there is no cosmic purpose, then making reality better is mostly a negative project, in the sense that it largely consists in removing bad stuff, such as suffering and injustice. Removing suffering and injustice is incredibly important, and one can live a highly meaningful life as a humanist dedicated to this end. But if cosmic purpose is still unfolding, and if our actions can contribute—even in some small way—to bringing about the next stage of cosmic evolution, then the potential consequences of our actions are so much greater than they would be in the absence of cosmic purpose. We may be
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