Bernadette Roberts
I have never advocated the idea of ‘getting rid of self’ - why? Because no one knows what self is – until it is gone. Until people get to the Unitive State (what some call their ‘True Self’), all they know of self has been what Jung called the "ego-self". But who has ever advocated getting rid of the ‘True self’ and its union with God? NOBODY! No human being can go beyond this Unitive State or could even think about doing so. Going beyond one’s (self’s) union with God – in this life at least – is solely God’s doing for God’s own purposes.
Some food for thought: Some time ago, listening to the quiz show Jeopardy, one of the questions was “What is the name of the German psychiatrist who had a patient say to him, ‘Doctor, I have no self’"? No one on the panel knew the answer - which turned out to be Doctor Alzheimer. For people who want to get rid of their ‘self’, at least Alzheimers might be one way to go.
What is Self? Downloadable paper from her site
Patricia, this is brilliant, apt and timely; and it gives me a grounding for much heretofore confusion on this very point. The comparison of no-self to Alzheimer's gives me a dose of reality, too! Thank you. Lisa
ReplyDeleteThanks Lisa, I'm glad if it was helpful. There is further helpful quote on this subject, coming on Friday. God does not need our help to do God's work.
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