The Subtle Temptation to Self-Fascination
The Subtle Temptation to Self-Fascination
Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent – March 27, 2020
In times of crisis, when the abnormal is the new normal, we can be tempted to look after our own self and those close to us, to the exclusion of “others.” Hoarding goods – so I have more than enough, whether you have enough or not – is simply one expression of the human desire to preserve self.
I imagine we have all felt the urge to “look out for number one” as the coronavirus threat has grown.
To be fully human means not to be invested solely in self-interest. The fully human life sees oneself in the context of the human family. We live in a web of relationships that reach much farther than we can see. We have responsibilities not just for ourselves and our near circle of relationships . . . we share responsibility for one another.
These are Esther de Waal’s words:
But these vows also carry an even greater significance. While they help me to be human they also at the same time point me away from myself, away from that subtle temptation of self-fascination and self-discovery. They challenge any spirituality from becoming yet one more expression of the contemporary obsession with the self, with self-awareness, with self-fulfillment. Instead they point me to Christ.
Christ the Rock on which I build.
Christ the Way I follow.
Christ the Word I hear.
[Esther de Waal, Living with Contradiction: An Introduction to Benedictine Spirituality (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse Publishing, 1989), 1997.]
For Reflection:
o For me to live fully as a human, I must build my life on a Rock. During these tense days, I realize the temptation to build my life on many of foundations – fear, anxiety, health issues, and so on.
o When I build my life on the Rock, that act in itself, takes me out of myself.
o What parts of my life feel solid right now? What parts feel shaky? I bring this to God in my prayer.
Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent – March 27, 2020
In times of crisis, when the abnormal is the new normal, we can be tempted to look after our own self and those close to us, to the exclusion of “others.” Hoarding goods – so I have more than enough, whether you have enough or not – is simply one expression of the human desire to preserve self.
I imagine we have all felt the urge to “look out for number one” as the coronavirus threat has grown.
To be fully human means not to be invested solely in self-interest. The fully human life sees oneself in the context of the human family. We live in a web of relationships that reach much farther than we can see. We have responsibilities not just for ourselves and our near circle of relationships . . . we share responsibility for one another.
These are Esther de Waal’s words:
But these vows also carry an even greater significance. While they help me to be human they also at the same time point me away from myself, away from that subtle temptation of self-fascination and self-discovery. They challenge any spirituality from becoming yet one more expression of the contemporary obsession with the self, with self-awareness, with self-fulfillment. Instead they point me to Christ.
Christ the Rock on which I build.
Christ the Way I follow.
Christ the Word I hear.
[Esther de Waal, Living with Contradiction: An Introduction to Benedictine Spirituality (Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse Publishing, 1989), 1997.]
For Reflection:
o For me to live fully as a human, I must build my life on a Rock. During these tense days, I realize the temptation to build my life on many of foundations – fear, anxiety, health issues, and so on.
o When I build my life on the Rock, that act in itself, takes me out of myself.
o What parts of my life feel solid right now? What parts feel shaky? I bring this to God in my prayer.
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