About us
The Existentialist Society is for those who question whether life has a meaning and a purpose. And for those who despairingly ponder whether one can live without self-deception or without hedonistic escapism. Yet who, despite the anguish of life's futility and meaninglessness, still seek purpose and an authentic existence.
The Existentialist Society is for those who are fascinated by the ideas of Simone de Beauvoir, Nicholas Berdyaev, Martin Buber, Rudolph Bultmann, Albert Camus, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Viktor Frankl, Martin Heidegger, Karl Jaspers, Franz Kafka, Nikos Kazantzakis, Soren Kierkegaard, R.D. Laing, Gabriel Marcel, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Max Stirner, Paul Tillich, Colin Wilson, etc.
'Existentialism' is an umbrella term covering diverse and often conflicting schools of thought. Consequently we are not agreed on who or what is an Existentialist; we simply agree to disagree.
Inspired by the Student Revolt of the late Sixties, the Existentialist Society commenced in 1971.
LECTURES take place at 2pm on the first Saturday of the month.
All are welcome. Participation is free.
NOTE: Due to the pandemic, our physical in-person Meetups and lectures were cancelled. All the lectures are now online via Zoom. This enables participation by those interstate and overseas.
Following our monthly lecture, during the extended question and discussion period, additional comments are encouraged from those of our participants who might have more knowledge than the speaker on particular aspects of the topic, as well as from those who have an alternative viewpoint.
Sometimes our lecture topics have no direct bearing upon Existentialism. The speakers on such topics may or may not be conversant with Existentialism.
The Existentialist Society has no formal membership, so there is no membership fee.
See the Existentialist Society website for future lectures, past transcripts and videos etc: www.existentialistmelbourne.org
Our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@existentialistsociety8453
Facebook: Please feel free to comment on the lectures: -
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100066617594761
Upcoming events
6
Morals, Metaphysics and Naturalism.
·OnlineOnlineEXISTENTIALIST SOCIETY - Melbourne, Australia.
An online presentation, followed by discussion.
All viewpoints welcome.Leslie Allan will present the topic and lead the discussion.
BIO: Leslie Allan studied history and philosophy at La Trobe University in Melbourne, where he was awarded the David Hume Prize for outstanding achievement in philosophy.
His professional career spanned learning and development, project management and workplace change management.Now retired, Leslie devotes his time to writing, speaking and humanist advocacy. He previously served as vice-president and secretary of Humanists Victoria and is currently a non-executive director of Humanists Australia.
Drawing on a long-standing concern with the influence of religion on individuals and society, in 2018 he founded Australia's first Ex-Religious Support Network. Leslie’s writings, along with recorded talks on philosophy, religion and humanism, are available at his website: Rational Realm
The Zoom Link will appear for those who RSVP.
Meeting ID: 832 2887 8258 - - Passcode: 606541
Don't be deterred if you are late - Join the event at any time.33 attendees
Did Christianity cause the decline and fall of the Western Roman Empire?
·OnlineOnlineAGNOSTICS GROUP - Melbourne, Australia.
Some of us are participating in their online event.
Arielle MacLeary will present the topic and lead the discussion.
"DID CHRISTIANITY CAUSE THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE WESTERN ROMAN EMPIRE?"
~ This debate, popularized by Enlightenment historian Edward Gibbon, centers on whether Christian theology—by promoting pacifism, shifting focus to the afterlife, and diverting civic wealth—fatally undermined the martial and civic resilience of the Western Roman Empire.
The innocence or guilt of Christianity and the part it played in the decline and fall of the Western Roman Empire will be debated. Then we can have a vote by the attendees at the end of the debate to determine innocence or guilt ~
The Agnostics Group discusses the pros and cons of Agnosticism.
They welcome ALL viewpoints, including criticism of Agnosticism.The Agnostics Group's introductory statement:
Agnosticism, Theism and Atheism.
Agnosticism is about knowledge — an agnostic takes the position that they don't know if any gods exist or not, perhaps that they cannot know if any gods exist or not, and in some cases that no human being can possibly know if any gods exist or not. Saying "I don't know" can indeed be a reasonable answer to the question of what one knows.
But neither atheism nor theism address the question of what one knows. They address the question of what one believes.
Theists believe in the existence of at least one god of some sort and atheists don't. That's it, that's all there is to mere theism and mere atheism.
However, both atheists and theists may be agnostics as well. Whether one believes or disbelieves, one may do so in the context of not claiming to know one way or the other.
