Acquiring General Knowledge…A Hidden Source Of Pride?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Augustine3
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
A

Augustine3

Guest
Reading different books, learning “a little bit about everything” a source of pride?

Sometimes there could be subtle intentions….respect from others? Pride? What else could be the reason if you had the desire to acquire general knowledge?
 
To function well at my job, to save money by fixing things myself.
To guide, teach and advise my children and others.
To evangelize to people who value intellect and reason.
Sin has much to do with intention, if I am acquiring knowledge simply to condescend to others and prove myself as “smart” or “well read” or for some of the reasons listed above.
 
Last edited:
Depends on your heart. If you want knowledge for pure reasons such as to learn, then no problem If you want to show off how much you know, then maybe pride.
 
Augustine3 said:
Reading different books, learning “a little bit about everything” a source of pride?

Sometimes there could be subtle intentions….respect from others? Pride? What else could be the reason if you had the desire to acquire general knowledge?
Click to expand...
Watching too much news on television …

Finding out more than we need to know about baseball, basketball, feminism, celebrities …

What happens in distant foreign lands such as Japan, Syria, or Canada is no concern of ours …

That guy in the White House with the funny hair, what’s his name again? …
 
Last edited:
It can be. I often find myself looking down on others because I know better than them. Or at least I think I do.
 
Last edited:
It could just be that the person has a strong intellectual curiosity. It’s not prideful to want to learn.
 
I think it’s a wise observation of self. There is much knowledge in the world that is entirely unnecessary to your state in life, and so pursuance of knowledge can have a source in pride if there isn’t some other identifiable reason.

Of course, there are a zillion good reasons for learning different things, so much of the time, pride may not be involved at all.
 
In your mind, what is the end of “intellectual curiosity”? And by the end, I mean, the purpose?

Is it to learn more about God? Good.
Is it to learn more to improve one’s earning potential? Good, most of the time.
Is it to become educated in matters that pertain to one’s state in life? Good.
Is it none of the above, and is the person unsure of what the reason is exactly? Hmm, perhaps not so good. We should be able to identify the specific reason why we want to pursue certain knowledge.
 
“There are those who seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge; that is curiosity.
There are those who seek knowledge to be known by others; that is vanity.
There are those who seek knowledge in order to serve; that is love.”
St. Bernard of Clairvaux

I was just reading this yesterday:
“And satan rose up against Israel: and moved David to number Israel. And David said to Joab, and to the rulers of the people: Go, and number Israel from Bersabee even to Dan, and bring me the number of them that I may know it. And Joab answered: The Lord make his people a hundred times more than they are: but, my lord the king, are they not all thy servants: why doth my lord seek this thing, which may be imputed as a sin to Israel?”
(1 Para 21:1-3)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top