The term “revisiting” takes me directly to what led me to write this blog on this topic after having posted nothing for over three months! A few weeks ago I, literally, “stumbled” across a file folder that stuck somehow to the folder I intentionally took from the file drawer. It simply laid on a footstool in my study for a few days before I picked it up to look at it. It contained a twelve page article entitled, “Man’s Basic Need Is for Meaning,” which I had written in 1972—Yes, fifty years ago!—and was published in the journal, Church Administration.” No, don’t ask me why that topic was appropriate for that publication, although I had written for it before. The relevant point is that I read the article several times, underlined some sections that attracted my attention, made some notes in the margins, and groaned a few times at having to acknowledge that my oft-cited lack of the gift of brevity is nothing recent!! More to the point, I was drawn to the relevance of the subject, as well as to some of what I had written, and decided—owning a half century of perspective—to write anew on this topic.

In reading what I had written, several matters caught my attention, two in particular. First, the article was well documented, with footnotes citing close to twenty books on the subject or on issues relevant to it—sources I will include in the list of more recent publications I have consulted. I was particularly glad to see the appearance of two authors: Harry Emerson Fosdick, on whom I had written my doctoral dissertation, and Wayne Oates, a national leader on the subject and practice of “Pastoral Care,” who had been both my teacher and my personal coach, especially counseling a couple in a marriage “gone bad.” But what totally surprised me was the absence of any mention at all of Viktor Frankl’s book, Man’s Search for Meaning, which was published in Austria in German, titled Verlag für Jugend und Volk, in 1946, and in English by Beacon Press in 1959. My failure to reference it—13 years after it had been published in a number of English editions—suggests that I had not read it, which will remain an unsolved mystery, but one that resulted in an utter disregard for this eminent source, a negligence that I will correct! The other issue is that the second half of the article was devoted entirely to meaning in the context of Christianity and to the role of the church in helping its members understand its significance and assisting them in their own search for meaning. This is not surprising, given the focus of the journal in which it was published, but while I will address the role of religions, including Christianity, as the locus of meaning for many people, it will not dominate what I write and will be just one of the several sources common to the human quest for meaning.

With apologies, sort of, to some of my friends who have made it very clear to me that they—and most others, they assure me—are little interested in my research on a topic but would far rather read my reflections on my own ideas/experiences related to the topic. I get that. However, most of this first post will, indeed, involve some research that provides background for my own personal ruminations and expressions regarding the sources of meaning in my own life, which will be the total content of the second post! So, I need to begin by defining the topic in a way that “prepares the ground” for both opening it up and setting some boundaries around it. Without getting lost in examples, I would suggest that it isn’t difficult to find in novels, movies, theatrical productions, or the lyrics of popular music, references—sometimes blatant, sometimes more covert—to peoples’ identity crises. Science and technology can handily provide solutions to “how-when-and-what” questions about human identity, but answers to the “who-am-I-and-where-am-I-going” questions can for many still be disconcertingly elusive. It is generally agreed that no one who deals in a practical way with human beings can do so without some notion of internal motivational forces, whether one chooses to call them drives, impulses, urges, inclinations, desires, instincts, or as I’m choosing to call them here, needs. Based on my admittedly non-exhaustive consultation of some qualified, and recognized, research-driven writers—a few of which I will reference—I confess to be proceeding on a mission to make the case that the quest for meaning resides strongly in “basic” human needs.

Without wandering off too far into the weeds of biological and psycho-social theory, no one will be surprised that the biological sciences have established the existence of a process that occurs within and among the living cells called “equilibrium,” a dynamic balance that makes life possible, e.g. body temperature regulates itself, remaining constant—within certain limits—no matter what the environmental temperature. In the psycho-social aspect of personality there also seems to be a constancy principle in the background of frequent references to such categories as “integration,” “wholeness,” and “unity,” that rank high in the psychological scale of priorities. Let me be clear—this is not an “either/or” (biological/pscycho-social) issue. It is a “both/and” reality.

