Coming-of-Age crisis in HCE (Human Cultural Evolution)

The world dominated by humans is in a state of crisis because of the reluctance of human leadership to recognize the inevitable consequencies of the attainment of respectability and maturity through the coming-of-age in HCE.

Let me first define HCE.  Please go back to the flow diagram which I called the Jehovah Cycle in which the first miracle of Creation is described as the miracle of the living cell.  This is a completely reversible chemical process consisting of two pathways.  The first one is photosynthesis in which the CO2 molecule and the H2O molecule are combined with the help of an input of heat energy from sunlight to produce a huge array of sugars and oxygen in gaseous form.  The second one is respiration in which the cell life is maintained by the exact reverse of the first process: the carbohydrates of cell material is combined with oxygen to produce heat or work while the chemical process reproduces CO2 and H2O.  The miraculous net result is that the radiation energy of sunlight is harnessed and transformed into meaningful work performed by cells.

In the flowchart I designated the creation of the human mind as a separate and additional miracle.  Unlike the miracle of the living cell, which is well understoood, this mind creation is much less understood.  We know it involves the brain and the network of nerve connections.  But how a human thinks and reasons is still beyond understanding.

Interestingly evolution now can be subdivided into two separate tasks.  The original task was conceived and executed by God.  The basic unit of life is the living cell.  Evolution was God's work of building complex life forms from a wide range of differently functioning cells --- ending in the human animal.  At that point God may have dropped off any further duties in evolutionary management.  The task of cultural evolution was (and is) assigned to humans.  Hence the HCE.

A mature society or civilization is less fun and exciting to be in.  We can no longer seek action, seek growth.  Instead, we have to face the necessity of making cuts.  Here, there, everywhere.  But coming-of-age is unavoidable; it has arrived and we must face it.