Some of my friends find it liberating that (according to their philosophy) there is no ultimate meaning in life. “We are free to live it up,” they say, “Life will be fulfilling if we make the most out of every opportunity – have fun, experience the world, make some friends, maybe, later on, make a difference to someone’s life.”
Sound good? Not to me. Ravi Zacharias says it best:
Activity does not creat meaning; it is the other way around. If life in its existential expression has no meaning, then a change of attitude does not change the reality of meaninglessness. It only changes how one functions in a meaningless word, which was precisely Jean Paul Sartre’s point in No Exit. What difference does it make, when the boat is going down, if one stands on the deck and salutes or plays a last game of poker?
My friends have been liberated; but into what freedom?