TLDR: Jesus’ most-quoted verse finds its truth manifested in many different ways.

I believe that when something is True it will manifest itself in multiple disciplines and areas of life. You can find moral and ethical standards mirrored in different cultures across the world that have never been exposed to each other, and in some cases also non-human species.

Mathematical proofs are not only proven in point-by-point theorems but also exhibited in engineering, oceanography, and art. Hence, this is why there’s a sub-discipline of mathematics called descriptive statistics. Descriptive statistics is just one area further cement my belief in multidisciplinary truth-seeking.

Mephistopheles and Satan

Mephistopheles, also known as Mephisto, is a demonic spirit written about by the German writer Faust (who is regarded to be the German equivalent to the English Shakespeare). In a literary sense, Mephistopheles is known to be the the symbol of the spirit that brings fear, shame, and resentment into those who dare to be grateful for what they have in their life.

In Dr. Jordan B. Peterson’s most recently published book Beyond Order: 12 More Rules For Life, Peterson explains that there is the Mephistophelian Spirit in all of us in his twelve rule: “Be grateful in spite of your suffering.” This demonic spirit, known in literary terms by only one name, can be understood by readers whom have never read the works of Faust in the past, because they have perceived the spirit itself in their own lives in the form of betrayal and denial. Dr. Peterson says in his book,

“Why would such a spirit exist? Why would it be a part of each of us?”

The answer appears to be partly associated with the powerful sense that each of us shares of our own intrinsic mortal limitations, our subjugation to the suffering inflicted upon us by ourselves, society, and nature. That embitters and produces a certain self-contempt or disgust, inspired by our own weaknesses and inadequacies […], and also by the apparent unfairness, unpredictability, and arbitrariness of our failings. Given all these disappointing realizations, there is no reason to assume that you are going to be satisfied or happy with yourself, or with Being itself. Such dissastisfaction — […] — can easily come to reinforce and magnify itself in a vicious circle.

If you conceptually aggregate and unite into a single personality all that opposes you in you, all that opposes your friendships, and all that opposes your wife or husband, the adversary emerges. That is precisely Mephistopheles in Goethe’s play — the devil himself. That is the spirit who works against — and that is exactly how he describes himself: “I am the spirit that denies” Why? Because everything in the world is so limited and imperfect — and causes itself so much trouble and terror because of that — that its annihilation is not only justified but ethically demanded. So goes, at least, the rationalization”

Dr. Jordan B. Peterson, “Beyond Order” pg 299-300.

What Dr. Peterson is outright saying is that the spirit of Mephistopheles in Faust’s work is the spirit of Satan himself that we recognize on a daily basis. Christians and non-Christian historians worldwide recognize the works of Satanic forces in the Bible, such as 1 John 3:8, “The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” Taken literally or figuratively, there is a universally-understood tie between the theology of satanic forces and also the work of the famous German literary figure.

The Matthew Principle

The Bully and the Victim

The archetypal relationship between the bully and the bullied is understood from an early age. In Disney movies and other movies recommended to younger audiences, such as Cinderella and Chicken Little, the protagonist overcomes their bully to later be celebrated by the people who initially did not recognize the bullying in the first place. The protagonist, now a former victim, will continue to exhibit a series of wins until the point where the bully is powerless and unable to harm the new victor again.

Why is this so universally recognized? It’s because it’s integral to the everlasting dominance hierarchy. As referenced in Dr. Jordan B. Peterson’s 2018 book 12 Rules For Life: An Antidote to Chaos, animals inside and outside of the mammal family exhibit the same attitudes towards power and social domination. In short, Dr. Peterson uses lobsters, wolves, and birds as part of a larger example to prove the point that dominance hierarchies exist at many different levels with the same themes attached.

The commonality between elk fighting with their horns and a larger child pushing a smaller one on the playground is that they both are looking to solidify their place as high as possible on the social totem pole. The neurotransmitter serotonin is released in the winner of a given conflict, and makes the victor statistically not only more likely to engage in conflict again but also more likely to win again. Amazingly, the inverse is also shown to be the case in the losers of the aforementioned conflict.

What I find interesting is that out of his first 12 rules for life, Dr. Peterson chose the first one to be “Stand up straight with your shoulders back”, seemingly indicating that presenting yourself as powerful before a potential conflict would increase your likelihood to succeed and create a powerful perception of self.

Jesus’ Most-Quoted Verse

First quoted in Matthew 13:12, again famously in Luke 19:26, and 5 other instances within the New Testament, Jesus said what is now known to be called The Matthew Principle of Positive Feedback.

“To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.”

Matthew 13:11-13, ESV

And he said to those who stood by, “Take the mina from him, and give it to the one who has the ten minas.” And they said to him, “Lord, he has ten minas!” “I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slaughter them before me.”

Luke 19:24-27

What I find most interesting about this quote is that it goes against the modern Western civilization push for equality and equity. This makes clear that, if you take Jesus’ word as Truth and “the way”, equality should not be a societal target — knowing that this mentioned in Christian religious text seven times. You could make an argument that equity (receiving what is deserved or what is needed) is reached here if the argument is that the one who has More also deserves to receive more.

Dendrite Complexity

Some important basics in neuroscience: a dendrite is the part of a neuron that receives information from the environment. The frequency of the information being received by a dendrite will determine how complex or nuanced the actual dendrite becomes.

For example, if a dendrite receives information from a source on 10 separate occasions, it will be more sensitive to receiving that information compared to a different stimulus that’s received only 2 times.

The number of inputs that a neuron’s dendrite receives depends on the complexity of its “dendritic tree”.

If there no dendrites, innervated by a few nerve cells, those with more elaborate dendrites are innervated by more neurons.

“Use it or lose it.” An idea that stems from The Matthew Principle.

The Tie

I think it’s evident now how clear the tie is between so many different areas of life. The world is a story fueled by themes that overlap one another. Just as the dendrite will expand with frequency, so does your capacity for good will and protection against the evils of the world. Jesus, in parable, urges us to create a winning culture in our lives and to add complexity.

I urge you, too, to win.

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Take care of yourself and someone else,

-brandon.

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