escapism
Well, I love reading [anything by] Henri Nouwen. He writes with so much compassion and hope, yet in a simple way that gets me... and so many others!
These past few weeks, I have been wanting to articulate this never-ending frustration with my culture's tendency to use purpose and human longing to sell products and services. It drives me insane.
Why on earth would trying a new kind of shampoo, joining a yoga class or buying an airplane ticket to Cabo be the answer to my problems? How would they know? And who is "THEY", anyway?!
Yet, I buy into it again and again. I long for newness and often times jump on the first "new" thing that comes my way. I get bored with the ordinary, and fail to see the sacredness and beauty in the everyday. The simple, boring ordinary (cue The Office finale). I'm a victim and perpetrator of my culture's faulty, broken view of human desire.
And, out of the blue, I read words by Nouwen that speak to this perfectly.
I felt like he was speaking to me directly, like we were sitting across from each other chatting. In this figurative scenario (oh how I wish it was true though!), he would put up his hand gently as if to tell me to be still and listen for a few seconds. And then, there would be a pause, and he would say these words :
“Aren’t you, like me, hoping that some person, thing or event will come along to give you that final feeling of well-being you desire? Don’t you often hope: ‘May this book, idea, course, trip, job, country or relationship fulfill my deepest desire.’ But as long as you are waiting for that mysterious moment, you will go on running helter-skelter, always anxious and restless, always lustful and angry, never fully satisfied. You know that this is the compulsiveness that keeps us going and busy, but at the same time makes us wonder whether we are getting anywhere in the long run. This is the way to spiritual exhaustion and burn-out. This is the way to spiritual death.”
I thought this was a beautiful and compelling way to explain escapism from a spiritual perspective.
My friend Merriam-Webster defines escapism as the "habitual diversion of the mind to purely imaginative activity or entertainment as an escape from reality or routine." It seems very clear to me that escapism is the go-to marketing tool today. You're tired of your boring, meaningless life? We've got the solution for you! Buy this product and your problems will be solved/ you'll get the break you deserve/ you won't have to suffer needlessly anymore!
Instead, Nouwen urges us to (...paradigm shift alert!) acknowledge our identity as the beloved of the triune God. If we truly understood and believed this, we wouldn't feel the need to run after new things or desire change so badly.
Don't get me wrong- change can be great and exciting. The danger, however, is to believe we will somehow be fulfilled with the next great thing that comes our way. We understand our day to day lives as being categorically boring and pointless, and fail to see the beauty in them.
Once we see ourselves and our lives through the lens of belovedness- what God says about you and me- they aren't so pointless anymore. Everyday tasks somehow become an opportunity to reside in this lavish belovedness, and we miraculously become fulfilled through this alone. As Nouwen says... "our [boring, repetitive, unexciting] lives are unique stones in the mosaic of human existence- priceless and irreplaceable."
This week, as we wait for our busses, wash the dishes, pay bills and stand in line at the grocery store, let us believe that we are living out our lives as the beloved. Every moment is grace- and there is no need to escape. Sacredness, goodness, beloveness- they are here and now.
These past few weeks, I have been wanting to articulate this never-ending frustration with my culture's tendency to use purpose and human longing to sell products and services. It drives me insane.
Why on earth would trying a new kind of shampoo, joining a yoga class or buying an airplane ticket to Cabo be the answer to my problems? How would they know? And who is "THEY", anyway?!
Yet, I buy into it again and again. I long for newness and often times jump on the first "new" thing that comes my way. I get bored with the ordinary, and fail to see the sacredness and beauty in the everyday. The simple, boring ordinary (cue The Office finale). I'm a victim and perpetrator of my culture's faulty, broken view of human desire.
And, out of the blue, I read words by Nouwen that speak to this perfectly.
I felt like he was speaking to me directly, like we were sitting across from each other chatting. In this figurative scenario (oh how I wish it was true though!), he would put up his hand gently as if to tell me to be still and listen for a few seconds. And then, there would be a pause, and he would say these words :
“Aren’t you, like me, hoping that some person, thing or event will come along to give you that final feeling of well-being you desire? Don’t you often hope: ‘May this book, idea, course, trip, job, country or relationship fulfill my deepest desire.’ But as long as you are waiting for that mysterious moment, you will go on running helter-skelter, always anxious and restless, always lustful and angry, never fully satisfied. You know that this is the compulsiveness that keeps us going and busy, but at the same time makes us wonder whether we are getting anywhere in the long run. This is the way to spiritual exhaustion and burn-out. This is the way to spiritual death.”
I thought this was a beautiful and compelling way to explain escapism from a spiritual perspective.
My friend Merriam-Webster defines escapism as the "habitual diversion of the mind to purely imaginative activity or entertainment as an escape from reality or routine." It seems very clear to me that escapism is the go-to marketing tool today. You're tired of your boring, meaningless life? We've got the solution for you! Buy this product and your problems will be solved/ you'll get the break you deserve/ you won't have to suffer needlessly anymore!
Instead, Nouwen urges us to (...paradigm shift alert!) acknowledge our identity as the beloved of the triune God. If we truly understood and believed this, we wouldn't feel the need to run after new things or desire change so badly.
Don't get me wrong- change can be great and exciting. The danger, however, is to believe we will somehow be fulfilled with the next great thing that comes our way. We understand our day to day lives as being categorically boring and pointless, and fail to see the beauty in them.
Once we see ourselves and our lives through the lens of belovedness- what God says about you and me- they aren't so pointless anymore. Everyday tasks somehow become an opportunity to reside in this lavish belovedness, and we miraculously become fulfilled through this alone. As Nouwen says... "our [boring, repetitive, unexciting] lives are unique stones in the mosaic of human existence- priceless and irreplaceable."
This week, as we wait for our busses, wash the dishes, pay bills and stand in line at the grocery store, let us believe that we are living out our lives as the beloved. Every moment is grace- and there is no need to escape. Sacredness, goodness, beloveness- they are here and now.
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