" 'Salvation' and 'redemption' are terms not often met in Jewish thought. They are much more prominent in Christian theology; Jews for the most part don't see themselves in a condition from which they must be saved or redeemed. But if we take Salvation to mean the goal and end-purpose of life, there is a Jewish equivalent, which is not Salvation — rescue from a dire situation — but Fulfillment, making the most of an incomplete situation. Jews of an earlier age spoke of "meriting a place in Olam Haba, the world to come," as the goal to which their lives were dedicated. Every deed was to be evaluated in the light of whether it increased or decreased the chances of meriting that reward. We can call our own sense of where we are headed, our understanding of Fulfillment as the purpose of our lives, another sort of Olam Haba, world to come. As we understand it, the purpose of life is:
"To realize all of our potential as human beings and develop those God-like qualities which are latent in each of us.
"To live in such a way that our influence and our memory will live on beyond our own time.
"To leave the world a better, happier, more human place for having been part of it.
"To live thusly is to find Fulfillment or Salvation, the purpose of our lives."
