Mystical Atheism, Absurdity, and Meaningful Living
Topoi June 25, 2026 Drew Chastain
In The Myth of Sisyphus, Albert Camus criticizes mysticism as a form of 'philosophical suicide' that escapes absurdity through faith. Brook Ziporyn's Experiments in Mystical Atheism proposes an 'Emulative Atheism' that embraces reality's purposelessness rather than compensating for it, as Camus and Sartre do. This essay argues that Emulative Atheism better supports meaning in life than Compensatory Atheism and is not philosophical suicide. However, a minor critique notes Ziporyn's abstract metaphysics conflicts with everyday lucidity. David Cooper's Daoist 'sense of mystery' within ordinary experience enhances the meaningfulness derived from Ziporyn's mystical atheism.