Have you ever wondered why we bother to preserve the past? Why do we spend money on museums, or get angry when people damage ancient historical sites? Surely if atheism is true, all that matters is the future — that our DNA is passed on to future generations. Yet instinctively we know that’s shallow, that the past matters, that culture matters, and that human life (past, present, and future) matters. Could that be a clue to a bigger story?