Ego
How to Kill the Ego
How to Kill the Ego
Modern psychology has told us we must feel good about ourselves and instructed us to reject the idea of guilt and sin. Sin is seen as religion's instrument for keeping people in line, making them dependent on an institution that should be relegated to the Dark Ages. In an age where man is elevated to being his own god, religion is seen as a sort of enslavement. Up with self! Down with guilt!
Self as the new god is worshiped at the expense of community and enthroned in a position of the utmost importance. Worship of self has contributed to the downfall of families and societal stability, with careers, social and financial gain and self fulfillment reigning supreme.
Divine love does not tolerate this elevated status of self, for the ego is the enemy of our communion with God. In an age of financial collapse, mortgage foreclosures and high unemployment, worship of self dooms us to a life of total loss.
We were created for communion with God and the worship of the ego has led us into a state of spiritual bankruptcy. The total meltdown of the economy and the destruction of the environment is the direct result of the turning away from spiritual values. The foundation of economic and environmental collapse is to be found in our spiritual bankruptcy. We need to return to the worship of God, and reject the worship of self.
The denial of guilt and sin is the ultimate example of our having accepted the lie perpetrated by the devil, the great deceiver. True happiness and true wealth come only through the fulfillment of our destiny and that for which we were created, communion with God.
Self as the new god is worshiped at the expense of community and enthroned in a position of the utmost importance. Worship of self has contributed to the downfall of families and societal stability, with careers, social and financial gain and self fulfillment reigning supreme.
Divine love does not tolerate this elevated status of self, for the ego is the enemy of our communion with God. In an age of financial collapse, mortgage foreclosures and high unemployment, worship of self dooms us to a life of total loss.
We were created for communion with God and the worship of the ego has led us into a state of spiritual bankruptcy. The total meltdown of the economy and the destruction of the environment is the direct result of the turning away from spiritual values. The foundation of economic and environmental collapse is to be found in our spiritual bankruptcy. We need to return to the worship of God, and reject the worship of self.
The denial of guilt and sin is the ultimate example of our having accepted the lie perpetrated by the devil, the great deceiver. True happiness and true wealth come only through the fulfillment of our destiny and that for which we were created, communion with God.
The destruction of the ego begins with repentance and the acquisition of a humble and a contrite heart.
Love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
Saturday August 6, 2011 / July 24, 2011
8th Week after Pentecost.
Tone six.
Martyr Christina of Tyre (300).Holy Martyrs and Passion-bearers Boris and Gleb of Russia, in holy baptism Romanus and David (1015).
New Hieromartyr Alpheus deacon (1937).
Sts. Nicholas (1942) and John (1951) confessors, priests.
Venerable Polycarp, archimandrite of the Kiev Caves (1182).
New Martyr Athanasius of Nicaea (1670) (Greek).
New Martyr Theophilus of Zakynthos (1635) (Greek).
Venerable Bogolep, child schemamonk of Black Ravine near Astrakhan (1667).
Martyr Hermogenes.
Venerable Pachomius, abbot, on the Lake (1479), friend of Venerable Dionysius of Glushets (Vologda).
St. Bernulphus, bishop of Utrecht (1054) (Neth.).
St. Declan, bishop of Ardmore (Ireland) (5th c.) (Celtic & British).
St. Hilarion of Tvaleli, Georgia (11th c.) (Georgia).
New Hieromartyr Maximus (Sandovich), who suffered under the Latins, Protomartyr of the Lemko People.
Martyrs Capitio and Hymenaeus (Greek)
The Scripture Readings for the Day:
Romans 13:1-10
1 | Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. |
2 | Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. |
3 | For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. |
4 | For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. |
5 | Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience' sake. |
6 | For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God's ministers attending continually to this very thing. |
7 | Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor. |
8 | Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. |
9 | For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." |
10 | Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. |
Matthew 12:30-37
30 | He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad. |
31 | Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. |
32 | Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come. |
33 | Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. |
34 | Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. |
35 | A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. |
36 | But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. |
37 | For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned. |
No comments:
Post a Comment