\u201cTime, time, time, see what’s become of me,\u201d sang Simon and Garfunkel. Our concern with time is an interesting aspect of civilization. Here are some random thoughts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The secular order of time has been greatly disrupted by the virus. School and popular holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving have been canceled or curtailed. It\u2019s a major loss for sports fans, I think, that they can\u2019t share (in person or vicariously) with thousands of others who normally attend major sporting events. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
What are we measuring when we measure time? That\u2019s not at all clear. We have included time as a factor in physical calculations since the time of Galileo (speed defined as change in position divided by change in time) and of course time plays an enigmatic role in relativistic physics. But the fact that we can manipulate time quantities mathematically does not necessarily show that time is \u201creal\u201d in some relevant sense. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The philosopher Immanuel Kant suggested that time (and space) are unavoidable forms of consciousness. That is, that we can\u2019t have experience of objects or events unless we order them in space and time. Whether or not time exists in the \u201creal\u201d world, independent of our consciousness was, for Kant, unknowable. Thus for Kant it would not be proper to ask \u201cWhat is time?\u201d Time is not a thing in the world that we can study, our experience of objects and events in space and time is a precondition for any study or analysis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Chinese and Persians kept careful records of astronomical events and saw patterns that played out over periods longer than a normal lifetime. We just had one of those, a conjunction of Jupiter and Venus that reportedly happens only every 800 years or so. Something like this may have been the basis for the \u201cstar of Bethlehem\u201d story. It must have puzzled the ancient astronomers: why should there be such long-term regularities? The rise and set of the sun makes sense: it defines our day and separates sleep and rest. The phases of the moon make sense: they define our seasons and our agricultural activities. But what utility do we get from an astronomical cycle that takes hundreds of years to complete? What message are the heavens trying to convey? And what about those comets? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
We are in one of the most active parts of the Church year. We have finished Advent and are into Christmas (five gold rings and all), with Epiphany and then Lent to come. This contrasts with the long stretch of \u201cordinary time\u201d we have had since Pentecost. It is comforting to know that many Christians around the world are following along in the same general pattern of observance, whether they are allowed to gather in person or not. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The end of one (secular) year and the beginning of another, New Year\u2019s Day, has a curious importance in our culture. There are business reasons to get certain deals done by the end of the year, but the idea that New Year\u2019s provides a \u201cfresh start\u201d so that we can make new \u201cresolutions\u201d is a strange one, particularly given the failure of nearly all such resolution. In Christianity, of course, every day is an opportunity for a new beginning. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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