Existentialism in the Mountains: Camping with Kierkegaard & the Meaning of Life

Thu, 20 Nov, 2025 at 07:00 pm UTC-06:00

Monday Night Brewing - Social Club (Monday Night Brewing Social Club) | Birmingham

Discourse BHAM
Publisher/HostDiscourse BHAM
Existentialism in the Mountains: Camping with Kierkegaard & the Meaning of Life
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We're Discourse BHAM, a pop-up public lecture series bringing the most interesting academic talks to Birmingham's bars & breweries. It's like a college class, but there's drinking.
Tickets are $15. Seating is limited.
In this talk, Dr. J. Aaron Simmons will take us on a trip to the mountains to reflect on the meaning of life. In a world too often defined by a quest for “success” that leaves us empty, alone, and anxious, Simmons seeks “faithfulness“ outdoors with thinkers and artists from Aristotle to Kierkegaard, Sartre to Anne Lamott, and Kendrick Lamar to Donovan Woods. Simmons invites us to rethink what it means to make choices, take risks, be alone and silent while cultivating friendships, and to find our calling by facing our vulnerability. In the end, Simmons shows that faithfulness is more than a religious concept. It is about living a life of risk with direction.
J. Aaron Simmons (Ph.D. Vanderbilt) is a Professor of Philosophy at Furman University. Specializing in philosophy of religion and political philosophy, he is a widely sought after speaker, an award winning teacher, and an internationally recognized author. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books, including Camping with Kierkegaard, God and the Other, and The New Phenomenology. Additionally, Simmons is an active public philosopher and writes regularly for his Substack, “Philosophy in the Wild,” and hosts a YouTube channel, “Philosophy for Where We Find Ourselves.” He is the former President of the Søren Kierkegaard Society (USA), and also the former President of the South Carolina Society for Philosophy. An active mountain biker, trout fisherman, and outdoor enthusiast, Simmons is currently working on a new book entitled How Not To Give Up.
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Monday Night Brewing - Social Club (Monday Night Brewing Social Club), 14 12th Street S,Birmingham, Alabama, United States

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