The commandment to "Love thy neighbor as thy self" presupposes that you love yourself.
Too often, we dwell on loving our neighbors, on selfless charity, on service. Too often, we forget that, in order to love others, we must also love ourselves.
So if we only love ourselves a little, our capacity to love others is limited. If our love for ourselves is shallow, then we will only "love" those that fit into our shallow preconceptions. But if our love for ourselves is vast, if it reflects the knowledge that we have a divine potential and are loved individually by God, our love for others will be fearsome.
The great thing is... I have often found that serving others helps me to both find and love myself in new ways all the time. And through that deeper love for myself, I can more diligently serve and love my neighbor. It's a cycle - you simply have to let go and jump in.
I find it interesting that, while love of self is acknowledged, it is not commanded directly. I have found in my life that the pursuit of my own happiness tends to strangle my relationships and love of others, while the pursuit of deepening my understanding and relationship with God and reaching out to others allows me to understand myself better.
ReplyDeleteAll of this reminds me of a similar statement from the New Testament: "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it." (Luke 9:24).
Here's to letting go and jumping in the cycle.