While, again, this is not an area of my expertise, my limited, but careful, research convinces me that most of the biogenic needs are soon ”frosted over” with a variety of novel new interests, motives, and “appetites” that arise from the culture and to which this maturing personality is drawn. So, while these new needs may have had their origin in the innate biogenic needs, they become—in Gordon Allport’s terminology—“functionally autonomous” basic needs in their own right (used several times across his book, Personality: A Psychological Interpretation), fully capable of standing on their own feet. In his book, On Being a Real Person, Harry Emerson Fosdick put it this way: “The primary command of our being is, Get yourself together, and the fundamental sin is to be chaotic and unfocused” (p. 33).

The point, of course, is that the “name of the game” is balance. IIlness, neurosis, and psychosis are all indications of imbalance of one kind or another and are attempts of the organism to “right itself.” It can be argued—as I seem to be doing—that this urge for balance expresses itself basically in a universal human need for meaning in life, and the organization of personality around some focal center, or centers, designates the locus of meaning for that person.

Without giving it all the attention it deserves, this leads me to Viktor Frankl’s iconic book, which provides a vivid account of his experience as a prisoner—and one of the few who survived—in a Nazi concentration camp, where one’s chances of dying were higher than those of living on any given day. After his release by the Allied troops that overran the camps, Frankl spent the rest of his life teaching what he’d learned during the worst of times: that people can, and must, find meaning in their lives.

He drew several lessons—known as “logotherapy”—from his experiences. While I won’t attempt to summarize them all, I’ll mention a few that are, for me, especially worth noting. He said that there’s no general meaning of life and not even one, singular, meaning of your own life. Your life’s meaning is unique to you and depends on your decisions and situations. No matter how unbearable our external circumstances—and think back to his own!—humans have the ability to retreat into an inner psychological space of peace and safety, where many things can be found, such as love, hope, responsibility, inner freedom, religious/spiritual beliefs, and the beauty to be found in both nature and art. Rather than sticking to one objective meaning, we have to identify what is meaningful to us in every moment. Our goals and aspirations tend to change over time, and that’s OK. Frankl enhances this exact idea as he writes, “What man actually needs is not a tensionless state but rather the striving and struggling for some goal worthy of him.” And once you know your “why”, you’ll find the “how”. That’s all I’ll say, for now, about Frankl’s book, but for anyone who has not read it, I would urge you to do so.

To go a step further, It isn’t difficult to find philosophers who made a case for positing their own view of the meaning of life. Famous philosophers such as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, Spinoza, and many others had clear views about what sort of life was best and hence most meaningful. Without allowing myself to wander off too deeply into this major area of my graduate studies and the primary focus of my teaching, I’ll note briefly that Socrates believed that the ultimate goal of human existence is to live “a good life,” guided by reason, virtue, and moral principles; Plato argued that the meaning of life is in attaining the highest form of knowledge, which is what he called “the Form,” or “the Good;” and for Aristotle, the meaning of life is found in “happiness.” Obviously, each of these terms are, by themselves, filled with ambiguity, many possible “meanings,” and begging for clarification—which each philosopher offered, with more explanation than I will pursue here.  My point is that these giants of Greek philosophy believed and argued for the important, crucial place that a search for meaning occupies in human life.

It is not difficult to find a philosopher who essentially agrees with Frankl. Friedrich Nietzche’s view is that you alone can give your life meaning. If we embrace anyone else’s answer to the meaning of life, we have abandoned our responsibility to evaluate our own lives and live according to our own conscience. His view was that the meaning of life is to live authentically and powerfully, creating one’s own goals and values.

Finally, before “moving on,” here are a few brief quotations from a few selected books, just to make the case that a scholarly interest in the human search for meaning is alive and well!

