Merton
All sin starts from the assumption that my false self, the self that exists only in my egocentric desires, is the fundamental reality of life to which everything else in the life is ordered.
Thomas Merton
When I reached work last night, I was surprised with the welcome presence of my "Secret Santa" gift--various types of dark chocolate, and Seeds of Contemplation by Thomas Merton. I'd read some about the monk, and on the recommendation of a friend asked for one of his works as my gift.
Perhaps this truth is more obvious to those ahead of me, but I think his point is simple but profound: we spend our lives chasing after an illusion that comes from each other, and affirms itself by the way we constantly reflect each other. Merton states that to know our "true self," we must see through the false representation of life which we almost constantly accept, and turn to a very different reality, borne out of the Creator who made us and knows us wholly.