Our presence in this massive universe is quite stunning. We live on a planet populated by plants, animals, and humans, while the rest of the universe is just orbiting rocks; we are an oasis of life in a massive desert of galactic death. Life appears to be an unwanted intruder in a universe that just wants to rest in peace. The inhabitants of our planet rebel against the interstellar standard by engaging in subversive acts of growth and reproduction. We give the finger to entropy as we procreate and populate our planet with complex biological machines. For the average human, the rebellion lasts around 80 years until it is put down by the counter-insurgency of death. But our unique status in the cosmos raises a very interesting question. Why do we continue to protest against that which is the cosmic norm? Why do we cling to the life Force when the Death Star looms on the horizon? Not only do we tenaciously cling to our brief existence, but we somehow think it should be meaningful. We are either incredibly stupid or incredibly blessed. Our brief exposure to life leaves us wanting more. We cling to life when all the evidence around us suggests it is the most absurd thing in the universe. We live for a relatively short number of years and then get the crazy idea, contrary to all available evidence, that we should be immortal. Why in the midst of a dead universe would life appear? It’s as if Someone set up a Theater of the Absurd in the middle of chaos, raised the firmamental curtains, littered the stage with animal props, and then introduced characters obsessed with the roles they play and the number of lines they recite. Maybe, the repetition in nature isn’t mere reoccurrence, but rather theatrical encore.(1)

Atheism finds itself in a very difficult situation because it has to define mankind as a collection of incredibly lucky genetic mistakes whose only purpose is to make sure its genes stay one lap ahead of the Grim Reaper in the natural selection marathon. It has only one choice when it comes to origins, and that is materialism, the belief that everything we experience is just made up of physical things and that no transcendent world exists. Why would a bunch of chemicals come together for an 80-year interlude where they are obsessed with purpose and then settle for becoming cosmic compost? I have yet to find a best-selling book on purpose that outlines strategies to be a better survivor and have more offspring. It’s interesting that atheists don’t even read their own self-help literature because statistics reveal that they have overall lower birth rates than the competing religious faction, which sadly prevents them from achieving the only purpose their worldview is capable of generating. The atheist then distracts us from this sad reality by trying to create a temporal, material meaning in life, but find that the vast majority of people really want one that is eternal and spiritual. Purpose either comes from the natural world or the spiritual world. You cannot serve both god and evolution.

1 – Paraphrase of G.K. Chesterton