The word Hedonism is not in wide use in our culture. I had to look up the definition just to verify I was thinking of the right term. According to Merriam-Webster.com hedonism is “the doctrine that pleasure or happiness is the sole or chief good in life.” Though the word is rarely used, this dangerous philosophy is more prevalent in our nation than all the pizza places, coffee shops, and burger restaurants combined. In other words, it is everywhere. On every block and in every house. It springs from the miscalculations of every human heart. Every broken person wants to live well and be happy, but doesn’t know how. When we look within for answers, all we find is hedonism.
How should we live? It is a valid question, but when I detach my morality from a higher authority, I am adrift in a sea of choices. I look to my hedonistic desires for guidance and ask, “What will give me pleasure today? What do I want most?” Desires and appetites are always in flux, not reliable. I will be tossed and turned in the currents of life and ultimately fail to satisfy myself or live well. Where are the charts to guide my ship? I need stars to navigate by. Pleasure-seeking provides no constants to base my choices on.
This is a huge problem, but for some reason, I prefer to chuck the GPS unit out the window and steer my life by feel. Pleasure and suffering become my only guides. Sailing like this will inevitably lead to disaster. Let’s imagine how it will go when I let the prevailing winds of pleasure and pain take me wherever they wish.
