The meaning of a considered life

Socrates famously said that the "unconsidered life is not worth living". He meant that a life lived without forethought or principle is a life so vulnerable to chance, and so dependent on the choices and actions of others, that it is of little real value to the person living it. He further meant that a life well lived is one which has goals, and integrity, which is chosen and directed by the one who lives it, to the fullest extent possible to a human agent caught in the webs of religion, society and history.

A life enriched by thinking about things that matter - values, aims, society, the characteristic vicissitudes of the human condition, desiderata both personal and public, the enemies of human flourishing, and the meanings of life. It is not necessary to arrive at polished theories on all these subjects, but it is necessary to give them at least a modicum of thought if one's life is to have some degree of shape and direction. To give thought to these matters is like inspecting a map before a journey. Looking at a map is not the same thing as travelling, but it at least provides orientation, a sense of place and of how places relate to each other - especially those one would like to visit. A person who does not think about life is like a stranger mapless in a foreign land; for one such, lost and without directions, any turning in the road is as good as any other, and if it takes him somewhere worthwhile it will have done so by the merest chance.

I believe passionately in the value of all things spiritual - by which I mean things of the human spirit, with its capacity for love and enjoyment, creativity and kindness, hope and courage. Although mankind is the author of much monstrous cruelty, of despoliation, greed, conflict and ugliness, it is also the author of much that is best in the world, which is a reason both for celebration and optimism.

Some people seem unable to allow that mankind is the source of what makes the world bearable - pity, beauty and tenderness - nor that it is human genius which is responsible for the achievements of technology and science. Such is responsible for the achievements of technology and science. Such people have to believe in the existence of greater supernatural agencies as the source of the world's good, while fathering its evil exclusively on human beings. That is a calumny on mankind, as well as an irrational hangover from mankind's ignorant and fearful infancy, when nature was believed to be governed by invisible and often hostile powers.

One may stop and think that our knowledge and consideration of life should help to achieve liberation from such tyrannies of belief. I believe that we can replace them with logical informed commitments instead to the human affections, tolerance, and the wisdom taught by individual experience. Bringing compassion back into our personal, social and cultural lives is not going to be easy. Many think that mankind today is searching for modern ways to archive this. Success in these endeavors will only come as we work together with our knowledge, prosperity, advanced technology and share this mission for the prosperity of mankind – a mission that in one form or another has been around since the beginning of time.