MtM 47 - Anchored to a higher purpose

By sidelining God as irrelevant and ineffective, today’s hedonistic culture exacerbates the keen ethical distress that since antiquity prompted man’s dialogue with the divine. In man there is a “Centre of Gravity” that must be anchored to a higher purpose and, when God is neglected, pulls like a magnet towards greed, lust and power. These emerge as active forces that misdirect mankind towards pleasure-seeking – promising greater happiness, yet failing to really satisfy. Enslaved by materialism, man abandons the spiritual link with who created him and loses his bearings. Pleasure, possessions and power do not address adequately man’s awe before the infinitely great, or his wonderment before horizons that surpass human understanding. As man is held captive by endless wishes and desires, he confronts a calamity greater than earthquakes, namely, spiritual dryness. This torment hampers potential and withers strengths and faculties.

Adrift without a bolder, higher meaning, human life becomes a missed opportunity: man drowns in regret for a past that was not, in sorrow for his present emptiness, and in sadness about his forlorn future. Instant gratification fails to fulfill man’s longing for something more profound, thus the present creates more remorse that ensnare the future. The result of exalting man as the ultimate purpose of reality, while censuring spiritual matters, is a miserable emptiness. Though the spiritual realm exists, it ceased to inspire man when he cut himself off from eternity to direct his interest solely towards what is material, sensory and unfulfilling. Once God is abandoned and man’s centre of gravity fails, then everything comes apart, crumbles and disintegrates. Modern man has no concern for “eternity”, which has no place among the cares of his heart. He lost this yearning when he acquired the false conviction that only his earthly existence matters.

When straddling the line that separates Darkness and Light, there are only two choices: either you turn your back to darkness and welcome the light, or you turn your back to light and plunge into darkness. When we shut our eyes to light, shielding them in the elbow crease, we renounce hope and the quest for Truth that elevates us upwards. By becoming insensitive and cynical, we allow the rulers of the world to smite idealism and entomb our dreams – and then the Soul sleeps a deep sleep, a sleep of death. Chronic diseases are never quickly healed. The only cure for this emptiness is “making community” with every person around us. This must be done with sincere friendship and genuine solidarity. There, we will find love and acceptance. There, we will abolish estrangement and renew a promise that springs from the soul to truly engage others. There, we will appreciate that to give others complete sympathy, we must first love their destiny