Search For Meaning

What does this mean?

If you are old enough, you Lutherans out there will recognize this dreaded question as one posed to you by your pastor on your Confirmation Day, testing your meager powers of memorization and worst case standing with your other confirmands in front of a hushed, sympathetic congregation. The question would follow a reading of a segment of Luther’s Small Catechism: The Creed or Ten Commandments, one of the sacraments or something more obscure if you were a trouble-maker. The memorized response might begin “I cannot by my own reason or strength …” and always ended with “This is most certainly true”. Agonizing. Thankfully, this form of child torture is largely in the past.

On a whole different level, in his memoir, Man's Search for Meaning*, (“Man” in the universal sense, as in HuMAN) Viktor Frankl, Austrian psychologist, neurologist and concentration camp survivor, chronicled his life in a Nazi death camp and how he was able to survive physically and spiritually. Frankl's suffering was unfathomable but he survived relying on an inner strength and a sense of purpose gained by dedicating himself to caring for other prisoners. He once refused an opportunity to escape to stay to help his fellow prisoners. Frankl argues that "we cannot avoid suffering but we can choose how to cope with it, find meaning in it, and move forward with renewed purpose." To sustain himself while enduring backbreaking work or being beaten by guards, he held imaginary conversations with his wife, who unbeknownst to him had been murdered by the SS. (*Over 16 million copies of his book and have been sold in 52 languages.)

It is unlikely any of us will face anything near such challenges but his life can still serve as a model for us. You don't need to win a Nobel Prize or devote your life to the poor of Calcutta. Frankl found meaning by dedicating his life to service of others. We can emulate Frankl by practicing kindness in our daily interactions.

On a mundane level, a Harvard Business Review article titled "Meaning is the New Money" puts forth the premise that what people look for in life’s work is not (just) money but meaning and asks what really drives individual satisfaction. 

Here are 3 views of the same job from a Psychology Today article.  

"Three men are found smashing boulders with iron hammers.  When asked what they are doing, the first man says, 'Breaking big rocks into little rocks.' The second man says, 'Feeding my family.' The third man says, 'Building a cathedral.'"

Attitude matters.

“Self actualization” is a much used and abused term from psychology and its meaning refers to reaching your life's potential fully. In the work world it looks to those factors beyond basic fair compensation. No less a figure than Albert Einstein weighs in:

“One should guard against preaching to young people success in the customary form as the main aim in life. The most important motive for work in life is pleasure in work, pleasure in its result, and the knowledge of the value of the result to the community.”

In a survey, mothers of many nationalities were asked what they wished for their children. Not surprisingly, Chinese mothers said honor and respect for their elders. In America, the overwhelming response was happiness. My grandmother's view was more nuanced. Her response would be kindness. If she had been a mathematician, she would have added “if Kindness, then Happiness”.

Of course, not everyone finds their life "meaningful" but I would like to believe within us, everyone wants their life to be meaningful. And I believe the key to that meaning is not in wealth or power or the accumulation of possessions but rather the difference you make in the lives you encounter on your journey. Be kind - an easy task with those you love - deserving no great plaudits. But true kindness expands the circle. Kindness is more than isolated individual acts but rather a way of life where all are treated with respect and generosity and concern without an expectation of praise or reward in return. 

Socrates famously said "an unexamined life is not worth living”. This can be as simple as stopping and asking yourself when facing an issue what is right and what is wrong. Sadly, I think a sizable number of Americans do not reflect on moral choices, but rather choose a tribe to join and parrot the doctrines of that tribe. Meaning hinges on that membership. And (almost all) tribes define the common good in terms of how it benefits "us". Concern for the other is secondary - if at all.

So choose kindness. Traits like  honesty, integrity, compassion and basic human decency, principles professed by all religions, naturally follow. And the remarkable thing is kindness begets kindness. It’s contagious. You can change the world.

That's my last sermon for 2025 - promise.

Copyright ©  2025  Dave Hoplin