The goats

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Updated 12 months ago

While listening to a recent interview on one of my local TV stations, the speakers was commenting about some of the books he reads about notable people. So, I decoded to take a few mental notes on three of these influential people, whom are listed among the greatest of all timers. Presenting the GOATs.

C.S. Lewis - A Guide to Our True Self

C.S. Lewis was one of the most impactful Christian authors and thinkers of the 20th century. Though raised in a religious home in Belfast, Ireland, Lewis became an atheist in his teens. After serving in World War I, he went on to have a prolific career as a professor at Oxford and Cambridge. Then in 1931, through the influence of his close friends and much reflection, Lewis returned to Christianity, becoming one of its staunchest defenders in turbulent times.

Over the course of his life, Lewis wrote many works of Christian apologetics, fiction with religious themes, and literature for children. Some of his most well-known books include "Mere Christianity," "The Chronicles of Narnia" series, and "The Screwtape Letters." Through his writing, Lewis provided deep spiritual insights and offered reasoned arguments for religious belief. He continues to be one of the most widely read Christian authors today.

One of the major themes in Lewis' work is the difference between our imagined self-concept and our true, God-given self. As Lewis discovered in his own life, submitting to God allows our actual self to emerge, while clinging to our ego leads to suffering. In several of his writings, Lewis elaborates on this idea and provides guidance for uncovering our real identity.

The Challenge of Being Ourselves

When facing difficulties, people often advise "just be yourself." However, as Lewis notes, the self-concept we have constructed is unreliable and flawed. Our true self comes not from within us but from outside - it is a gift given to us by God, who created human nature.

Lewis writes, "The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become - because He made us." Rather than drilling down into our ego, we must look beyond it to find truth. Our real personality emerges when we "turn to Christ" and let go of the false self we have invented.

According to Lewis, even people who are not expressly religious can glimpse this reality. We just have to believe there is something greater than our limited ideas and feelings. For Lewis, that something is Divine Love as embodied by Christ, which surpasses human understanding. Though the intellect cannot grasp it, it can point us to our spiritual core.

Quantum physicist David Bohm's insights align with Lewis here. As Bohm stated, true individuality unfolds from wholeness, not ego-centeredness. The more we let universal truths guide us, the more our uniqueness flowers. Bohm and Lewis both indicate that the cramped self we have constructed conceals our real selfhood.

Escaping the Trap of Ego

In Mere Christianity, Lewis details the difference between our imagined self-concept and our God-given identity. He notes that directly searching for our true self is unproductive.

Paradoxically, we have to look away from ourselves to find who we really are:

"The very first step is to try to forget about the self altogether. Your real, new self will not come as long as you are looking for it. It will come when you are looking for Him."

This roundabout path, Lewis says, reflects a deeper spiritual pattern: only by relinquishing our small agenda can we fulfill our purpose. Just as fixation on originality stifles creativity, obsession with the ego strangulates our individuality. The solution is to let go and let God take the lead.

Lewis anticipates the skepticism this idea provokes. Wouldn't it be boring and homogenizing if we all united with t he Divine? Using the metaphor of adding salt to food, he clarifies that God's presence enhances uniqueness rather than eliminating it:

"The more we get what we now call 'ourselves' out of the way and let Him take us over, the more truly ourselves we become."

Physicist David Bohm concurred that surrendering our imagined selfhood enables our authentic selfhood to shine through. As he told one interviewer, "People are not realizing their potential for uniqueness" because they remain trapped in their preconceptions.

Observing the False Self

Gaining freedom from the ego begins with consciously noticing how it operates. We must pay attention to the endless mental commentary that judges situations as good or bad and inflates or diminishes our self-esteem accordingly. This chatter constantly pulls us out of the present moment.

Moreover, as Lewis writes, the constructed self "will find in the long run only hatred, loneliness, despair, rage, ruin, and decay." Its perceptions breed anxiety and conflict rather than wisdom. Truly accepting this fact can motivate us to change.

Additionally, through self-observation we can catch how often we choose our self-centered narrative over openness to God.

As Lewis puts it:

"The more I resist Him and try to live on my own, the more I become dominated by my own heredity and upbringing and surroundings and natural desires. In fact, what I so proudly call ‘Myself’ becomes merely the meeting place for trains of events which I never started and which I cannot stop."

Noticing the mechanical quality of our ego-based thoughts helps loosen their grip on us. We create space to reconnect with our essence beyond our personal history and habits.

No forced self-improvement project bears fruit here. Instead, as we let go, our intrinsic wholeness naturally flows through us. Our job is to continually return to this God-centered alignment amid life's churning. Each time we get distracted, we gently bring our attention back to the sacred source animating us.

Though simple in concept, living from our essence requires enormous courage and perseverance. Old habits keep reasserting themselves. However, as Lewis's life shows, incredible freedom awaits those willing to confront their demons and surrender to the light within. Our false self may seem intractable, yet grace can prevail against any odds. By handing our lives over to God daily, our divinely crafted self emerges into view.

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Dorothy Day - A Bold Catholic Voice for Peace and Justice

Few people have embodied relentless commitment to social justice like Dorothy Day. As co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement, Day devoted her life to aiding the impoverished and promoting peace. Her courageous example led Thomas Merton to call her the most significant Roman Catholic of the 20th century.

Born in Brooklyn in 1897, Day experienced a dramatic religious conversion as a young adult after an unsettled early life. She was baptized in the Episcopal Church but soon rejected organized religion, becoming active in radical socialist circles. She lived in a commune, worked for various socialist publications, and was jailed for protesting on behalf of women's suffrage.

