"There are now more than seven billion people on this earth and each one of us feels that he or she is the center of the universe. That accounts for most of the problems we have in the world, in our neighborhoods, and in our families.
"And no one's to blame for this, save God perhaps, for making us this way. Each of us is created in the image and likeness of God, meaning that, each of us, holds within a divine spark, a piece of infinity, and an ingrained knowledge of that unique dignity. We are infinite souls inside a finite world. To paraphrase St. Augustine, we are made for the divine and our hearts aren't just dissatisfied until they rest there again, they're also grandiose along the journey, enflamed by their own uniqueness and dignity. God has made everything beautiful in its own season, Ecclesiastes tells us, but God has put timelessness into the human heart so that we are out of sync with the seasons from beginning to end. We're overcharged for this planet, and we know it."
In a recent commentary, Father Ronald Rolheiser, O.M.I., president of the Oblate School of Theology, San Antonio, TX, reflected on how, although people have always faced these issues, they currently have less tools (religious and societal) to handle restlessness, grandiosity, and frustration.
To access Father Ron's complete post, please visit:
The Boston Pilot: Echoes. Our Overstimulated Grandiosity -- and our Impoverished Symbols (15 SEP 15)
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