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I would think purposeful activity occurred first in human development. Early humans did not have leisure time to develop purposeless activities. They were too busy surviving. What was purposeful pertained to the daily business of sustaining life.
There is also purposeful leisure activities versus purposeless activities. You see that in something simple like going out and playing softball game with friends versus sitting at home playing a softball game on a game console. You get exercise and camaraderie from being with friends and what do you get sitting on the couch?
Don't you think purposeful activity occurred before human beings existed? Unlike inorganic compounds even a simple cell acts purposefully (although it is unaware of its goals).
Do you mean everything (including inanimate objects) is purposeful? If not the problem remains as to how purposeless particles became goal-seeking organisms.
In the Universe, there is a powerful natural impulse to assemble and create order. You can see this from the transfixing symmetry of snowflakes, to the comely rings of Saturn, and to the spiral arms of our galaxies. Crystals, for example, although not alive, can do a number of lifelike things - replicate, respond to environmental stimuli, and take on a patterned complexity.
So, when I look around, I see order – not chaos. To me, order is purposeful. I just don't know the purpose - YET. Life has nothing to do with it.
I agree with you that order and purpose are basic facts of existence but I don't think crystals act purposefully. They function mechanically but living organisms are flexible and overcome obstacles in pursuing their goals. So the question remains as to how they acquired this ability.
In terms of "purpose", I question whether living organisms operate any differently than non organic material does. You think crystals don't act purposefully. I disagree. Additionally, you assume living organisms have goals rather than purposes. I disagree again.
Furthermore, if the purpose you're talking about demands life to effect it, then it isn't the same purpose that I'm talking about. The purpose I'm talking about doesn't require life or God.
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