Most of our lives are spent thinking - either consciously or not - about what we want, and how to go about getting it. It's an endless cycle of wanting and getting, or wanting and not getting and wanting some more. Acquire and advance. Move from one desire to another: objects, status, recognition, feelings, control, perspective, knowledge. Wanting, wanting, wanting. The key moment is when something gives us pause, and we can see this happening, just for a moment, in a detached, objective way.
And we feel... Disgust? Maybe boredom? I'm not sure, but we see how silly and generally pointless this is. And, if we're lucky, we put a little thought into finding a better way to think, just any other way to look at the world than through the filter of desire and need. That small moment of enlightened perspective may be the beginning of real morality, spinning out from thought to action. A human being is an engine; but an engine of what? The purpose depends on the program, and pervasive crimethink keeps us from acheiving moral ends. Perspective is our weapon, applying self-analysis to root out thought crime and replace it with something else.
Though you are likely to disagree, I think that's one of the great things we have in religion.
ReplyDeleteGiving us pause, thinking of others. Stopping briefly the cycle of desire and need.
Even if you think it's all bunk, I'd say that Christianity in it's intended form at least has that effect.
No, I agree with that, to a great degree. Religion prompts us to look at our selves, our inner thoughts and motivations from a "God's eye view", and that can be (if the person recieves the message) very helpful to self-awareness. My only problem with it is that the special perspective comes at a cost, when it's a religious flavor. It's got some extra baggage that can makes things complicated.
ReplyDeleteStill, if offered a choice between no self-awareness moment, or a religious one, I'd obviously take the religious one. Either for myself or for someone else.
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ReplyDeleteFair enough.
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