AS we go through life in all its
twists and turns, its ups
and downs, its ebb and flow, we certainly need to do a lot of
adjusting and adapting. We also need to do a lot of planting,
cultivating and cutting if only to avoid rigidity, a sure sign we are
heading toward deterioration and death, and that we rather are growing
and going toward our true destination.
If only for the sake of sheer survival, we need to be
aware that there are certain things we need to tighten and other
things to loosen. That’s simply because circumstances change, and yet
there are things that should not change.
We have to learn what to keep and what to let go as we
move along in life. And so we need to analyze things so we can
distinguish between what is essential, necessary and indispensable in
our life, on the one hand, and on the other, what is incidental,
contingent and disposable.
Another way of saying this is that we need to know what
our true ultimate end is and what are merely the means to it. Not that
the means are unimportant. We just have to distinguish which is which,
and act in accordance to that distinction. Sad to say, there is a lot
of confusion in this area, the means often regarded as the end, and
vice-versa.
For all this, we have to assume a metaphysical approach to
things. And this is where our basic problem lies. Metaphysics is still
unknown to many of us. And those who know it are often confined in
their academic world of abstract ideas. There’s hardly any effort to
encourage people to think metaphysically.
Most people nowadays are contented to base their thinking
mainly on what their senses perceive, and so their reactions are often
knee-jerk, emotional and sentimental, shallow.
Influences coming from our culture, social background,
etc., can also go into people thinking, lending some texture to our
thoughts. At best, the sciences, arts and modern technology contribute
a lot in shaping our thoughts. But unless our thinking is
metaphysical, we would be missing the most important part of how to
understand things in life.
The metaphysical approach certainly does not ignore how
things are in their immediate and concrete reality. But it goes beyond
that level. It goes further than the sensible world to examine the
ultimate causes of things. These causes are usually not seen nor felt.
It’s an approach that enters into the ethos and the
spiritual underpinnings of the concrete realities, and leads us to the
supernatural world and ultimately to God, from whom we come and to
whom we belong. That is the distinctive contribution of metaphysics.
If we can acknowledge a certain organic hierarchy among
the sciences, metaphysics should actually occupy pride of place, since
it integrates the inputs of all the other sciences and relates them to
their ultimate causes and end. It respects an inter-disciplinary tack.
It is therefore a very important science. And it’s just
unfortunate that it is hardly appreciated as it is. Only very few are
interested in it, and worse, those in it do not seem to know how to
relate their studies and findings to the here-and-now world.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we would know what have
absolute and universal value, and what have relative and variable
value. This would lead us to know the exclusivity of truth and the
inclusivity of charity, what to be strict and what to be lenient in,
what to tighten and what to loosen.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we can be more
broad-minded and avoid narrow-mindedness, we can be more open to the
way other people are and avoid bigotry and stereotyping.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we would know that we
should not be too attached to our opinions, our taste and preferences,
our biases brought about by our profession and other conditionings,
social, economic, political, cultural, historical, etc.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we would know what to
tighten in the midst of a constant flux of life. We need to take care
of our continuing formation, ever sharpening our dispositions so that
we would always be eager to know and pursue our ultimate end.
There will always be certain things in life that tend to
blur our vision of the fundamental and ultimate in our life. We have
to be careful of the distracting effects of our concerns, problems,
challenges and trials, plus the allurements in the world, not to
mention the tricks and temptations of the devil.
and downs, its ebb and flow, we certainly need to do a lot of
adjusting and adapting. We also need to do a lot of planting,
cultivating and cutting if only to avoid rigidity, a sure sign we are
heading toward deterioration and death, and that we rather are growing
and going toward our true destination.
If only for the sake of sheer survival, we need to be
aware that there are certain things we need to tighten and other
things to loosen. That’s simply because circumstances change, and yet
there are things that should not change.
We have to learn what to keep and what to let go as we
move along in life. And so we need to analyze things so we can
distinguish between what is essential, necessary and indispensable in
our life, on the one hand, and on the other, what is incidental,
contingent and disposable.
Another way of saying this is that we need to know what
our true ultimate end is and what are merely the means to it. Not that
the means are unimportant. We just have to distinguish which is which,
and act in accordance to that distinction. Sad to say, there is a lot
of confusion in this area, the means often regarded as the end, and
vice-versa.
For all this, we have to assume a metaphysical approach to
things. And this is where our basic problem lies. Metaphysics is still
unknown to many of us. And those who know it are often confined in
their academic world of abstract ideas. There’s hardly any effort to
encourage people to think metaphysically.
Most people nowadays are contented to base their thinking
mainly on what their senses perceive, and so their reactions are often
knee-jerk, emotional and sentimental, shallow.
Influences coming from our culture, social background,
etc., can also go into people thinking, lending some texture to our
thoughts. At best, the sciences, arts and modern technology contribute
a lot in shaping our thoughts. But unless our thinking is
metaphysical, we would be missing the most important part of how to
understand things in life.
The metaphysical approach certainly does not ignore how
things are in their immediate and concrete reality. But it goes beyond
that level. It goes further than the sensible world to examine the
ultimate causes of things. These causes are usually not seen nor felt.
It’s an approach that enters into the ethos and the
spiritual underpinnings of the concrete realities, and leads us to the
supernatural world and ultimately to God, from whom we come and to
whom we belong. That is the distinctive contribution of metaphysics.
If we can acknowledge a certain organic hierarchy among
the sciences, metaphysics should actually occupy pride of place, since
it integrates the inputs of all the other sciences and relates them to
their ultimate causes and end. It respects an inter-disciplinary tack.
It is therefore a very important science. And it’s just
unfortunate that it is hardly appreciated as it is. Only very few are
interested in it, and worse, those in it do not seem to know how to
relate their studies and findings to the here-and-now world.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we would know what have
absolute and universal value, and what have relative and variable
value. This would lead us to know the exclusivity of truth and the
inclusivity of charity, what to be strict and what to be lenient in,
what to tighten and what to loosen.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we can be more
broad-minded and avoid narrow-mindedness, we can be more open to the
way other people are and avoid bigotry and stereotyping.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we would know that we
should not be too attached to our opinions, our taste and preferences,
our biases brought about by our profession and other conditionings,
social, economic, political, cultural, historical, etc.
When we have a metaphysical mind, we would know what to
tighten in the midst of a constant flux of life. We need to take care
of our continuing formation, ever sharpening our dispositions so that
we would always be eager to know and pursue our ultimate end.
There will always be certain things in life that tend to
blur our vision of the fundamental and ultimate in our life. We have
to be careful of the distracting effects of our concerns, problems,
challenges and trials, plus the allurements in the world, not to
mention the tricks and temptations of the devil.
No comments:
Post a Comment