• ”We argue that meaning functions as a motivational resource that . . . .when people view their lives as meaningful, they are more motivated to take care of themselves and make valuable contributions to their families and communities.” “Why Meaning in Life Matters for Societal Flourishing.” Clay Routledge, Taylor A. FioRito, Frontiers. Psychology, 14 January, 2021.^.
• “Having a purpose in life is one of the most fundamental human needs. . . . people are searching for meaning in life, but . . .may need a more structured way of finding meaning. . . . [here] we discuss evidence-based ways of finding purpose, via a process that we call ‘life crafting’ i.e. finding what you stand for; how to make it happen; telling someone about your plans. . . .Life crafting is about taking control of one’s life and finding purpose.” “Life Crafting as a Way to Find Purpose and Meaning in Life.” Michaela C. Schippers and Niklas Ziegler. Frontiers in Psychology, December 13, 2019.
• In his bestselling self-help book The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment (1999), Eckhart Tolle argues that the meaning of life is simply being present. ”Our true essence, then, is not to be found in our shifting emotions or compulsive thinking. . . .the present moment is all we ever have. The now is not only the most precious thing there is, but it is also the only thing there is.”
• Anna K. Schaffner, who put together brief summaries—with quotations from each—of 7 Best Books to Help You Find The Meaning of Life (Positive Psychology, Aug 31, 2020), closes the publication with “A Take-Home Message” from which the following was drawn: “Some of the ideas on what constitutes the meaning of life are in contradiction. . . . . The lesson from . . . this is [that] meaning . . . cannot be imposed. It has to be discovered or created. There is no one-size-fits-all. . . . One might agree with Frankl that when we know what is most meaningful to us, we must ensure that our lives are dedicated to serving these meanings. . .” {Find a list of the 7 Best Books in the references at the end of this post}.

So, quotes and/or references to eleven books, among others, published—with the exception of Frankl—in the last 24 years, should be sufficient to make the case that scholarly attention to and affirmation of the importance of the human search for meaning is still safe and sound in the 21^st century. Let me mention a few of the common sources of meaning often to be found among the human family—common enough that you may see them pop up again, with distinctive “twists” of my own, in the next and final post.

• Religion is certainly a primary place that many people find meaning in a sense of connection to God and to the life and teachings of Jesus—or Moses, Confucius, Mohammed, Siddhartha  Gautama, Ghandi.
• But for some, it is also the companionship with likeminded believers, one important example of the larger category of human relationships—particularly those special few that become friendships—in which some find a source of meaning in their lives.
• And in some special relationships, friendship merges with love, which is a huge category, encompassing from special friendships to one’s spouse/life partner, to parents and one’s own children.
• Some find a source of meaning in their career, sometimes when it’s providing for family and for others, and, sometimes, when it’s also seen as making a useful contribution to society.
• And, finally, to conclude these few examples, some people find meaning beyond career, to uncompensated service to others, especially those in one’s community that are in need of help.

In what I hope to be a second, and final, post on this topic, I will turn to some reflections on what/where/ how I have found sources of meaning in my own life. I hope that any who have managed to read this far will follow along one more time. ’Til then!

Selected Sources from “Revisiting the Human Need to Find Meaning.” 1^st Post

Schaffner, Anna K.  7 Best Books to Help You Find The Meaning of Life, Aug 31, 2020.

• Dalai Lama & Cutler, H. C. The art of happiness: A handbook for living. Hodder & Stoughton, 2009.
• Epictetus & Dobbin, R. (Trans.). Of human freedom. Penguin, 2010.
• Frankl, V. E.  Man’s search for meaning: The classic tribute to hope from the Holocaust. Rider, 1946, 2004.
• Hall, E. Aristotle’s way: How ancient wisdom can transform your life. BodleyHead, 2018.
• Harris, R. The happiness trap. Based on ACT: A revolutionary mindfulness-based programme for overcoming stress, anxiety, and depression. Robinson, 2008.
• Ricard, M. Altruism: The power of compassion to change yourself and the world. Little, Brown and Company, 2015. 
• Tolle, Eckhart. The power of now: A guide to spiritual enlightenment. Hodder & Stoughton, 1999.

Selected Sources from Leininger, C. Earl. “Man’s Basic Need Is for Meaning,” Church Administration, January 1972.