Planets orbit the sun in precise ellipses, at speeds determined by their distance, with periods that follow mathematical laws. Kepler discovered these patterns; Newton explained them through gravity. Every orbit obeys these laws without exception.
This precision enables space exploration. We can calculate exact trajectories years in advance, launch spacecraft to rendezvous with planets millions of miles away, and predict eclipses centuries into the future. Orbital mechanics works because natural law is reliable.
And this reliability illuminates something theological: God's providence works through natural law, not despite it. Regular, predictable patterns aren't alternatives to divine sovereignty—they're how sovereignty operates.
Kepler's Laws
Johannes Kepler discovered three laws governing planetary motion:
- Planets orbit in ellipses with the sun at one focus
- Planets sweep equal areas in equal times (moving faster when closer to the sun)
- Orbital period squared relates to average distance cubed
These laws are exceptionless. Every object orbiting every star obeys them. They're not just descriptions—they're constraints that govern motion itself.
Natural Law and Divine Action
Some Christians worry that natural law limits God's freedom. If physics determines how planets move, where's room for divine action? Doesn't Kepler's determinism leave God with nothing to do?
This misunderstands both natural law and providence. Laws don't constrain God—they're how God ordinarily works. God established physical laws as the structure through which creation operates.
Think of it like programming. A programmer establishes rules governing how the program functions. The program follows those rules—not because they constrain the programmer but because they express the programmer's will.
The Autistic Systematic Appeal
As an autistic person, I find natural law deeply reassuring. The universe follows consistent patterns. Physics works the same way yesterday, today, tomorrow. I can understand the rules and predict outcomes.
A universe without reliable natural law would be chaos—arbitrary divine interventions, unpredictable physics, no learnable patterns. That would be cognitively overwhelming.
Natural law's consistency isn't God's limitation—it's God's gift. It makes the universe comprehensible, predictable, trustworthy. We can do science precisely because God governs through regular patterns.
Providence Through Law
Divine providence doesn't mean constantly intervening to adjust orbits. It means establishing laws that govern how orbits work, then sustaining those laws in existence.
God doesn't need to push planets along their orbits. The laws God established and sustains ensure they orbit correctly. God's sovereignty operates through the reliable structure of creation, not by bypassing it.
This is actually more impressive than constant miraculous intervention. God created a system sophisticated enough to function reliably through natural law—achieving divine purposes through physical mechanisms.
Gravity as Continuous Creation
Newton showed that gravity keeps planets in orbit—continuous force preventing them from flying off into space. But what is gravity?
From a theological perspective, gravity is how God's sustaining power manifests physically. God doesn't periodically intervene to adjust orbits—God continuously sustains the gravitational relationships that govern orbital motion.
Colossians says "in Christ all things hold together" (Colossians 1:17). Perhaps this "holding together" is what we observe as gravity, electromagnetic force, strong and weak nuclear forces—the physical manifestation of continuous divine sustaining.
Predictability and Trust
Orbital mechanics enables space exploration because orbits are predictable. If gravity worked differently on Tuesdays, we couldn't launch spacecraft successfully.
God's faithfulness similarly depends on consistency. We trust God's promises because God acts consistently with His character. A God who acted arbitrarily would be untrustworthy.
Natural law's reliability reflects divine faithfulness. Just as God keeps His covenant promises, God maintains the natural patterns through which creation operates.
Miracles and Law
If God normally works through natural law, what about miracles—apparent violations of natural law?
Classical theology understands miracles not as violating natural law but as God acting directly in ways that transcend ordinary means. The laws remain valid; God simply acts beyond them in specific circumstances.
It's like a programmer directly editing a running program's memory. The program's rules still exist and still govern normal operation. But the programmer can intervene directly when needed.
Miracles are rare because they're special. If God constantly bypassed natural law, there would be no natural law—just arbitrary divine whim. Miracles' rarity confirms natural law's normative status.
Determinism Worry
Kepler's laws are deterministic—given initial conditions, the future is completely determined. Does this mean freedom is impossible? If orbits are determined, aren't we?
But there's a crucial difference: planets don't have wills. They follow laws mechanically. Humans make choices that reflect purposes, desires, reasoning.
Natural law governs physical processes, not personal agency. My neurons follow biochemistry's laws, but "I" am not reducible to neurochemical reactions. Personal agency operates at a different level than mechanical causation.
