Tuesday,
March 13, 2012
What to read for
today.
Chapter 17:Hell As Hatred
Questions for your
personal reflection.
Did you recognize yourself anywhere in this chapter?
Sharing with others:
What caught your attention or provoked your thinking today?
It was easy to see everyone else in this
chapter because it sounded so dramatic with its references to Hitler, Stalin
and Napoleon, and its talk of excitement and violence. But eventually it occurred to me to ask
myself, in what ways do I “thrust others away” and struggle “be free of …another” when I meet
opposition my demands or my suggestions?
Posted by Genevieve.
I could only understand this chapter from the point of view of the reciprical hatred is hell. then the reverse made some sense to me.
ReplyDeleteI understand his comment that people who hate want to be free of others- often when I'm agry I have similar feelings- softer than hate but still related. this helps me to understand people a little ebtter- their reactions to unpleasnat events- the vitriol they speak
Otherwise I found this chapter very dense and I'm not sure
I understod it.
post by william
Posted by Second Thoughts
ReplyDeleteThis chapter took me in a different direction, though I do not profess to understand it fully.
I understood the image of God as "burning". And I understood (so far as these images can be understood, because it is not all intellectual) the idea of not becoming enamoured with yourself. But by Merton's standards I must be a very bad Christian, because I do not understand the idea of loving God.
Does this matter? I would hope that this would not exclude me from the "City of those who love one another", the one that is supposed to be fused together in charity under suffering.