single tree made from its myriad of parts, or a myriad of trees as a single, massive organism. iii

Language uses packets of information, symbols to communicate ideas. A packet is not sent to precisely transfer discrete data, like a Turing machine (computer), but to broadcast the general mindset of one person to another, like a story. Likewise, just as any word might convey a multitude of meanings based on context, it is important to understand NUM’s usage of science to convey our TOE. We’re not addressing the spiritual from a scientific grounding, but rather, the other way around, starting with the metaphysical and moving towards the physical by highlighting theoretical concepts that might help express our spiritual model. In this way, we’re more like a religion, rather than an academic endeavor, and do not make excuses if we are seen to be “cherry-picking” the data, if that data fits our narrative. Furthermore, the parts of NUM that are falsifiable, and therefore testable, are not our core doctrines. We hold no bias as to their veracity, and should they prove false, might equally change our view – a stance that is less like a faith and more like a science. Our priority is to provide and improve upon our TOE, itself an informational framework we believe will prove valuable to humanity, regardless of whether it accurately depicts life after death – an admittedly impossible feat to refute either way.

Generally, a legitimate theory of everything limits itself to unifying the Standard Model – quantum mechanics and the four forces (strong, weak, electromagnetic, and gravity). Most TOEs are strictly about physics and math. Although NUM touches on these areas, we believe a true, human-centered TOE must go much deeper than any discipline by addressing everything – who am I, what is the meaning and purpose of my life, when was I created, where is my consciousness, why is there something rather than nothing, and how does it all work? NUM functions as the connective tissue between mundane, scientific insight and grandiose, religious epiphany. Like many pioneers of science, we, too, heralded the primacy of the observer. At NUM’s core is the singular idea that Love and Power are mutually exclusive, informational frames of reference – basically, how we observe reality – and it is Their dichotomy that gives rise to physics, chemistry, biology, philosophy, psychology, economics, politics, society … everything.

Our TOE isn’t some “crack pot” iv attempt to completely redefine any discipline; neither do we claim a divine being nor other worldly entity as our inspiration. Instead, evidence, reason, intuition, and collaboration guide us. We are, therefore, open to evolve our TOE with new information, and make no claim as to its inherent accuracy. Transcending the horizon of any academic discipline or assertion, we, as a cult, stand upon our core tenet: the meaning, purpose, definition, and balance of Love and Power.

The trope “knowledge is power” lies at the core of any secret society – by deliberately obscuring or outright hiding coveted information, these cabals maximize leverage over the “outsider.” The concept of eminence-based knowledge implies that certain questions, like the meaning and purpose of life, are unanswerable by anyone other than a “higher power,” for instance, prophets, aliens, or at the very least, PhDs. This POV reflects an entrenched position, not a valid observation, and certainly not a provable fact or enforceable limit. Why ask questions that cannot be otherwise answered, unless that ignorance serves a purpose, and those answers, points of leverage? NUC’s message chips away at the core of these societies by revealing the greatest secret of all – beyond power for Power’s sake, there are no useful secrets. There is no hidden information that might affect the only thing that matters: our preference for either Love or Power is a choice we’re making on our own. Furthermore, it doesn’t even matter whether we’re aware of the choice or not, because it’s only in death that we’ll finally know our answer. Whether particle, planet, or person, in every moment of every day, our preference for Love or Power develops from the subjective effectiveness of either framework – are we participating with those around us or manipulating them, and how’s that working for us? The only right answer is the one that’s right for us. NUC does not place one framework over the other, as both have their value and place in this Novel Universe.

Our singular mission, as a religion, is working, through our core tenets, to effectively balance these two metaphysical frameworks. Understanding that the primary challenge is both Power’s ridged nature to control and Love’s judgment-free, flexible disposition to participate instead of “defending Itself,” we must, therefore, separate and shield Love from Power. Love must be given the opportunity to finally, fully participate with intentional vulnerability – a state impossible to maintain in a world solely shaped by Power – while Power maintains its freedom to consume. Although Their Mixture is the source of novelty, it’s also the source of imbalance – toxicity. We have faith that by doing the hard work of balancing the frameworks, humanity might also find balance.

Critics may see some of our sources v as a bit surprising, vague, or even woo-woo. They might point to any number of inconsistencies between NUM and these sources, but like each hand on that elephant with its narrow perspective, the cited ideas are included to support NUM, mounting insight from a variety of fields in order that the purpose of our existence and meaning of the universe might better come into view.

What follows is not an exhaustive account of the Novel Universe Model, but an attempt to communicate its fundamental form from a limited point of view. The TOE is split into two levels: Introduction and Deep Dive. The Introduction is a concise overview of the core ideas, whereas, the Deep Dive includes examples, footnotes, and additional speculative concepts to flesh out these core ideas. We intend for the Introduction to communicate the broad concepts of our TOE to those without a general interest in science. For those with a more academic predisposition, the Deep Dive provides a far more detailed understanding of the NU Model.

Again, the Novel Universe Model’s concepts are not foundational elements of the religion, but rather, a view of reality framed by our core tenets: data, communication, preference, and framework (Love / Power). We believe that communication between conscious actors underpins everything, and NUM is our current theory of how that happens, how an informational paradigm might structure the universe and beyond-life. We’re consistently updating the Model with valuable feedback and new ways of thinking. To delve further into a particular concept or past viewpoint beyond the Deep Dive, NUC members and Dedicated Followers are invited to request River Sage assistance.

First, read our philosophy to better understand our Theory of Everything.