If we grow up in church, we hear a lot about "saving our souls," but to my knowledge, almost nothing about our souls themselves. What, after all, is our "soul"?
According to traditional teaching, the soul is the immaterial part of us that comprises the heart, the mind, and the will -- the parts of us, actually, that define who we are as persons. And the part of us that survives death and continues into eternity. The soul is worth "saving" indeed, for it is who we are now and who we will be forever.
Jesus said, The flesh is weak, but the spirit gives life, and What will a man give in exchange for his soul?
According to the doctrine of Original Sin, we are born into a world without light for the soul --- our minds are darkened, our hearts are hardened, our wills too weak to choose the good and reject the evil. It is as if we ourselves are the abyss over which the Spirit hovers, the chaos over which the Father speaks: Let there be Light! And the Word of God (Light) becomes flesh in our flesh!
Jesus said, I am the Light of the World...those who walk in darkness do not even know what makes them stumble.
Some years ago, I used to enjoy watching reality tv -- the Bachelor, Sister Wives, and especially Looking for Love. Gradually, however, I came to realize that the reason I enjoyed these programs was that, in a way, I was looking down on and making fun of these unfortunate people who continued to get themselves into horrible situations, always leading to misery and suffering. The viewing audience always knows what the victims themselves cannot see: This is not going to end well! Watching these programs is a kind of gladitorial sport -- enjoying seeing people thrown to the lions and being torn apart. Those who walk in darkness do not even know what makes them stumble.
I stopped watching those programs years ago, but recently found another one called Welcome to Plathville, about a family of eight or nine children who grew up in rural Georgia, homeschooled and somewhat isolated from the destructive influences of the rest of the world. I began watching what seemed at first to be a wholesome family interacting with one another --- not destroying themselves but just growing up in an innocent way. As the children matured, they came into contact with other ways of thinking and acting -- not always wholesome, but "normal," according to our culture. The clash was inevitable. Darkness fell.
I began to see the Plath Family as all of us --- being sucked into "the world's way" of thinking and acting. And the suffering it causes, the destructiveness that darkness has on all of us: suffering, divorce, crushing misery, unhappiness. I found myself having compassion rather than ridiculing these people--- they are, after all, just like all of us. We are them! We do not see the danger ahead, and we walk in darkness, without light, without knowledge, until it is too late.
We all need Light; we all need Understanding /Wisdom in this world of darkness, chaos, evil. Jesus -- the Word of God-- brings Light into our hearts, our minds, our wills. Without the Light of the World, we cannot "save our souls," and we find ourselves spiraling ever deeper into chaos and suffering.
As I watch "reality tv," I begin to feel the way God must feel watching us live our lives -- and His compassion in sending the Light of the World into our souls.
