Is there a term for this?

[Ben_Sinner]

I’ve been having this intrusive thought lately.

The thought is this:

“We are all the same person. We each just have a few tweaks given by the ultimate ‘I’ that gives the illusion that we all have different identities…Basically we are each a different version of one god figure.”

This thought is bothering me. Has this type of ‘belief’ been around before and addressed before?

 

[robwar]

I’ve been having this intrusive thought lately.

The thought is this:

“We are all the same person. We each just have a few tweaks given by the ultimate ‘I’ that gives the illusion that we all have different identities…Basically we are each a different version of one god figure.”

This thought is bothering me. Has this type of ‘belief’ been around before and addressed before?

that sounds like new age mumbo jumbo, that we are all the same big blob and extensions of each other. I would ignore it and move on and realize that this isn’t Catholic thinking.

 

[Mintaka]

It sounds like various forms of pantheism and panentheism.

But what it really sounds like is a temptation to believe that you are not real and that other people are not real, and that therefore one’s actions and decisions don’t matter. All human people are somewhat similar because we are one big family, but that’s as far as it goes.

This kind of solipsistic fogginess is often a sign of depression. It is your brain lying to you, basically. (Or maybe spiritual warfare against you, although January depression is probably a sufficient explanation.)

1. Say to yourself, “I am a real and unique person. Everyone I meet is a unique person with one of a kind thoughts and feelings. God made us all, and we are His unique works of love. God loves me, and I love Him.”
2. Think about something else that is interesting and fun. Don’t try to drive out bad thoughts and don’t get upset about them. Just don’t pay them any mind, and they will go away.
3. If something is weighing on your mind, talk to somebody about it. Spend time with other people, so you’re not brooding over the intrusive thought.
4. If you have some sin bothering you, go to Confession and get it off your soul. Get some holy water at church and take it home with you. Pray, even if you can only manage a little. God is your best helper, because He knows exactly what’s wrong.
5. Get plenty of daylight, or get a sunlight-colored lamp for your house. Take your vitamins, especially Vitamin D. Eat good food, drink plenty of water, get your sleep, and get some exercise. Depression and theology errors can both derive from your body being unhappy and unhealthy.

 

[7_Sorrows]

Never heard of anything you say you have been thinking of.

 

[Mystical_Seeker]

But we are different versions of the same “God” figure. We were made unique, but all in the image of God.

We are also one in the spirit, but that doesn’t translate well to philosophical debates about whether we are really one person. We are all parts of the same body – so we can either be individual “persons” in a “cohesive group” or we can each be “body parts” whatever metaphor works best for any given person.

 

[Frankenfurter]

Jesus always strove to unite his will with that of the Father’s. But he was separate, even toi the point of feeling abandoned.

We have an instinct to unite our will with the Father’s will.

But that doesn’t mean we are all the same person - the same I.

In fact, God made us all different, all unique so that each individual act of aligning our will with the Father’s is new, a new creation, a new love.

Our world has infinite diversity and does not collapse into one.being.

Your relationship to the Father is unique to you. You were created for that purpose.

 

[blueshells]

On the one hand, we were all created in the image of God, and we’re imbued with the same basic structure, needs, and desires.

On the other, we are all unique, reflecting the very immensity of God. There’s a really beautiful quote from Fr. Barron; “We might say God is a pure white light that, when refracted in the prism of creation, breaks into countless colors, each unique and each an aspect of the light. These colors are the saints, each one reflecting some aspect of the divine reality.”

 

[ready]

I’ve been having this intrusive thought lately.

The thought is this:

“We are all the same person. We each just have a few tweaks given by the ultimate ‘I’ that gives the illusion that we all have different identities…Basically we are each a different version of one god figure.”

We are not basically each a different version of one “god figure.” God is God, 100% perfect and far above all of us, and He has a divine nature, which none of us have or ever will have. We are his fallen creatures/children who are not perfect or equal to Him, even though we are made in His image. We are completely dependent on Him for everything, so we are very different from Him, Who needs nothing. The only creature that has ever had a human and divine nature is Jesus Christ, the Second Person on the Blessed Trinity, and He is God, unlike the rest of us on earth who are sinners. The only creatures that become like unto God are the Saints. They become like Him, yet still they are never a different version of Him: they remain creatures, divinized by their love for Him, their uniformity to holy His Will and by their ardent charity burning within their hearts. God bless you.