I just finished reading a beautiful book by C.S. Lewis titled "The Great Divorce." As always Lewis has found a way to bring me back to God. Those of you who have read C.S. Lewis will know what I mean. His words and ideas are dripping with truth. This is an excerpt from "The Great Divorce" that weighed on me in the way that only truth can.
"That's what we all find when we reach this country, that we've all been wrong. That's the great joke. There's no need to go on pretending one was right. After that, we begin living."
- C.S. Lewis, The Great Divorce
It seems as though that's what we're all doing at times. Pretending we're right. Pretending the solitude that comes from ostracizing others to maintain our egos is worth it. Lewis refers to pride as the greatest sin. Although sins are all equal, I think Lewis means greatest in the sense that pride is the root evil behind so many other sins. To stop pretending starts with being honest with oneself, so that we can be honest with others. So I start the daunting task of being aware of my own flaws and brokenness, before judging others. This is day one.
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Well said.
ReplyDeleteHumans seem to have a creepy love affair with providing answers for things. Every question must have a solution. World problems, recessions, identities. Everything must be good or bad and subsequently championed or defamed and destroyed. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. Depending on the circumstance, it may carry much meaning. Our certainty only gets us in trouble when, once we have our answer, we assert it violently. When we are so certain we know the way things are, we close ourselves off.
I am personally done looking for answers. I'm out for approaches. I am able to love all approaches to religion and philosophy and certain ideologies (or at least those that fall within my moral scope) in their own way, because I know that I don't know. And no one else does either. Simple as that. I am sitting back, watching life like a film.
That is, if I understood your point correctly.
(Anyways, thanks for the post. I look forward to reading your upcoming writing. I anticipate some great prose.)