If you’re reading this, you’re conscious. And if you just read that, you’re conscious that you’re conscious. But what does it mean to be conscious? The Oxford Dictionary says it’s to be “aware of and responding to one’s surroundings,” but how? How do the masses of neurons in the gray jellies called brains allow for such complex perception of the surrounding world?
Consciousness, one of the most fundamental aspects of life, is still one of science’s greatest mysteries, argued over by philosophers, theologians, and scientists since Galileo Galilei and all the way back to the beginning. Modern science relies on quantitative observation and testing; however, since consciousness is experienced both internally and individually and is therefore impossible to directly observe and test, scientifically determining its source seems nearly impossible.
Christianity, on the other hand, provides a solution. Since God is an omnipotent conscious being, He imbued some level of His consciousness upon His creation. This answer is simple and accurate. Yet it emphasizes the mystery of the world, the mysteries of life, and the mysteries of science.
The number of advancements in neuroscience over the past decade is astounding. Scientists have developed fluorescent indicators to track neural activation, brain organoids to model the developing brain, and even neuroprosthetics to replace severed nerves and allow paralyzed patients to walk again. Nevertheless, the mechanics of consciousness remain unfathomable. Yes, there are theories as to how consciousness works, and they could be accurate. For example, one recent theory proposes that the brain builds simplified models of all the objects and events it comes across, in addition to models of itself, which work together to determine the appropriate responses to external stimuli. Another theory suggests that all the parts of an organism are conscious to some extent, all the way down to its electrons, the level of consciousness decreasing with size. All the same, they’re simplistic, and at the moment there’s no way to know how the neurons form models for specific pieces of information, or how electrons could possess consciousness. And although science is rapidly discovering how the brain functions (the feeling of hunger is linked to activity in the hypothalamus, vision is processed in the occipital lobe, memories are stored in the hippocampus, etc), there’s no way to determine why these systems are linked to subjective experience, no matter how complete our understanding of their functionality may be.
Science is not a Tower of Babel. We cannot build our theories and technologies up and up until we are fully independent, fully understanding beings, relying solely on our own knowledge. It simply won’t work– at the core of our awareness is mystery. Rather, science is a telescope that unveils the glories of God and the universe of unknown. As 1 Corinthians 13:12 declares, “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.”
Sources:
Currin, Grant. “What Is Consciousness?” LiveScience, 26 July 2020, www.livescience.com/what-is-consciousness.html.
Fan, Shelly. “These Breakthroughs made the 2010s the Decade of the Brain.” SingularityHub, 5 January 2020, singularityhub.com/2020/01/05/these-breakthroughs-made-the-2010s-the-decade-of-the-brain/.
Goff, Philip. “Why Can’t Science Explain Consciousness?” LiveScience, 11 November 2019, www.livescience.com/what-is-consciousness-mystery.html.
Graziano, Michael. “What Is Consciousness?” TED-Ed, YouTube, 11 February 2019, youtu.be/MASBIB7zPo4.
Holy Bible: English Standard Version. 2011 ed., Crossway Bibles, 2001.
Moreland, James. “What is Consciousness?” Biola University, YouTube, 23 July 2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_w3kdcx4to.
O’Gieblyn, Meghan. “A Dog’s Inner Life: What a Robot Pet Taught Me About Consciousness.” The Guardian, 10 August 2021, www.theguardian.com/science/2021/aug/10/dogs-inner-life-what-robot-pet-taught-me-about-consciousness-artificial-intelligence?utm_source=pocket-newtab.
Robinson, Marilynne. “Humanism.” The Givenness of Things,” Picador, October 2016.
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