The obsessional component of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is frequently framed as a form of hyperactive pattern recognition; a threat-detection system operating beyond its adaptive range. This commentary examines that framing, arguing that while it has heuristic and psychoeducational value, it is mechanistically incomplete and philosophically misleading. Drawing on neurocognitive models of error monitoring, phenomenological accounts of intrusive cognition, and the philosophical literature on intentionality and meaning-making, the piece argues that the defining feature of obsessional experience is not the over-detection of threat per se, but the structural failure to achieve cognitive closure, an inability to file experience as resolved. This reframing has implications for clinical explanation, therapeutic alliance, and the theoretical grounding of exposure-based interventions. Furthermore, it parallels current research in predictive coding and active inference, making this a pivotal moment to update the foundational models shared with clinicians and patients.