Truth Emerging

Introduction

This is a book for people who care about the fate of our civilization. In response to the gloomy zeitgeist of our time, it offers a countercultural message of hope and courage. As the title indicates, the book focuses on emerging truths about our universe that have been recently brought to light by the science and philosophy of evolution. Although we have known about biological evolution since the mid-nineteenth century and cosmological evolution since the mid-twentieth century, our society has yet to adequately digest or comprehend the deeper implications of the monumental discovery that everything is evolving—that evolution is universal.

As the science of evolution has advanced, it has increasingly revealed a new picture of the cosmos—a universe of ceaseless becoming permeated by profound meaning and purpose. Among science’s countless amazing discoveries, perhaps the most astonishing of all is that the universe is deeply intelligible—that existence is an open secret whose truths are accessible to human understanding. As we have come to discover the scientific and historical facts of evolution, these very facts disclose a transcendent cosmic order that can be read right off what science has revealed. The deeper meanings of evolution, however, exceed the purview of science alone. In order to grasp the full implications of the revelation of evolution, we need philosophy.

As we explore in the pages ahead, recent breakthroughs in philosophy are enlarging our understanding of the psychosocial evolution of human history, or what is known as noosphere evolution. As we integrate this enlarged understanding of noosphere evolution with what we have discovered about biological and cosmological evolution, it results in a new view of the world. The foundation of my thesis is that what we now know about our evolutionary origins constitutes a kind of universal spiritual teaching. As we come, through philosophy, to collectively recognize this teaching, it can lead to a new era of solidarity and cooperation. The emerging truth about evolution can accordingly help us rediscover philosophy’s power to bring about positive social progress.

The book is divided into two parts. Part I is organized around twenty vital questions. The answers to these questions form short chapters, making them relatively easy to read. The descriptive titles of the questions provide a basic outline of the content of Part I. As a brief overview, the first eight questions lay down the bones, so to speak, of this new philosophy of evolution. Questions 9 through 13 subsequently address some of the potential concerns or objections that may be raised by my arguments in the first eight questions. Then, in Questions 14 through 18, I show how the insights of this new philosophy can be used to improve and evolve some of our major institutions, including politics, the economy, psychology, philosophy, and religion. The final two questions in Part I conclude by considering how the emerging truth about evolution can widen our frame of reality and enhance our understanding of the universe’s ultimate meaning.

Part I’s twenty questions convey the book’s overall message. Part II adds richness by providing further arguments and more detail on the subjects of each question. Part II consists of forty-two comments—short essays that elaborate on the twenty questions of Part I. These comments include defenses of my ideas, critiques of related philosophies, and references that help further unpack the questions addressed in Part I. If you find yourself disagreeing with or interested in the sources of these ideas when reading Part I, Part II, “Commentary on the Answers,” goes into greater depth.

Unlike the twenty questions, which build on themselves and are intended to be read sequentially from the beginning, Part II’s comments are relatively freestanding. The comments serve as supplements to the specific text of each question, providing further context, as well as intellectually rigorous arguments that justify Part I’s philosophical conclusions. Part II’s comments are much more than footnotes; some of the book’s most salient insights can be found in these essays, especially in the comments on Questions 5, 8, 11, 12, and 20. As with Part I, the descriptive titles of the forty-three comments provide an outline of their diverse subject matter. I also provide a separate overview of these comments at the beginning of Part II.

Once you have finished reading Part I, I recommend approaching Part II by starting with the comments on the questions that interest you most. However, keep in mind that, although the twenty comment sections need not be read sequentially, the multiple comments contained within most of the sections build on each other and are intended to be read as a unit.

The core value of this book is found in its elucidation of how the emerging truth about evolution reveals humanity’s higher purpose. In order to flourish, both collectively and individually, we humans need something authentically higher to believe in and commit to. And because we currently lack a unifying higher cause, our society has become fragmented, making good governance nearly impossible. Indeed, the absence of a common purpose is arguably the mother of all our problems. To overcome the distressing challenges that currently afflict our civilization, we need a renewed vision of what is best termed transcendence.

As I argue throughout the book, humanity’s transcendent purpose is to further the evolution of the noosphere—to foster the spiritual growth of people, the cultural growth of civilization, and the maturation of our relationship with nature. As I hope to show, finding transcendence by working for a better world—consciously cultivating noosphere evolution—is ultimately why we are here.

So, dear reader, my promise is that, by working to understand this new philosophy of evolution, your confidence in our positive future prospects will be renewed and enhanced. And perhaps, this enlarged understanding of humanity’s higher purpose will also motivate and empower you to meaningfully contribute to the collective growth that we urgently need to meet the challenges of our age.