Section: 1 – 16
Topic: Is the meaning of life discovered or created?
Position: The meaning of life is discovered.
One of the most argued matters in philosophy is the argument of the meaning of life, whether it is discovered or is it created. These arguments are supported by either atheistic existentialism and/or theistic existentialism, together with a few metaphysical philosophies which pertain to either God exists or not, which strives to seek the true meaning of life. Famous names including Jean Paul Sartre, Rudolf Bultmann, and Paul Tillich left great contributions to the Existentialist movement, and gave us stepping stones to achieving the truth of life.
Bultmann
Whether one agrees with him or not, no one could deny the enormous influence that Bultmann has had upon New Testament studies over the past decades. In his own way he is no less skeptical of the historical value of the biblical writings. Rudolf Bultmann was born in 1884. He studied and taught at several German universities before becoming a professor of New Testament studies in 1921. In 1926, he published a book entitled Jesus. Already he has interpreted the gospel in existential terms. What matters is not something that Jesus did objectively outside us and for us, nor is there such a thing as an objective word of God. Jesus is a preacher of the Word summoning us [mankind] to decision, thus enabling us to interpret our own existence. Here he shows us that Jesus in the Gospel brings us to our interpretation of our being. He speaks to us, for us to reason out our existence, why are we here? What is my purpose here? For what reason do I exist? Here he used biblical references to what is the truth in life. He uses the Word as an instrument of realization in which we could further understand the real purpose of our being. But in 1941, New Testament studies took a new turn when Bultmann circulated on duplicate sheets of his essay on ‘New Testament and Mythology’. In which