Overheard at Booth 5

Listen to this passage I'm reading in this book I found the other day, it goes - lemme see . . .

"and the paranoic truth that we as humans refuse to recognize is the infinite and intricate limitations of our own humanity, both in the infinite capacity for evil and the finite opportunities for good. We turn to religion to both debase ourselves at the same time we try to sanctify ourselves, and we are left with a schizophrenic narcissistic self-loathing.

"On the other hand, to ignore religion and its precepts that assist on keeping our focus truly on God, we eventually open our eyes to see nothing but ourselves. Beyond narcissism, this choice leads us directly into megalomania, wherein the world exists solely to satisfy every whim. Our thought becomes the mind of God, and every word that sprays from our lips is the breath that moves across oceans and creates worlds.

"So, where is the healthy balance? Where is the healthy balance? I think we can find it in the words of Jesus Christ, when He said, 'Love God with all your soul, heart, strength, and mind' because by doing this, we are so fully concentrating on that which is the dawnspring and the final closing of all creation, that we have no time for the selfishness that creeps into both the following of religion and the following of ourselves.

"And then, His second great commandment, in which he cuts right through to the heart of our own Love of Self, where He commands us to 'Love your neighbor just like you love yourself.' That's probably more difficult than loving God, because to us God is a concept, so far beyond ourselves that we can cut Him some slack. But with this, we're left thinking, 'Love other people the way I love myself? Really? Even that stinky sick homeless guy who puked all over the street right in front of me? Even that nasty woman at work who always makes the whole department yell at each other because she's so stupid and miserable?'

"Yes, we think this way. Our selves are, in the end, the only thing standing in the way of our true happiness, which is found only in getting ourselves out of the way, ripping ourselves out of our hearts and replacing it with thoughts of God and love for the rest of humanity."


What do you think?