In other words, NOT CLAIMING CERTAINTY.Agnostics Group Facebook
The ZOOM Link will appear for those who RSVP.
Don't be deterred if you are late.
Join the event at any time.
Meeting ID: 824 5372 4964 - - Passcode: 432750Existentialist Society:
Website - - YouTube - - Weekly Zoom Meetups21 attendees
Zarathustra's Reformation of the Proto-Vedic Religion
·OnlineOnlineEXISTENTIALIST MEETUP - Melbourne, Australia.
History of Religion: Our monthly online presentation.
The presentations are followed by questions, comments and discussion. All viewpoints welcome.
Early Religion: An Alternative History
What do the historians and archaeologists think of the veracity of religious legends? Legends are an amalgamation of history and mythology. But how much of each?"ZARATHUSTRA'S REFORMATION OF THE PROTO-VEDIC RELIGION."
What was this primeval Proto-Vedic Religion?
It was introduced into India in the 16th Century BC by the invading Indo-Iranian nomadic cattle-herders from the steppe-lands north of the Caspian and Aral Seas.
Meanwhile, back in Uzbekistan and Bactria, circa 1400 BC, Zarathustra (Zoroaster) reformed that proto-Vedic religion.We have very little history of this proto-Vedic religion. So, in order to find clues to it, the scholars have had to search through the 'Veda', the Hindu sacred literature, as well as the 'Avesta', the Zoroastrian sacred literature.
They discovered that, for the first time in history, circa 2000 BC, ancient humans had begun to believe that rather than the afterlife being spent in the traditional nether-world, their elites were to spend the afterlife with the gods up above the sky in sunlit Paradise. Consequently, the nether-world gradually took an increasingly negative hue, until it became the Hell we now know in mainstream Christianity.
A further startling development was these ancients' realisation that the soul alone could not enjoy the pleasures of Paradise without having a body with which to have physical sensations.
We will look at the report on the scholars' search in the book by the late Mary Boyce, Professor of Iranian Studies, University of London:
"Zoroastrians: Their religious beliefs and practices"YouTube documentary on Zoroastrianism:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFRNvbpqILQDavid Miller will present the topic and lead the discussion.
The Zoom link will appear for those who RSVP.
Meeting ID: 823 7011 3683 - - Passcode: 918870
Don't be deterred if you are late - Join the event at any time.16 attendees
Pagan influences on 1st Century Christianity.
·OnlineOnlineSEA OF FAITH IN AUSTRALIA (SoFiA) - Melbourne.
Some of us are participating in SoFiA's online event.
"PAGAN INFLUENCES ON 1st CENTURY CHRISTIANITY".
John Noack (Carl Jung Society) will present the topic and lead the discussion.
I have recently re-read the book “Mary Magdalene: The Woman whom Jesus Loved” by Robin Griffiths-Jones. This book deals with both the flesh-and blood Mary Magdalene, who was humanized as a devoted follower of Jesus and also the celestial and meta-physical Sophia, who expresses and represents the feminine principle.
In contrast to Science which always seeks empirical facts, those persons in quest of a Spirituality of experiential fulfilment, which will nourish their Psyches or Souls, will find that G-O-D can imply for them the exploration of ”Ground of Divinity” in the vast Cosmos and in their Souls or Psyches. This involves a more subjective, interpretative, symbol-based and metaphorically-expressed language, where “God” can become the Integrating Self.
Thus, it has often been noted that when humanity emerged and experienced the light and the life-bestowing heat from the sky-based solar disk, the Sun was personified and interpreted as the Lord of the Heavens and the Ruler of the Cosmos. The early Hebrews kept such solar features in their celestial deity “Yahweh” and the first-century Jewish Christians appear to have done the same with their “Yahweh Saves”, referred to as Joshua or Jesus.
Mark’s Gospel clearly presents earthly depictions of a personified Godman, based on the annual seasonal and zodiacal cycle of the Sun. This solar aspect is prominent in both the Transfiguration Story at Mt Hermon north of Galilee and in the later Conversion of Paul at the same location
The ZOOM LINK will appear on this page for those who RSVP.
Meeting ID: 842 6352 5541 - - Passcode: 291023Don't be deterred if you are late.
Join the event at any time.~ SoFiA promotes the open exploration of religion, spirituality and the search for meaning. They welcome ALL viewpoints, including Atheism.~
Facebook: 'Sofiatalk' - Please join their ongoing discussions.
20 attendees
Past events
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