What Is Our Purpose on Earth? - Essay Sample

Introduction

Today, people tie their purpose to the knowledge of reality, happiness, social ties, morality, afterlife, among several other things. An important question arises when one thinks about the topic of human existence. What is the point of our existence on earth? In attempts to answer this question, scholars have advanced that humans have a greater purpose on earth, one that exceeds our earthly desires. Some have gone further to state that the purpose of humanity on earth is to please a higher being or God. Though humans have been gifted with free will, they should ensure that their choices achieve a greater good which will help determine their fate after death. However, this argument raises other questions. Who is this higher being that humans must seek to please? What are His attributes? How can his existence be proven? This paper will explore the purpose of the existence of humans in the physical world. It will also explore the attributes and proofs of the existence of a higher being who humans should please through living a purposeful lives.

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Purpose broadly refers to the reason for doing or creating something. Purpose drives our daily lives. For instance, some people go to school to get the knowledge that will assure them of good careers and good lives in extension. Therefore, a good career and life is the reason or purpose of why those people go to school. However, the reality is not as simple as the definition sounds. Some people who have accomplished all the purposes they had in mind - got good grades in school, landed great jobs, started families, and are successful by all means - still hunger for a greater purpose in life. Owing to this, the purpose of humanity on earth has been an interesting topic over the years (Martela and Steger 540). Philosophers, theologians, and psychologist have debated on what is the purpose of humans on earth, and various theories have been advanced to explain the same.

The Existence of Humans

Various theories seek to explain the existence of humans today. According to Charles Darwin, humans evolved from less sophisticated beings through gene mutations and natural selection (Cheverud 155). Christianity, Judaism, and Muslims believe that God created humans. Hindus believe that the sacrifice of a cosmic man led to the creation of humans. Though none of these theories can be proven for sure, the marvel of humans, as well as the world in general, cannot be denied.

Moreover, though the scientific explanation of creation sounds plausible, there exist missing links that scientists have been unable to bridge. Therefore, for this paper, the Biblical account of creation will be used. Since human beings already exist, and so does the earth, the question of why humans exist is more important than the question of how humans came to be. Moreover, as mentioned earlier, there exist various theories on what happens when humans die (Olson 80). Some people believe that birth, growth, sickness, and death are the only phases of life and all ends after death. Others believe in reincarnation, hell, and heaven. Just like in the theories explaining how human existence came to be, these theories cannot be proven. Moreover, planning or lack of planning for the phase after death might affect one's purpose in the physical world. Therefore, it would be more constructive if humans focused on their purpose and time on earth.

Purpose for Living

People usually question their purpose for living. This usually occurs because humans are born with an innate need to find purpose or meaning of everything they do to make sense out of it. Resultantly, different people tie their purpose for living to different things such as family, social ties, consciousness, morality, knowledge, among others (Gilovich et al., 160). Regardless of what one ties their purpose to, it is evident that human beings were not created just to eat, drink, and make merry. Moreover, the Book of Ecclesiastes refers to most of the things that people follow as their purpose today as "vanity and vexation of the spirit." This, therefore, shows that God created human beings for a greater purpose.

Of all other creatures, only humans have been given intelligence and comprehension. Moreover, humans are the only creatures who can transcend the body and mind and hence can comprehend the significance of creation. These abilities place humans at the helm of creation. According to Kant, it is the humans' sensory apparatus and cognitive faculties that allow them to perceive the external world (Tartaglia 300). It is also these abilities that can best explain the purpose of humans in the physical world. Humans were given the special abilities to preserve the physical world and maintain its balance to allow the sustenance of the rest of the creation. Humans also exist to continually improve their lives as well as the lives of those around them. Unfortunately, human beings have largely failed in fulfilling this purpose. Rather than construct, they have intentionally or unintentionally deconstructed the physical world. Climate change, accumulation of waste in the oceans, and extinction of some species are all proofs of this deconstruction and the failure of humanity to pursue its purpose in the physical world. The deconstruction has, in turn, affected the quality of human's life. This shows that the prosperity and sustenance of the world and everything that is in it is man's biggest purpose on earth. This can be traced to Genesis 1: 1-28. After creating man, God gave him the authority to rule over all the creation. Therefore, humans were made stewards of the rest of the creation. Being good stewards of whatever one has been given, therefore, is the secret to living a life of purpose. God also commanded humans to grow and increase. Growth and increment is therefore also a purpose of humans on earth.

