This will be an online Zoom meeting. Please RSVP on our Meetup for this event to get access to the Zoom link. See our online meeting instructions at: https://torontooasis.org/online-meeting-instructions
Our program will run from 11 am to 12:30 pm and you can join in to the meeting starting at 10:45 am for our open social. Followed by an extended discussion for a half hour. Volunteers please join by 10:30 am.
How do non-religious people grapple with the idea and reality of death and dying? In the face of the death of people in our lives, and our own looming death, how do we stave off nihilistic thinking: if we are all going to be snuffed out of existence, why does anything matter?
Religion has a clear answer to this question, namely, that we are not snuffed out of existence, that there is an afterlife. Many religions actually go further and claim that not only is there an afterlife, but that we will be judged in the afterlife by God for how we spend our time in this life. So, everything matters – not only do we have to survive until the natural end of our lives, we must do good, be good while we are alive.
For those of us who don’t believe in an afterlife and any religion, what reason do we have to care about anything? What narratives and reasons do secular people have to explain to themselves why anything matters?
Our featured speaker on this topic will be Laval Martin. Laval is a corporate trainer on topics such as resilience, conflict resolution, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness (https://www.lavalmartinconsulting.com/). Holding a Master of Social Work degree, he also provides psychotherapy and relationship therapy (http://www.wisemindtoronto.com/).
Additionally, Laval has been hosting a monthly Beer and Philosophy Night since May, 2014. Meetup link to Laval’s Beer & Philosophy group: https://www.meetup.com/Beer-and-Philosophy-Night/
Laval has practiced various martial arts and self-defense systems since 2001, with a focus on avoiding and de-escalating conflict. He is a full-instructor of Senshido and also holds an instructor certification with Safe International.
Please RSVP on meetup:
https://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Oasis/events/bhgwksyccnbfb/
Looking forward to seeing familiar faces and perhaps some new ones!
This meeting has been recorded: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1D_EQ-hDBCUkSVFj91uAZKGiO4iwKLWgp/view?usp=sharing