On the other hand, some choose to numb the questions out of existence like people ignore that pea-sized wort on Mrs. Linskey's right cheek. Forgetting such notions, people existentialize their lives with stuff and habits, so they don't have to come face to face with them. A popular slogan of the 1980's was "He who dies with the most toys, wins." I think Tommy Lee coined it. It was easily countered with a subsequent T-shirt that read: "He who dies with the most toys--still dies." The latter may have been the original First Ever Christian T-Shirt. I dunno.
One of the foundations of such behavior is philosophical materialism. That is to say, only matter exists. There are no immaterial things. There is no god, no spirits, no soul in man. Even things like the laws of science and logic are said to be the result of chemical processes in the brain.
Materialism and other "isms" go hand in hand with each other: Naturalism, Darwinism, Nihilism, Existentialism. In fact, I would argue that Materialism is the foundational impetus of the aforementioned isms. If all there is, ever was, and ever shall be, is the material universe, as Carl Sagan so aptly put it, then we die and the world carries on until it dies too. Metallica's song On Through the Never from their 1991 "Black Album" discloses the angst and blank stare of the cosmos and all that occupy it:
All that is, was and will be
Universe much too big to see
Time and space never ending
Disturbing thoughts, questions pending
Limitations of human understanding
Too quick to criticize
Obligation to survive
We hunger to be alive
All that is, ever
Ever was
Will be ever
Twisting
Turning
Through the never
In the dark, see past our eyes
Pursuit of truth no matter where it lies
Gazing up to the breeze of the heavens
On a quest, meaning, reason
Came to be, how it begun
All alone in the family of the sun
Curiosity teasing everyone
On our home, third stone from the sun
All that is, ever
Ever was
Will be ever
Twisting
Turning
Through the never
On through the never
We must go
On through the never
Out to the Edge of forever
We must go
On through the never
Then never comes
All that is, ever
Ever was
Will be ever
Twisting
Turning
Who we are
Ask forever
Twisting
Turning
Through the never
Never
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The theme of the poem is clear: we are alone in the cosmos as a planet that twists and turns through the "never." "Never," as a negative term, connotes void, purposelessness, and meaninglessness. We search for meaning, we use reason, we search for our origins. But the only answer is that we are alone on this planet, moving through the endless, dark void of cosmos.
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As we gaze up at the heavens, we realize how infinitesimally small we are. Even our curiosity betrays us. We ask about what is there, but there is nothing. Then we look inward and see our faults (too quick to criticize), and yet we strive for life and like the good Darwinian animals that we are, we hunger and thirst after life--after survival, but nothing else. Because there is nothing else. And yet, "We must go" through the Never. We are determined by our cold, answerless universe. There is nothing beyond us, and when we expire, the grave consumes us to dust and from dust, death spreads our mist to the careless earth, of which we become a part.
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We are in "the pursuit of truth." And the truth is, we are alone. We are "third stone from the sun." We are as faceless as a white, desert stone baking in the hot, cruel sun. As desperate as we are for life--in ourselves and somewhere "out there," nothing comes. The "Never" comes. That is, the only thing that comes to us is the vast ocean of silent nothingness.
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Even the shape of the poem is in a spike, or spiral that goes continually down, down, into a deep abyss. There is no one there, at the bottom, even if there is a bottom of this personless chasm of spinning, chaotic, endlessness...
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By virtue of this existential emptiness that Materialism offers, it should be rejected. Materialism contradicts our human longing and desire for meaning, purpose, happiness, and everlastingness. There are other, logical reasons why Materialism should be rejected as well, and we will touch on this in the near future.
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Humans are "soulish." When we see something beautiful, like an Olympian athlete win an event after suffering a staggering setback, or when we see an automobile with the dual aesthetics of engineering and fine art, or when we enjoy a good meal with wine, friends, laughter and love, we prove to ourselves that we are indeed, more than matter. We are more than tissue, chemicals and electromagnetic impulses.
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When Jesus spoke to the woman at the well in John 4, he told her he had "living water." The context of this woman's life was that she had had many husbands, and was on her fifth. Jesus, in his conversation, tells her everything she ever did, and despite her adulterous life, he loved her and offered "living water," as a break from her existential struggle for meaning in life. The text of John's gospel does not inform us of the circumstances of why this woman had a fifth husband to her tally. Instead, we see Jesus offer this woman a break from her lifelessness and tell her that if she drinks his "living water," she will "never thirst forever."
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The living water that Jesus offers is his life. His life gives us an answer in the cold, meaningless void. Through Jesus, we can know about the universe, our origins, our meaning, and our destiny. He teaches us how to live (Love God, love neighbor). He offers forgiveness of sin. He answers why we feel guilt. Jesus is the living water in the sense that whatever ultimate question we have, he doesn't just have the answer, he is the answer.
