J. Aaron Simmons is a professor of philosophy, a widely published author, a popular speaker, a trout fisherman, and a mountain biker. Simmons specializes in the philosophy of religion and political philosophy and is a past president of the Søren Kierkegaard Society USA. He has published hundreds of scholarly articles and many other books on philosophy. Simmons is an active public philosopher and runs the YouTube channel Philosophy for Where We Find Ourselves.
Below, Aaron shares five key insights from his new book, Camping with Kierkegaard: Loyalty as a way of lifeListen to the audio version – read by Aaron himself – in the Next Big Idea app.
1. The human condition is defined by vulnerability and relationality.
Being human is fundamentally about being vulnerable. We are finite beings. We will all die, no matter how successful we are. In addition, we experience loss and have to deal with tragedy on a regular basis.
Our embodiment marks us as fragile, flawed, and finite. But the good news is that because of this embodied vulnerability, we never experience our finitude in isolation. We are deeply relational. We are connected to others through bonds of emotional concern and moral responsibility. Because of our shared situation, we can hurt others, but we can also care for them. Life matters because that choice is real to us in small, everyday ways. Freedom is real, but so are the consequences.
2. Finitude is the condition of meaning.
It might seem that despair could threaten all our activities, since existence is finite. What is the point of doing anything if everything will eventually end? Well, ancient philosophers from Socrates and Seneca to contemporary thinkers like Jean-Paul Sartre and Maya Angelou all remind us that since we do not have infinite time, we must make the most of the time we have. In my book, I express this with the guiding question: What is worthy of your finiteness?
This is a question we all have to answer for ourselves, but our choices have a profound impact on others. So ask yourself: What is your time, attention, investment, effort, action, faith and devotion worth? What is your life itself worth?
“Since we do not have an infinite amount of time, it is crucial to make the most of the time we have.”
Our choices matter because they help shape the world for those who inherit it from us. Yes, finitude can be frustrating because it means we can’t handle everything. No matter what we choose, there is still a risk. But as David Kangas, my former professor and mentor, wrote to me in an email the day he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, “In the end, there is the uncontrollable, but without it we would be insignificant beings. So on with my day!” Finitude is not something to escape, but something to embrace. Life is not something to put off until tomorrow, but something to live in each moment.
3. Strive for loyalty, not success.
Once we begin to ask, “What is worthy of my finiteness?” we can realize the importance of changing our attitude toward life from one of success to one of faithfulness.
There is nothing wrong with being successful, but it can be a dangerous path to finding meaning because it looks for a “if only, then I will…logic. Maybe you, like me, have said something like this: “If I can just make it to the weekend, if I can just get that promotion, if I can just find the right relationship, if I can just get that house, that car, or that bank account, then I will be happy, then I will find joy, then I will have time to focus on what matters.”
If we get into the habit of thinking that some external achievement, social recognition or accomplishment is the prerequisite for our happiness, then we will live in such a way that happiness is always just around the corner, but never quite there. It’s like singer Donovan Woods says: Even though we always say that “next year” we will do the things we hope to do and be the person we hope to be, we never stop and realize that “there is no next year.” There is always only today.
The problem with being success-focused is that it turns us into people who are defined by success and destroyed by failure. When we embrace fidelity as a lifestyle, we better understand that the goal is not to catch a trophy trout (although that’s cool), but to be someone who keeps fishing. It’s about living a life, not just hanging trophies on the wall.
It is important that I define Believe not as a religious idea, but as an existential one. Faith is simply “risk with direction.” It’s about embracing the risk of our vulnerable existence – that is, whatever you do, you could have chosen differently – and yet living purposefully in a direction you choose to take to be worthy of your finitude. As all mountain bikers know, when you turn onto a trail, “just let go!” The same is true in life.
4. Don’t be an asshole!
A success-oriented life can easily lead us to become what Aaron James calls an “asshole.” The asshole believes that his success makes him better than others and that his achievements define his identity. He can’t handle criticism because he needs to be sure of his own rightness. Assholes aren’t just annoying people; they’re fundamentally out of tune with their humanity. They deny their vulnerability and minimize their ability to relate. It sucks to go camping with assholes!
“The things you give importance to today determine what will be important tomorrow.”
Living faithfully is the best way to avoid becoming an asshole, because the goal of life is not to “be” something once and for all, but to “become” someone we are happy with over and over again. The problem (and the exciting promise) is that we already are who we are becoming. In other words, because “there is no next year,” it is crucial that we not I believe that success makes us what we want to be. Only by being who we want to be right here and now can we ever live true to the hope that defines us.
What you make important today determines what will be important tomorrow. Aristotle expresses this by saying that our habits determine our identity. Similarly, Augustine comes to the same idea when he states that what we love determines our self. In Camping with KierkegaardI’m talking about the theme song of the show Cheers and emphasize the importance of finding a place where “everyone knows your name.” When we value the importance of living faithfully, we actively “name” ourselves as how we want to be known. Hopefully, you will be known as someone others want to have around in the mountains, at the office, and as a friend.
5. Cultivate humility, hospitality and gratitude.
What behaviors characterize the lives of those who are committed to a life of faith? I think there are three key virtues that we learn along the paths of life and literally by spending time in the mountains. The first is well expressed by contemporary philosopher Kendrick Lamar: “Sit down and be humble.”
Socrates describes humility – awareness of one’s limitations – as the key to finding the truth. If you assume you have everything figured out, you have no reason to continue thinking well. Only when we are humble enough to recognize that we still have much to learn can we develop the appropriate awareness that a commitment to truth requires. If you are not humble in the mountains, you will get hurt or worse. Arrogance on the way will not end well.
As we develop humility, we should also recognize that hospitality is required. Others may know what we don’t. Showing hospitality is a way of being open to encouragement and criticism. As my wife and I said to each other at our wedding, “Come, let us walk together and talk as we go.” This invitation helps overcome the division and hostility that result from arrogance.
When we live a life of faith marked by humility and hospitality, we can value gratitude not as an occasional emotion but as a constant lens through which we view the world. Sometimes it rains on a camping trip, you fall on the descent, or the fish don’t bite, but you are here where you want to be. Joy is possible because, as philosopher Nick Riggle puts it, “that beauty” of the present moment, of life itself, remains present. Ultimately, may we all, like Anne Lamott, be humble enough to say “help,” hospitable enough to say “thank you,” and grateful enough to live each day with a profound expression of “wow.”
To listen to the audio version read by author Aaron Simmons, download the Next Big Idea app today:
