It is my belief, that we should not be too sure of having found Christ in ourselves until we have found him also in that part of humanity that is most remote from our own.
Interpretation
True self-awareness and spirituality involve recognizing the divine in all of humanity, not just in oneself.
Thomas Merton emphasizes that genuine faith and belief in Christ should extend beyond self-reflection to encompass empathy and understanding for all of humanity, particularly those who are different or distant from us. It suggests that real spirituality requires us to seek Christ in everyone, no matter how different they may be from us, pushing us beyond personal comfort and into the realm of universal compassion.
In practice
In a sermon about compassion, one might use this quote to illustrate the importance of seeing Christ in everyone.
The devil is no fool. He can get people feeling about heaven the way they ought to feel about hell. He can make them fear the means of grace the way they do not fear sin. And he does so, not by light but by obscurity, not by realities but by shadows; not by clarity and substance, but by dreams and the creatures of psychosis. And men are so poor in intellect that a few cold chills down their spine will be enough to keep them from ever finding out the truth about anything.
Our vocation is not simply to be, but to work together with God in the creation of our own life, our own identity, our own destiny....To work out our identity in God.
Conscience is the light by which we interpret the will of God in our own lives.
You are made in the image of what you desire.
But if you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I think I am living for.
I have the immense joy of being man, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now that I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are all walking around shining like the sun.
There is only one class in the community that thinks more about money than the rich, and that is the poor. The poor can think of nothing else.
Covetousness is both the beginning and the end of the devil's alphabet - the first vice in corrupt nature that moves, and the last which dies.
A tree may always be known by its fruit, and a true Christian may always be discovered by their habits, tastes & affections.
I urge you to ask yourself just how honorable it is to preside over the abuse and suffering of animals.
Not even the lichen of the tundra is at peace. All is struggle, all is war for dominance. Those who lose, vanish. -And we’re no different you’re saying- We are, soldier. We possess the privilege of choice. The gift of foresight. Though often we come too late in acknowledging responsibilities….
When a magician lets you notice something on your own, his lie becomes impenetrable.
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