What is the purpose of man?

Answer 1

To glorify God and enjoy Him forever!

A: 2

Man has absolutely no purpose because all the plants and creatures on this planet would be better off without the parasite called man. Man adds no value to the balance and welfare of nature. Man destroys nature to fuel his insatiable greed and selfishness. He creates garbage from his wanton extravagance and he pollutes the environment with all his effluents and toxins.

A: 3

From a Latter-day Saint Christian [Mormon] viewpoint:

The purpose, from both - Man's and God's viewpoint - is to become like our father in Heaven.

God organized this earth so that He could bring about the immortality and eternal life of His (already existent) spirit children - us. We could not be proved nor could we be saved in heaven while living with God. We had to prove ourselves as independents to be worthy of reward and glory. Also, as mere spirits only, we could see that God, Our Father, had an Immortal, Glorified Body of flesh and bone. And we wanted to be like our Father. Without such a body, we cannot experience a "Fullness of Joy": spirits only are extremely limited in the measure of Joy they can attain to.

So God created a physical earth whereon we could receive bodies and learn to control and grow our bodies, and learn to choose the right when not in His presence - to prove ourselves, you might say.

If we prove worthy over this [granted] lifetime ... if we repent and learn to grow and "overcome" - both physically and spiritually, we will prove ourselves worthy to return into His presence Forever - not just as spirits, but as complete Beings, progressed - worthy to receive Immortal glorified bodies - as Jesus: "Joint heirs with Christ in all that the Father hath" (as promised in the Book of Romans). As we call upon God to forgive us and put into effect, in our lives, the death, atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ, being literal spirit children of God, we can become like Him, as we also become clean before God.

The Creation and placement of the earth forms a major part of this whole process for us to progress and become like our dear Father in Heaven.

In esence, man is here to progress to become more like God in character - to develop faith when away from His presence, to learn to keep the commandments and to gain physical bodies.