Since according to the Bible God created the world and everything in it, it can, therefore, be said that God is the reason we are on earth; He is our purpose on earth. Humans are therefore supposed to live purposefully for the pleasure of God, and this ends up being pleasurable for the humans too. Unfortunately, most people do not understand the original desire and design of God for creation. Resultantly, they cannot carry out their stewardship roles optimally, and hence they spend years searching for their purpose. Moreover, the resources, abilities, and gifts that human beings have are God's. They should, therefore, be managed in accordance with God's design and desire. Therefore, following our purpose leads to a happy and satisfying life. In his argument and definition of happiness, Aristotle seems to follow a similar path. He argues that the cultivation of virtues leads to happiness. However, this argument advances that happiness is the result of living in accordance to one's purpose and not the central purpose of living as advanced by Aristotle. David Hume also seems to support Aristotle's argument by advancing that the attainment of happiness is the culmination of all human industry. According to him, it was for this reason that laws were ordained, sciences cultivated, arts invented, and societies modeled. This discussion has pointed out pleasing God is the ultimate purpose of human existence (Gloor et al., 602). Pleasing God through upholding of morality and virtues, in turn, leads to success. God, therefore, is important in the achievement of human's purpose and attainment of happiness (Gloor et al., 604). However, questions on the existence of God have lingered throughout history. This paper, therefore, will focus on the existence of God and give proofs that He exists.

Existence of God

God is seen and referred to differently by different people. Regardless of the name, He is given, certain common attributes are given to God. He is seen as benevolent, omnipresent, all-powerful, and the creator of everything that is in the world. He advocates for morals and punishes vices. However, he is all-loving and forgives those who err. St. Aquinas argues that "to know that God exists in a general and confused way is implanted in us" (Aquinas 3). This means that humans are innately aware of the existence of a supreme being. Though it has been argued that the existence of God cannot be proven, St. Aquinas holds that it can be proven. Various arguments have been advanced to prove the existence of God. They include cosmological, teleological, and ontological arguments. The cosmological argument is based on facts regarding causation, motion, and finitude of the universe (Moreland 20). The argument advances that everything has a cause. It also holds that there must have been a First Cause that was uncaused. God is argued to be this first cause. The argument of contingency is closely related to the cosmological argument. According to the argument, there must be an independent and unchangeable being who has existed for eternity. This being is God.

The teleological argument advances that the design, intricate detail, and purpose of the universe could not have come to be without there being a creator (Paley 28). There is no way that the order and sophistication of nature could have occurred by chance. Therefore, there must be a powerful and intelligent being who made the universe. This supreme-being is God. Though this argument was first cited by Plato and Cicero, it is also found in the book of Psalms. To support the argument, Paley gives the analogy of a watch. He states that the maker designs every detail to ensure that the watch functions as intended. However, the argument has been criticized by different scholars over history such as Humes. He argued that the universe could not be compared to a human artifact such as a watch. He also argues that there is no other universe against which ours can be compared. In the words of Charles Sanders Pierce, "Universes are not as plentiful as blackberries" (Paley 30). This, according to him, means that we cannot tell for sure whether the universe was designed or it developed by itself. In his objection, Humes also argues that the universe is filled with evils and hence the designer might not be perfect after all. However, this objection is weak since most of the evil that we see in the world today arise as a result of misuse of the free will that God gave to humans (Paley 34). The Darwinian theory of evolution also provides a non-teleological version of the formation of the universe. However, regardless of all these objections, it would be unreasonable to think that all the orderliness and intelligence exhibited in the design of the universe occurred by chance.

The ontological argument was advanced by Anselm. It is based on the various attributes that make God great such as Omni-presence, omnipotence, and Omni-science. According to Anselm, the presence of God is so certain that only a fool could object it. He argues that God exists both in reality and in the minds of humans (Canterbury 1).

Conclusion

The purpose is an important aspect of human's life. It brings happiness and satisfaction. Unfortunately, most people are unaware of their purpose, and hence they pursue various things in search of satisfaction. According to Aristotle and other philosophers such as David Humes, happiness is the principal purpose in human life. However, it has been established in this paper that happiness is the result of achieving one's purpose and not the purpose itself. The fact that human beings are different from all other creatures shows that they were given a higher purpose by the creator. This purpose is to maintain the balance of the universe, grow and increase. By doing this and upholding morality, hum...