Einstein, Relativity and Absolute Simultaneity

This edited volume examines the philosophical implications of Einstein's special and general theories of relativity for fundamental questions about time, causation, and ultimately the existence of God. Smith and his co-contributors challenge the standard interpretation of relativity theory that denies absolute simultaneity, arguing instead that Einstein's physics is compatible with—and may even require—a privileged reference frame that defines objective temporal relations across the universe.

The collection develops its argument through several interconnected strategies. First, contributors demonstrate that the Lorentz interpretation of special relativity, which maintains absolute simultaneity while preserving all empirical predictions of Einstein's theory, remains scientifically viable and philosophically coherent. Second, they explore how quantum mechanics, particularly quantum entanglement and measurement, appears to require some notion of absolute simultaneity to make sense of instantaneous correlations between spatially separated particles. Third, the volume examines cosmological considerations suggesting that the universe possesses a preferred foliation into spacelike hypersurfaces, providing a natural candidate for absolute temporal ordering.

The work's significance for philosophical theology emerges most clearly in its treatment of divine action and providence. If relativity theory truly eliminates absolute simultaneity, as the conventional interpretation maintains, this poses severe challenges for traditional theistic concepts of God's relationship to temporal creation. How can God act simultaneously throughout the universe or possess comprehensive knowledge of cosmic events if there exists no objective fact about what counts as "now" across space? Several contributors argue that theistic commitments provide additional philosophical motivation for defending absolute simultaneity against the received interpretation of Einstein's theory.

The volume situates itself within broader debates between presentist and eternalist theories of time, generally defending presentism or growing block theories that require objective temporal passage. Contributors engage critically with prominent defenders of the block universe interpretation, including Hermann Minkowski, Paul Davies, and Michael Lockwood. The collection represents a sophisticated challenge to the widespread assumption that modern physics definitively rules out objective temporal becoming and absolute simultaneity. While not explicitly arguing for theism, the work systematically removes what many consider a major scientific obstacle to traditional theological frameworks that presuppose God's ability to act coherently across cosmic distances and to sustain genuine temporal passage in creation.