  This argument rests on several controversial assumptions. For one, the argument assumes that a divine conferral of purpose is necessary for one’s life to have meaning and purpose. Presumably, the idea is that a self-conferral of purpose would be arbitrary and limited by human ignorance or uncertainty as to what is genuinely worthwhile. A conferral by God, however, would not be arbitrary as God would confer only a purpose that is objectively worthwhile. Another assumption is that objective meaning in life requires immorality. One might respond that this assumption neglects that increasing the balance of objective value (good) to disvalue (evil) can make a real difference in the world, even if one lacks immortality. The actions of Lincoln made the world better than it would have been absent those actions. Arguably, then, Lincoln’s life had meaning. More generally, the achievement of good works, or the mitigation of suffering and pain, might be ways that an objective positive difference results from one’s actions. Here is where the stipulation of immortality is supposed to play a role – if one knows that one’s achievements are like footprints on a beach, which the tides of time will eventually sweep away, a sense of futility is, one might argue, unavoidable, whether we admit this or not. Immortality is supposed to ensure, along with the divine conferral of purpose, a permanence which evades futility. Finally, note that premise (31) is particularly contentious, as some would argue that the problem of evil, the problem of divine hiddenness, or the lack of evidence supporting Theism, for examples, puts Theism beyond the rational pale.