Realigning with Our True Identity

As we retract awareness from the false self, we open to grace and intuition. God fills the vacuum left by our construct, revealing the personality of Christ within.

To quote Lewis:

"It is no good trying to ‘be myself’ without Him."

However, the birth of Day's daughter in 1926 brought a longing for spiritual grounding. After moving to Chicago, she discovered the writings of Catholic saints and scholars. She eventually attended classes at a parish near her house, and the following year she was baptized into the Catholic Church.

Her conversion completed, Day felt called to fuse her radical politics with the social justice values at Catholicism's heart. In 1932 she met Peter Maurin, a French immigrant and Christian brother with a vision for empowering the poor and oppressed. Together Day and Maurin founded the Catholic Worker newspaper, which sparked the Catholic Worker Movement focused on nonviolent activism through houses of hospitality, farming communes, and more.

Although not an official Church organization, over 220 Catholic Worker communities now exist worldwide thanks to Day's pioneering work. From fierce protests to humble service helping those in need, Day participated extensively in the movement until her death in 1980. She staunchly opposed war, violence, and injustice while emphasizing voluntary poverty and the works of mercy. Her tireless example inspired many to work for change.

Day's extraordinary life was not without internal turmoil and hardship. She suffered from depression periodically, struggled in relationships, and had an abortion she later regretted. However, through spiritual discipline, she experienced profound personal healing over time. Despite criticism for her radical politics, she maintained an unwavering commitment to peaceful social action grounded in faith.

Day continues to be a model for those seeking to live out their values fully. She followed her conscience despite the era's prevailing norms, forging her own path centered on the ethics of the Gospels. Guided by belief in divine love and the unity of all people, she illuminated a morally coherent politics few have matched before or since. The Catholic Church is currently considering Day for canonization, which would make her Saint Dorothy.

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Frances Perkins - Pioneering Leader for Workers' Rights

Before Frances Perkins, no woman had ever held a cabinet position in the U.S. government. Perkins shattered that barrier when President Franklin Roosevelt appointed her Secretary of Labor in 1933. She went on to become the longest-serving labor secretary ever, spearheading policies that protected workers and helped build the modern middle class.

Though Perkins wielded immense federal authority, her roots lay in humble rural New England. She was born Fannie Coralie Perkins in 1880 in Boston but spent much of her childhood with her grandmother Cynthia in Maine. It was from her grandmother that Perkins absorbed stories about Revolutionary War-era ancestors and tales of early American life that gave her a profound reverence for U.S. history.

Excelling in her studies, Perkins enrolled at Mount Holyoke, the prestigious women's college founded by activist educator Mary Lyon. There Perkins excelled in physics and chemistry while also serving as class president. However, it was a course on economic history that set the stage for Perkins' life's work by exposing her to oppressive working conditions in nearby factories.

After graduating as valedictorian, Perkins embarked on a career as a teacher and activist in Chicago and New York. While living in New York in 1911, she personally witnessed the infamous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire that killed 146 garment workers. The tragedy fueled Perkins' drive to advocate for workplace safety standards and other labor reforms.

In 1918, Perkins took a post with the New York State Industrial Commission. She helped push groundbreaking policies around unemployment insurance, factory investigations, workplace hours for women, and more. Her skilled political maneuvering earned wide respect across factions.

Thus, when Roosevelt won the presidency in 1932 amid the Great Depression, appointing Perkins Secretary of Labor seemed natural given her immense expertise. Perkins became the chief architect of many New Deal programs that aided citizens through enormous economic crisis, from today's Social Security Administration to the Civilian Conservation Corps. She worked closely with Roosevelt through his entire presidency to strengthen worker protections, stabilize unemployment, and establish a social safety net.

Although Perkins resigned her cabinet post in 1945 after Roosevelt died, her legacy endured long past her tenure. In the decades ahead, the programs Perkins helped birth buoyed the emergence of America's broad middle class. Moreover, as the country's first female cabinet secretary, she paved the way for generations of women leaders who followed. Perkins demonstrated that competence and leadership have no gender. She remains one of the most consequential public servants in modern American governance.

CONCLUSION

C.S. Lewis, Dorothy Day, and Frances Perkins each made tremendous contributions in different spheres. Despite vastly divergent backgrounds, they all acted from faith in the divine and belief in human dignity. Guided by a moral center, they achieved works of immense cultural significance whose positive impact continues today.

Lewis illuminated a pathway to spiritual flourishing, Day embodied tireless activism for justice rooted in solidarity with the oppressed, and Perkins helped secure wide-ranging rights for exploited workers. All three figures demonstrate that an individual of conscience can shift society through perseverant effort.

By standing for truth against prevailing winds, staying committed despite obstacles, and leading from spiritual values rather than status quo assumptions, someone with a deep sense of purpose can change the world for the better.

Lewis, Day, and Perkins offer inspiration for integrating authentic selfhood with ethically driven action. Each one models fathoming reality at a profound level, yielding fresh revelations unavailable to mainstream thought.

Humanity still needs the reminders Lewis, Day, and Perkins provide about what living fully entails. Their words and work prompt us to expand our moral vision and rethink the possible. By wrestling with truth without compromising integrity, they achieved the type of greatness available to all with the courage to reach for it. Their legacies remain touchstones for nurturing soul, community and country alike.

Please share your thoughts related to these inspiring champions of change.

TheRachele