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Vanity of Vanities: Meaninglessness from Ecclesiastes to Today
- Pacific Time Virtual Program
$72.00
This course explores the urgent, ancient question of meaning, purpose, and futility through the lens of "vanity"—both as biblical emptiness (fleeting as breath) and modern self-obsession.
Starting with the Book of Ecclesiastes, we will study scripture, novels, essays, and films that ask: what makes life meaningful amidst crisis, death, and the absurd? This inquiry feels especially urgent in our age of social media, AI, and climate emergency.
We will study 20th and 21st-century texts that wrestle with existence's toughest puzzles: identity, life and death, gender, queer existence, oppression, and the gap between everyday life and higher significance. We'll examine how these writers balance hope against despair, and learn to distinguish genuine insight from empty platitudes by connecting texts to our own lives. The class format combines lecture, student-led discussions, and presentations.
Who this is for: Anyone curious about questions of meaning, purpose, and life’s challenges, and interested in exploring these themes through scripture, novels, and essays.
What you'll leave with: New insights into how writers wrestle with existence, tools for thinking critically about life’s big questions, and a deeper understanding of how texts connect to your own experiences.
Four Mondays: March 2, 9, 16 and 23 at 6:30–8pm Pacific
Please note: This program will not be recorded.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Zoom link/details will be emailed to you once you complete registration, one week before your program AND the day before. Please keep this information in a location easy to find.
How many people would you like to register for this program?
| Vanity of Vanities | $72.00 18 available | |
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