Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Progressive Christian
Releasing Ourselves From Ego

Releasing Ourselves From Ego

Last updated on: April 25, 2024 at 5:03 pm by Duncan Edward Pile

0 Comments

Releasing Ourselves From Ego 2024-04-25T17:03:35+01:00 Duncan Edward Pile

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Over the course of our lives, we are exposed to damage that can result in all kinds of false personas, depending on how we react – masks, if you like, to avoid vulnerability, especially when removing the mask would expose festering wounds.

The damaged person learns to wear numerous masks, each of which is a defence against openness. Perhaps they validate themselves through financial success, or by seeing themselves as a disruptor, or through some form of dominance over others, or maybe by viewing themselves as exceptional or special.

There is no end to the variety of false selves we can adopt but they all serve the same, defensive purpose, and the person with their guard up finds it hard to give and receive love.

Another way of understanding these masks and their use is to recognise them as ego, which is always an expression of pain. Ego is a hall of mirrors, within which it is impossible to see yourself clearly.

We chip away at ego by accepting ourselves as we are, recognising the masks we wear without self-judgement. Freedom always starts with love, and for a spiritual person, the first step is acknowledging that God accepts and loves us exactly as we are.

The foundation for self-acceptance is the loving nature of God. If God is judgemental and his love conditional, self-regard won’t get us very far, but if God is love and accepts us as we are, positive self-regard reflects the fundamental nature of the universe. We are in tune with all that is!

Once a month, Patheos features one of my articles and publishes it through a route that bypasses my blog-spot. To dig more deeply into this topic, here is the full piece.

General Christian

Loving Ourselves

Mental Health

Mental Health and Faith

Previous Post

April 21, 2024

Less of Me and More of You?

Next Post

May 6, 2024 Bells, Smells, and Liturgy - A Backwards Step?

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"As I see it, the values espoused by self-described Christian nationalists (which really requires the ..."

frharry

The Rise of Cultural Christianity

"Most people when considering cultural Christianity view it merely as left-wing. Primarily because "cultural Christians" ..."

newenglandsun

The Rise of Cultural Christianity

"A Good Follower of "The Way" of Yahushua , and a Good Person should go ..."

stephen hamilton

Is It More Important To Be ..."

"Dear Duncan — This is my conclusion about the Christianity of the Trump administration. Trump ..."

gottlieb spangenberg

When Politics and Values Clash

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category A time for war and Sheol Authentic Faith Being in Christ Christian marriage Christian Mysticism Christian Nationalism Christian Parenting Christianity and politics Church and State De/reconstruction Discipleship Divine Healing Divine judgement Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater Effective Prayer Embracing the LGBTQ+ Community Embracing the LGBTQIA+ community End-Times Fellowship with his sufferings Gehenna Glorifying God Hades Healthy Debate Heaven and Earth Hell Honouring Christian Women I still believe inter-faith dialogue Interpreting Scripture Keep the faith Knowing the peace of God Living in Abundance Loving Each Other Loving God Loving Ourselves Mental Health Mental Health and Faith Old and New Covenants Practice Peace Prophecy Prophesy Re-thinking Christian Concepts Resist the Devil Revival Salvation Seeking God Sex and love sin and sinfulness Sound theology Spiritual Authority Spiritual discipline Spiritual effectiveness Spiritual Gifts Spiritual growth Spiritual Mentorship The Christmas story The Cross of Christ The divine feminine The Fear of the Lord The Holy Spirit The importance of kindness The importance of theology The MAGA Cult The Ministry of Jesus The risen Christ The service of Jesus the sin of judgement The spirit-filled life The Virgin Birth True worship Uncategorized Understanding God Understanding Old Testament prophecy Understanding Self-Worth Understanding the Bible Union with God War and Peace

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 September 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Old Testament book does not mention God?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Ecclesiastes Esther Ruth Song of Solomon