Fine-Tuning Through Law
The laws governing orbital mechanics are precisely calibrated. If gravity were slightly stronger, planets would spiral into stars. Slightly weaker, they'd fly apart. The parameters that make stable orbits possible are remarkably narrow.
This fine-tuning suggests purpose. The laws aren't arbitrary—they're precisely set to enable the kind of universe where life can exist, where planets can maintain stable orbits in habitable zones.
God's sovereignty includes establishing laws with exactly the right parameters to achieve intended outcomes. Providence through natural law requires getting the laws right.
Hohmann Transfer Orbits
Space travel uses Hohmann transfer orbits—efficient trajectories that minimize fuel consumption. These work because orbital mechanics is predictable and calculable.
Similarly, God's purposes achieve maximum effect through natural law that's reliable and understandable. We can cooperate with divine purposes by understanding how creation works and acting accordingly.
This is part of the dominion mandate—learning creation's patterns and working within them skillfully. We're not fighting against natural law but working through it.
American Pragmatism
American culture values practical results over theoretical elegance. We went to the Moon not to confirm Newton's laws but to beat the Soviets and demonstrate technological prowess.
Yet we couldn't have reached the Moon without trusting orbital mechanics completely. Pragmatism depends on theoretical reliability. We can achieve practical goals because the theoretical framework is trustworthy.
Similarly, practical Christian living depends on theological reliability. We trust God's promises and act accordingly because God's character and actions are consistent.
Multi-Body Problems
While two-body orbits are perfectly predictable, three-body systems can be chaotic—small changes lead to radically different outcomes. This shows natural law's limits for prediction while affirming its continued operation.
Providence might work similarly. God establishes laws that govern general patterns while leaving room for genuine unpredictability in complex systems. Determinism and openness coexist—the future is constrained by law but not completely determined.
Eschatological Physics
Will orbital mechanics apply in new creation? Will planets still orbit according to Kepler's laws?
I suspect yes—not because new creation is bound by current physics but because these laws reflect something about reality's rational structure. God might establish different laws, but they'll still be laws—coherent patterns reflecting divine rationality.
The resurrection body obeys different physics than current bodies (passing through walls, appearing and disappearing). But it's still governed by law—just different law appropriate to new creation.
Practical Implications
What does orbital mechanics teach about providence?
- Natural law is good: Consistent patterns enable flourishing
- God works through law: Sovereignty operates through reliable structures
- Predictability reflects faithfulness: God's consistency enables trust
- Study creation: Understanding natural law reveals how God ordinarily works
- Miracles are special: Their rarity confirms natural law's normative status
- Fine-tuning suggests purpose: Laws are precisely calibrated for life
- Complexity allows openness: Deterministic laws don't eliminate genuine unpredictability
Conclusion
Kepler's laws govern every orbit in the universe. This isn't limitation on divine freedom—it's how God chooses to operate. Regular, predictable, comprehensible patterns through which creation functions reliably.
My autistic appreciation for systematic reliability helps me see natural law's beauty. The universe makes sense. Physics works consistently. Patterns can be learned and trusted.
This isn't deism—God remaining uninvolved after creation. It's providence—God continuously sustaining the lawful structure through which creation operates, occasionally acting beyond ordinary means for specific purposes, working toward redemptive goals through reliable natural patterns.
When spacecraft follow calculated trajectories to rendezvous with distant planets, they're not defying God's sovereignty—they're relying on it. The same divine faithfulness that maintains orbital mechanics ensures God's promises remain trustworthy.
One day, we might understand providence as clearly as we understand orbits—seeing how God's purposes flow through natural patterns, how sovereignty and law harmonize perfectly, how freedom and providence coexist.
Until then, we trust both: natural law's reliability and God's faithful sovereignty—not as competing truths but as complementary aspects of how God governs creation.
Like planets orbiting in precise ellipses, following laws that reflect divine wisdom, moving through space on trajectories established before their existence, sustained by continuous gravitational relationship with their star.
We orbit similarly—governed by laws (physical and moral), sustained by continuous divine faithfulness, following trajectories established before our existence, moving toward purposes beyond our full comprehension.
The universe is lawful because God is faithful. And that's very good news.