Our world is made up of meaning. When we were young this was clear to us but as we’ve grown older we’ve lost our ability to see. Children fall for poorly performed coin tricks because to them the world really is magic. Fish breathe water, caterpillars become butterflies, and tiny little acorns can become great big trees. Our “adult intellect” hasn’t found that the world isn’t magical, our familiarity with its magic has simply impaired our vision. Children call it their imagination, the romantic poets might have called it their minds eye, but whatever you choose to call it, it is only that organ that will let you find meaning in your life.
“In the beginning was the Logos […] All things were made through him and without him was not anything made that was made.”1
The Greek word Logos can be understood here as “true meaning”. The claim, then, is that the cosmos was created through true meaning. And In the same way that a tree is made up of wood that can be harvested and put to use, all of creation is made up of meaning that can also be harvested and put to use. You just need to learn to see again.
Those that suffer from a severe case of this blindness might hear this and think “‘Oh, I just need to learn to see again’ do I?” Yes! The imagination is the only thing that allows us to find meaning in the world. This is important because without meaning, life is meaning-less, and all hope is lost. To say anxiety, depression, and despair are on the rise is an understatement. They’ve swept through modernity like a raging wildfire and depression has damaged (and destroyed) people in much the same way fire would a dry forest.
The lasting cure can’t be swallowed. The remedy is to look closely into the face of the Logos.
“Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”2
This does not mean that in order to dwell with meaning you must be immature, or foolish, or naive; it means that in order to dwell with meaning you must begin to look around and see the magic again.
The ESV Study Bible: English Standard Version. John 1 & 3. Crossway Bibles, 2008.
The ESV Study Bible: English Standard Version. Matt. 18.3. Crossway Bibles, 2008.
I was just saying recently how much I love having a baby in our lives again because they make the smallest most insignificant things magical and exciting.
This reminds me of Josef Pieper's 'Only The Lover Sings: Art and Contemplation.' His argument goes a bit further to the controversial point of saying if we do not see in this manner we, in essence, forfeit our humanity. It is compelling stuff.