1. The
Common Human Experience
The Human trait of curiosity – what is
it all about?
Humans above all other creatures
almost universally seek to know and understand the world in which they live and
ultimately discover purpose in life. We are curious creatures, fitted with
intelligence and perceptions well in advance of all other creatures, to the
extent that unlike all others we are self-aware. We have the capacity to think
outside of ourselves, above and beyond our own instinctive responses. We are
able to ponder both the causes of our own experiences and of life itself, as
well as the effects of the choices we make and of the greater consequences of
past and current experiences and events.
With education, we are also able
to discern between right and wrong, good and evil, and make what we might term
moral choices. Lower creatures are not able to think on this level. Some use
terms such as consciousness and even spirituality to define this capacity, but
for this consideration we will remain with the basic definitions above. The
important point is to note that this level of awareness is the natural
expression of our physical organisation or being, and that it is an innate
capacity or potential that we are uniquely born with.
In this regard we are totally
unique. This unique level of conscious awareness causes us to seek for meaning
and for purpose in our individual lives. The author of this book believes that
this unique ability is a gift from God, and that it is directly related to
God’s stated purpose with mankind. Although most people are naturally curious
to know the purpose of life, few stretch themselves to really find complete
answers to the great questions of life. Most of us find some pearls of wisdom
and purpose and seem to be satisfied with them, but time and circumstances tend
to numb us to greater possibilities.
Others pursue these questions
intensely and find what they think are answers in the many and varied religious
disciplines and spiritual experiences that are on offer in the world. There are
many versions of these alleged answers, and some of them are very clearly and
powerfully articulated. However, many/most of these are also quite
contradictory to one another. Others seek for a type of unifying synthesis
between the various opinions. But all of these may be to no advantage and
really only the groping in darkness
of those who cannot recognise the light of the Word of God for what it truly
is. The Apostle Paul relegates all human wisdom to the ‘times of ignorance’ (Acts.17:30),
and the Bible generally classifies them as human vanities and pursuits.
The human awareness experience
starts most strongly in our late teenage years when we are at our most curious,
but over time the curiosity often wanes and the general business of life tends
to take over and fill us up. Some fill their lives with; sensory pursuits,
family life, entertainments, the pursuit of knowledge and learning, dedication
to career advancement, the pursuit of fame, or the pursuit of wealth and power.
All of these things and more, can allow us to gain some level of control in an
uncertain world, and can bring to us a sense of purpose and satisfaction. We
may then rationalise this activity in that it can give us some sense of
meaning, which many now call ‘making a difference’. That is, that our efforts
somehow add to the contributions of others to make the world a better place.
This has been the commonly accepted rationale for many.
But even if we are fortunate
enough to have achieved everything we seek for in life, there remains in many of
us a nagging feeling that perhaps we
are missing something. Although we may have achieved a level of success
recognized by others, what really have we achieved? How long will it last, and
did it really make a lasting difference? Isn’t history replete with examples of
people who have lived and died striving for the same thing? Have not societies
and nations risen and fallen on these same assumptions? Are we missing some
very important information, facts, ideas and concepts? Have the leading lights
of society, our thought leaders, also been side tracked from the really
important pursuit of meaning and purpose by the pursuit of some form of
recognition, material or otherwise? Are they too just simply ‘the blind leading
the blind’?
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