Quote:
Originally Posted by Mightyboosh
Ok, let's explore this then. How would we determine purpose? I.e. what it is, why it is, where it originates from, that sort of thing.
The creator of something determines its purpose. (More precisely, the creator of something determines the
initial purpose of the thing created.)
For example, I might publish an instructional landscaping book called "Planting : From Seed to Reed."
My purpose for that book that I wrote (created) was to teach people how to become better gardeners.
Say someone buys my book, NOT because they have any interest in gardening, but because my book was in the 50¢ rack in the used book store, and this someone needed something cheap to use as a door stop.
In this case, MY purpose for the book was not the same as the purchasers purpose for the book.
So, some questions arise with respect to human purpose:
1. Were people created for a purpose?
2. If so, can people know (or at least have a good idea) what that purpose is?
3. Are people obliged to act in accordance with that purpose, or are people free to act in a manner inconsistent (in at least in some ways) with that purpose?
4. Are there consequences for wilfully acting in a manner inconsistent with the purpose of our creation?