Is Abelard right here?

[Nihilist]

Just reading through Abelard’s hymns. He says: “Gravis ista sanctis vita carcer est et vincula.”-
“This life is a grave prison and chains, to the saints.”

It is true? Is it OK to consider earthly life a prison?

 

[OneSheep]

Just reading through Abelard’s hymns. He says: “Gravis ista sanctis vita carcer est et vincula.”-
“This life is a grave prison and chains, to the saints.”

It is true? Is it OK to consider earthly life a prison?

Good Morning, Nihilist,

I have not read much of Abelard’s writings, but I will respond in a way that applies to all of us, in my view.

If I were to read about the lives of saints, and I were asked the question, “How did these people feel about their lives?” what would be the basis for my response? Well, I would be thinking, “If I lived this person’s life, then…”, I would be answering in terms of projection.

The human is completely limited by projection. Even when I try to see the world through someone else’ eyes, it is still me doing it.

Is it OK? If we are talking about judgment, well, I would not condemn the prison idea, and neither does the God I project .

Is it OK in terms of spiritual health? Well, I would hope that Abelard eventually improved his outlook. I would hope that “the yoke is easy, and the burden light” would mean that over time his yoke was lifted to the point that he would not project such misery.

Is it a “sin”, in terms of harm? Well, perhaps. But as in all sin he does not intend to do evil, he intends to express his own misery or in this case, perhaps, encourage those who find life difficult as a Christian, to express that they are not alone.

Unfortunately, the stance does not reflect the “eternal life”, free of enslavement to our nature, that Christ calls us to. What dawned on me yesterday was that any time we complain about our lives, we are resenting our lives to some degree, and to that degree we close off our own love for the gift of life that God has given us, we are inadvertently separating ourselves from our own love of God. Of course we have the “right” to complain, and such complaint is understandable and immediately forgivable, especially given the miserable circumstances in which we find ourselves. It is our calling, however, to somehow see God in life, to find gratitude even when the going gets tough.

We can forgive God for our life circumstances.

Thanks for the thread. Good question!

 

[svid2]

Pax Christi.

It is a good topic.

Life is not a permanent prison; it’s a chance to avoid that.

It’s a chance to avoid debtor’s prison, Purgatory, as well.

But I don’t think of this flawed but good creation, this gift of life, as a prison.

Abelard was one smart dude, and much more than the sum of his scandals, but I don’t think much of this outlook on life.

God bless.

 

[CrossofChrist]

Just reading through Abelard’s hymns. He says: “Gravis ista sanctis vita carcer est et vincula.”-
“This life is a grave prison and chains, to the saints.”

It is true? Is it OK to consider earthly life a prison?

I suppose you could consider that, continually waiting for the beatific vision…

But it might give the wrong impression on our humanity…you know, ghost in the machine type thinking…denying goodness in the world…etc.

From Vatican II’s Gaudium et Spes 14:

1. Though made of body and soul, man is one. Through his bodily composition he gathers to himself the elements of the material world; thus they reach their crown through him, and through him raise their voice in free praise of the Creator.(6) **For this reason man is not allowed to despise his bodily life, rather he is obliged to regard his body as good and honorable since God has created it and will raise it up on the last day. **Nevertheless, wounded by sin, man experiences rebellious stirrings in his body. But the very dignity of man postulates that man glorify God in his body and forbid it to serve the evil inclinations of his heart.

Now, man is not wrong when he regards himself as superior to bodily concerns, and as more than a speck of nature or a nameless constituent of the city of man. For by his interior qualities he outstrips the whole sum of mere things. He plunges into the depths of reality whenever he enters into his own heart; God, Who probes the heart,(7) awaits him there; there he discerns his proper destiny beneath the eyes of God. Thus, when he recognizes in himself a spiritual and immortal soul, he is not being mocked by a fantasy born only of physical or social influences, but is rather laying hold of the proper truth of the matter.

 

[fhansen]

Just reading through Abelard’s hymns. He says: “Gravis ista sanctis vita carcer est et vincula.”-
“This life is a grave prison and chains, to the saints.”

It is true? Is it OK to consider earthly life a prison?

The more we know God, the more we see this life as an exile from Him, the only source of authentic, complete satisfaction for man.

 

[Nihilist]

Thanks for the responses. It is encouraging for all people with a generally ‘negative’ (for want of a better word) experience or attitude toward life, that maybe such an attitude is not incompatible with being on the right side of God.

 

[CrossofChrist]

I suppose you could consider that, continually waiting for the beatific vision…

But it might give the wrong impression on our humanity…you know, ghost in the machine type thinking…denying goodness in the world…etc.

From Vatican II’s Gaudium et Spes 14:

1. Though made of body and soul, man is one. Through his bodily composition he gathers to himself the elements of the material world; thus they reach their crown through him, and through him raise their voice in free praise of the Creator.(6) **For this reason man is not allowed to despise his bodily life, rather he is obliged to regard his body as good and honorable since God has created it and will raise it up on the last day. **Nevertheless, wounded by sin, man experiences rebellious stirrings in his body. But the very dignity of man postulates that man glorify God in his body and forbid it to serve the evil inclinations of his heart.

Now, man is not wrong when he regards himself as superior to bodily concerns, and as more than a speck of nature or a nameless constituent of the city of man. For by his interior qualities he outstrips the whole sum of mere things. He plunges into the depths of reality whenever he enters into his own heart; God, Who probes the heart,(7) awaits him there; there he discerns his proper destiny beneath the eyes of God. Thus, when he recognizes in himself a spiritual and immortal soul, he is not being mocked by a fantasy born only of physical or social influences, but is rather laying hold of the proper truth of the matter.

From this we realize it is important to recognize that God is active in the world; he is present RIGHT NOW. Of course, this is not to deny the reality of sin in the world or to be naively optimistic. But there is a “holy optimism” that comes from hope in God.

Pope John Paul II:The liturgy for the Third Sunday of Advent, also called “Gaudete” Sunday, invites us to intensify the interior pace of our pilgrimage to the Lord who comes to save us. Jesus, source of our peace, is coming. For this reason, despite difficulties and problems, we must all be full of holy optimism. St Paul urges us: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice” (Phil 4:4).

Or again Pope Francis’ Evangelii Gaudium.