In 2002, the American evangelical pastor Rick Warren published The Purpose Driven Life, a book which made the New York Times Best Seller list for one of the longest periods in history and had over 30 million copies in print by 2006 [1]. The book is a devotional which teaches that meaning, satisfaction, and personal fulfillment are only found in knowing and obeying God's will for our lives. Warren's thesis is obviously a popular one, and it is quite common to hear ministers, apologists, and believers state that apart from God, there is no real, true, or fulfilling purpose, but just how unique and meaningful is this promise of purpose that is made by religion?

I. The Religious Significance of Purpose

Many people seem to believe that knowing their purpose in this life will make them happier, more content, more confident, or at least give them a sense of direction. Interestingly, a good number of us will also reject any possible purpose that we feel is not meaningful or significant enough. We claim to be looking for purpose greater than ourselves, while we maintain very specific (but curiously arbitrary) notions about what such a purpose can or cannot be. However, there is no real reason to assume that any purpose, transcendent or otherwise, will imply our satisfaction. There are many cases where the purpose of a behavior is to aid survival, even though the organism may not particularly like what it must do to survive.

It's a basic fact that no one is supremely pleased with every facet of their own life. We all make mistakes and we certainly can't control many of the variables that may affect us, so there will inevitably be disappointment and feelings of failure. At the same time, we all would like to maximize the happiness and contentment we have with our lives, so naturally we can be easily tempted by any promise of purpose that will allegedly improve things for us. Religious evangelists are well aware of our negative feelings, because they are common to all of humanity, and are likely even experiences the evangelists themselves struggle with. Behind their joyful facades, they have doubts and still ponder many of the same questions you ponder.

Evangelists attempt to convince us that acceptance of the right purpose will give us the greatest sense of importance, value, and peace in this life. By doing this, they know that they can address those universal feelings of emptiness or unsatisfaction that we all have, and then they can offer the 'solution'. The most familiar example is the cliche statement about how everyone has a "God-shaped hole" that we try to fill with worldly things, yet we are always left unsatisfied, because the only thing that will fill the void is a relationship with God. How much of a space-filler can God be though?

II. Different God, Different Purpose

A religious believer may tell you that their god is the sole source of authentic purpose in this world, but do not forget that there are members of other faiths making the exact same claims of their god(s). According to a Christian, trusting Jesus Christ as your personal savior, reading the bible, and praying often are the keys to a meaningful life. Muslims believe that fulfilling purpose is found in believing Allah to be the one true god, worshipping him through the five pillars of Islam, reciting and following the Quran. Hinduism teaches that the purpose of life is to honor the gods, respect other human beings, and to strive for prosperity, pleasure, and enlightenment. Mormons believe that by the pursuit of holiness, moral goodness, knowledge, marriage, and procreation, humans live out their purpose on Earth, to eventually return to God in Heaven after death. With so many options, the question of which view holds the truth may be a difficult one to determine.

Should it be surprising that all of these religions include worship and obedience as part of our life's purpose? If they did not stress their own importance, there would be little reason to identify oneself as a member. Still, it seems without reason or explanation that so many of our world religions contend that God - the almighty and ineffable creator of the universe - should desire that we serve and worship him above all else. I'd think that a god of pure goodness (which would mean his attitude is less jealous and more humble) would want us to respect each other or to take care of his creation more than anything. Selfishness and the need for blind adoration are traits more common to human beings.

Not only are there competing religions trying to offer us all different takes on our purpose in life, but the idea that religion can provide any significant meaning is questionable too. A 2005 study found that, "higher rates of belief in and worship of a creator correlate with higher rates of homicide, juvenile and early adult mortality, STD infection rates, teen pregnancy and abortion in the prosperous democracies" [2]. Perhaps religious believers are just dead wrong about their beliefs offering some exclusive and profound sense of purpose. If any faith truly could give a person greater happiness, contentment, peace, or meaning, we should expect to see some actual signs of it - not just in individuals, but a strong presence of it in the whole of believers too. Yet when left with evidence to the contrary, the only logical conclusion is that no religious believer has special, privileged access to life's big questions. They are as confused and uncertain as the rest of us, but they hedge their bets for their own comfort.

III. What Does Purpose Really Matter?

The truth is that each one of us decides what our purpose in life will be. We choose what we live for, what we die for, what we support, and what we oppose. Even the religious believer defines their own purpose as they filter the acceptable options, looking for that transcendent meaning and rejecting all that falls short of their vision of 'true' purpose. Some people may not be content with the idea that purpose is relative to every individual, especially if they will get more comfort out of possessing a pretend sense of greater, cosmic meaning. But how meaningful must our lives be? Purpose of any transcendent sense would, by definition, not bend to any of our preferences.

Maybe it's just a brute fact that we exist here then, and there is no profound purpose of life on Earth. Is it not somewhat arrogant to think that in all of the universe, we are the sole, privileged focal point of purpose and meaning? There are some questions that are inappropriate to ask of certain things. It wouldn't make much sense to look at a painting and ask, 'how does it work?' - so perhaps the question of why we are here is also inappropriate.

But without any belief in a divine purpose, don't you feel depressed and hopeless? Actually, no. I think Gandalf put it best in The Fellowship of the Ring: "all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us". There is always a choice in how to approach life, and regardless of religious sentiments, some people will choose to live in persistent anger, sorrow, or confusion. Yet there are many reasons to value our lives and appreciate whatever purpose we pursue. The quality and longevity of life have improved vastly over the last century, and we are the lucky ones who have been born on the other side of the mountain where survival is no longer a constant concern. We may find purpose in our friends, our family, and our experiences. They have made us who we are, and we in turn will impact, influence, and inspire them.

1. Goldman, L. (2006) By The Numbers: Top-Earning Authors. Forbes.com. Retrieved June 22, 2009.
2. Gledhill, R. (2005) Societies worse off 'when they have God on their side'. The Times. Retrieved June 22, 2009.