We're all seekers of the truth within ourselves, even though mostly we might say, we long for a deeper connection with our God or the Lord. But I sense that the meaning to life is no longer a question itself, and one that people are truly after. The consumer culture has taught us that one thing to own is never enough, so we go back to the treadmill hoping that we will connect with ourselves again, like the rat race, we are busy "making and chasing the living" like its something that is before us, we are so sure that happiness and a meaningful life is out there to be found. We've forgotten what it really means to live. Thanks for this incredible read Lisa Quintana
Marcus - thank you for reading -- and a double thank you to Lisa for writing!
It's so fascinating what you brought up, that "the meaning of life is no longer a question itself".. I just reinstated Philosophy Pub Night last month for the first time since moving back to the states, and guess what the question of the night was? "Can there be such a thing as 'the meaning of life' if there is no god?" Interestingly, I was part of a reading group while at Oxford called "God and the meaning of life", and I was surprised at how quickly non-theist philosophers seem to concede to the theist that, if God does not exist, then there can be no meaning of life. One thing we covered last month though was distinguishing between "meaning *in* life" and "the meaning *of* life". The non-theist seems happy enough that 'meaning in life' can be had (valuable relationships, work, the arts, etc.); but for them, if there is no intentional personality conferring a meaning onto all of the natural order, then there is no 'meaning of life'. My hope was especially in showing how fundamentally desirable it is (or really, as you say, ought to be) to have a worldview that offers *something* in the way of answering the question, 'what is the meaning of life?' But a worldview that merely concedes no such thing even exists seems deeply problematic - to me anyway. In any case, I was very pleased that this was the topic that was overwhelmingly voted on. It at least suggested that some folks are still interested in that fundamental desideratum of human experience.
Thanks! I agree with you. I also know that once people get on “the hamster wheel” for a while, they will eventually get tired. People need people, and this philosophy pub idea is a great way to connect on a deeper level.
We're all seekers of the truth within ourselves, even though mostly we might say, we long for a deeper connection with our God or the Lord. But I sense that the meaning to life is no longer a question itself, and one that people are truly after. The consumer culture has taught us that one thing to own is never enough, so we go back to the treadmill hoping that we will connect with ourselves again, like the rat race, we are busy "making and chasing the living" like its something that is before us, we are so sure that happiness and a meaningful life is out there to be found. We've forgotten what it really means to live. Thanks for this incredible read Lisa Quintana
Marcus - thank you for reading -- and a double thank you to Lisa for writing!
It's so fascinating what you brought up, that "the meaning of life is no longer a question itself".. I just reinstated Philosophy Pub Night last month for the first time since moving back to the states, and guess what the question of the night was? "Can there be such a thing as 'the meaning of life' if there is no god?" Interestingly, I was part of a reading group while at Oxford called "God and the meaning of life", and I was surprised at how quickly non-theist philosophers seem to concede to the theist that, if God does not exist, then there can be no meaning of life. One thing we covered last month though was distinguishing between "meaning *in* life" and "the meaning *of* life". The non-theist seems happy enough that 'meaning in life' can be had (valuable relationships, work, the arts, etc.); but for them, if there is no intentional personality conferring a meaning onto all of the natural order, then there is no 'meaning of life'. My hope was especially in showing how fundamentally desirable it is (or really, as you say, ought to be) to have a worldview that offers *something* in the way of answering the question, 'what is the meaning of life?' But a worldview that merely concedes no such thing even exists seems deeply problematic - to me anyway. In any case, I was very pleased that this was the topic that was overwhelmingly voted on. It at least suggested that some folks are still interested in that fundamental desideratum of human experience.
Thanks! I agree with you. I also know that once people get on “the hamster wheel” for a while, they will eventually get tired. People need people, and this philosophy pub idea is a great way to connect on a deeper level.