The better you know God, the better you know yourself

[goodcatholic]

And vice versa. The better you know yourself, the better you know God.
As some of you can guess, this wisdom comes from The Interior Castle by Saint Theresa of Avila.
This piece of wisdom is worth reflecting on. It is a whole topic by itself.
Though I haven’t read, there is a book by Saint Bonaventure called “Journey to Self, Journey to God” or something similar.
I guess we need to differentiate self-absorption from self-awareness. Saint Theresa never meant for us to be absorbed in ourselves. I’m thinking she meant for us to be absorbed in the wonder of God in us. This is a gradual process as she describes the mansions, step by step getting closer to God.
The better we know our sinful nature, the more likely we are not to choose sin. Would you agree?
Maybe that is not completely true though. Some of us will choose sin anyway. because we still love ourselves, our wicked desires more than God.

 

[hymin]

“the temptation to self-absorption” a term provided by our Pope in his message for this Lent was written in the context to indicate a lack of charity. To follow this temptation would interiorly distance the true motive of loving neighbor, as yourself. All you would see is yourself in absorption, without the truth of seeing your neighbor as yourself. But to know yourself provides the means to make the distinction between God, you and your neighbor. By this distinction, we promptly identify and grasp the gift of God and place it in action to the neighbor seeing the gift given to the giver. And both are edified and the giver is prompted to do more good works, seeing that the love to the other was done to himself.