In Rene Girard's understanding, human beings are constantly searching for ontological substantiation -- the taproot of selfhood -- that, in the Christian worldview, was lost to us due to Original Sin. That is, we "go looking for love in all the wrong places," and end up trashing our lives due to futile and misguided efforts to find this substance (New Testament Gr. "ousia") everywhere except the one and only source of it: God.
Typically, we first idolize someone who seems to have "IT". We think/believe certainly THIS person will "mediate" truth, etc. to us if we but worship him or her aright. We see such worship in the tabloid pictures, unworthy adolation of corporate leaders, movie stars, sports stars, and the like. It may even be a professor or the like (really!).
But sooner or later, we find that such people are only that: people. Weak, human, faulty, unworthy of immitation, adulation, and certainly not having "IT" that we were seeking.
For Girard, there is only ONE truly worthy "mediator". Only ONE who has come to us from outside our "hall of mirrors" existence. This worthy "external mediator" is the One whom the Bible witnesses to as Jesus Christ (Christ not being his last name, but title: Messiah). Jesus came from outside creation, being one with the Father, and became the "Word made flesh" (Jn 1:14), truly God and truly man.
And, yes, Porthos, it is a rendering of the Holy Family.
Just a reminder when the grindstone seems a bit harsh on the nose.
4 comments:
:-) , Ath!
Is that the Holy Family?
Now you have to explain to all the [raises eyebrows] lovely ladies who might be visiting what an "external mediator" is!
Why, thank you, Porthos. What a segue!
In Rene Girard's understanding, human beings are constantly searching for ontological substantiation -- the taproot of selfhood -- that, in the Christian worldview, was lost to us due to Original Sin. That is, we "go looking for love in all the wrong places," and end up trashing our lives due to futile and misguided efforts to find this substance (New Testament Gr. "ousia") everywhere except the one and only source of it: God.
Typically, we first idolize someone who seems to have "IT". We think/believe certainly THIS person will "mediate" truth, etc. to us if we but worship him or her aright. We see such worship in the tabloid pictures, unworthy adolation of corporate leaders, movie stars, sports stars, and the like. It may even be a professor or the like (really!).
But sooner or later, we find that such people are only that: people. Weak, human, faulty, unworthy of immitation, adulation, and certainly not having "IT" that we were seeking.
For Girard, there is only ONE truly worthy "mediator". Only ONE who has come to us from outside our "hall of mirrors" existence. This worthy "external mediator" is the One whom the Bible witnesses to as Jesus Christ (Christ not being his last name, but title: Messiah). Jesus came from outside creation, being one with the Father, and became the "Word made flesh" (Jn 1:14), truly God and truly man.
And, yes, Porthos, it is a rendering of the Holy Family.
Whew. That's one of the chrystally clear Girard intros I've ever encountered. Good job, Ath!
If that doesn't impress the ladies, I'll have to start doing my Jimmy Stewart impressions.
And that, whilst a gaggle of sixth grader swirled and gathered, aworking on a science worksheet on volcanoes and plate tectonics. Oie ..
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