What is the meaning of life? It is a question asked by theists, atheists, and everyone in between. Unless you are a true nihilist, you must accept that life has some value and perhaps even purpose. Religious people, especially Christians, evoke the existence of an omnipotent and all-loving God to find meaning in life. But how do atheists conceive of value and purpose in life without calling upon a higher power?

This was one of the central question of a class I took during winter study called "Positive Atheism." We tried to answer not only how we can find value in life without God, but why God must not exist for humans to achieve full potential in life. As a person who grew up in a Catholic family, I have been fascinated by these ideas for many years. Here are some my thoughts on two main topics.

One of the most talked about issues is morality. Even atheists would agree that Christianity is very effective in teaching ethics. Not only does it have specific moral codes, but it also instills a mindset on how to be good (love your neighbors, for example). However, the important thing to notice is that doing good deeds and being and atheist are not mutually exclusive. In other words, we should not speculate that atheism is synonymous with immorality.

Religious people can claim that we can only understand what "true" goodness is through God. However, the fact that different religions have different moral codes, what constitutes as moral and permissible changes in the same religion, and that babies with little to no prior teachings in religion seem to have a fundamental grasp of the "good" show that an understanding of God is not needed to know what action is good.

But maybe that is not the point. God is not just supposed to encourage you to do what is good, but also help you cope with times when others do wrong to you. Believing that a powerful Being is watching over you and caring about you can provide moral support that no other person can. In other words, religion can be therapeutic and replace negative emotions of anger or despair with compassion and peace.

Another point is regarding eternal life. One of the reasons Christians believe in God is His promise of salvation to those who believe and follow the religion's teachings. At first glance, it is easy to see why a mortal life can seem meaningless. Our lives are infinitesimally small specs in the grand universe and what we accomplish in life will not matter once enough time passes; everything we treasure in this world will eventually fade into nothing. In this hopelessness is God and His Providence, which ensures that "human history will ultimately culminate in an unqualifiedly good outcome."

Yet, atheists argue that this belief that everything is part of God's great plan diminishes the value of our current lives. If we are simply living out God's plan, do we really have free will? By accepting that we alone have the power to change our future, we gain agency over our lives. In addition, the fact that there is not infinite stretch of time gives each fleeting moments of joy more value and thus more meaning. It is a beautiful thought to have that the atoms in our bodies came from a dead star and we will eventually be reunited with the planet that made us. In the grand scheme of things, the negative emotions we feel and the misfortunes in our lives seem so trivial. Why not spend the few decades we are alive appreciating the beauty of the universe and just being good people?

Whatever your stance is on religion and whatever your other beliefs may be, we are all united by our common humanity. It is true that disagreements over religion and God have led to bloodshed and continues to create conflicts. However, it is also true that these are issues that will not be solved through violence and ill-will toward each other.

While we should engage each other intellectually to produce meaningful dialogue, in the end we have to understand that religious beliefs are deeply personal. Thus, it is our duty to at least tolerate each others' beliefs as a sign of respect. But we should all strive to help each other live what we believe is a meaningful life, whatever that may be to each individual.