God
as 'that which creates'
Morphological Analysis
- Etymon: Old English via Old Norse gōd: 'good'
- Morpheme breakdown: gōd meaning 'good'
- Functional cognate: creator: 'that which creates'
Essential Definition
'that which creates'
Semantic Context
- Conventional sense: A single divine being, creator and ruler of the universe. (Note: Semantic drift from essential meaning)
- Essential meaning (my usage): 'that which creates'
Philosophical Significance
This definition shifts God from a supreme being to the fundamental process of reality itself—the constant expression that is the conference of difference. It resolves the metaphysical problem of a first cause by identifying God not as a separate entity, but as the irreducible process primitive that transforms the 'condition of being' that is existence.
Usage in This Lexicon
When I use the word god in my work, I mean exactly 'that which creates'. This definition:
- Avoids Anthropomorphism: Removes human-like attributes (will, emotion, personality) that limit and distort the concept of a first cause.
- Ensures Logical Primacy: Establishes the principle as truly metaphysical (originating behind existence) rather than a contingent being within it.
- Focuses on Function: Defines the divine by its operative role (the process that creates/transforms) rather than by static or moral qualities.
- Unifies Science and Metaphysics: Provides a philosophical ground for universal processes (change, relation, evolution) that science observes.
- Resolves Paradoxes of Intervention: Eliminates contradictions inherent in a personal deity intervening in a natural order, as the principle is the natural order's generative aspect.
- Clarifies Immanence and Transcendence: The principle is transcendent as not-being (Principal to existence) yet immanent as the very process operating within all existence.
- Demystifies Creation: Presents creation as the observable, constant transformation of all things via the conference of difference, not a miraculous event.
- Provides a Coherent Basis for Divine Attributes: Attributes like omnipotence and omnipresence become necessary descriptions of a fundamental process primitive, not mysterious properties of a mind.
- Establishes a Non-Competitive Relationship: The principle does not compete with natural causes; it is the enabling ground from which all causal chains emerge.
- Enables Interfaith and Philosophical Dialogue: Offers a conceptual definition that can be engaged without requiring specific cultural or theological narratives.
- Centers a Dynamic Reality: Correctly models ultimate reality as active, generative, and processual, aligning with an evolving universe.
Sources
*This definition follows morphological essentialism principles. See the Methodology for details.