It is no secret to anyone who read my two previous articles (Part 1 and Part 2) that I am not particularly fond of our society’s love affair with the individual. It saddens me that it is radical, even shocking, that I do not buy into the religion of myself. I do not worship myself as the infallible standard by which to measure all things – "how delusional I must be," says culture. It is within this context that I plead for sanity. Sometimes I think that even more is called for, that I have still fallen short, that I have not been revolutionary enough. This is one of those times.
The core of individualism, underpinning a frighteningly significant chunk of the way that we understand ourselves and the world we are in, is the right and the ability to self-determine beliefs about truth. Imagine for a moment a scenario in which this were not the case. It hardly makes sense. In the modern West, we have been so steeped in the ideals of personal responsibility, individual liberty and tolerance of other ideas (all good things, to be sure) that it is nearly impossible to even visualize what reality could be like without power over our own convictions. More to the point, it feels almost heretical to entertain the notion. Our individual understanding of truth seems somewhat sacred. How could I not control my opinions? They are mine. I own them. By their very nature, they must belong to me and no one else…right? Well, I have no specialized theory or knowledge to impart to you, no bombshell of a point to make, but as I think through this myself I challenge you to reconsider how confidently you can defend that previous statement. Are you the ultimate arbiter of your beliefs? Ought you to have absolute power over your understanding of the world? And if so, what stops you from saying that you are your own god? If you and only you claim absolute ownership of that part of the soul which holds the most sway over your life, what holds you back from consciously worshiping yourself?
What now seems self-evident was not always so. In the scope of human experience, the current level of obsession with our own perception of the world is quite new. In fact, compared to those who populated past civilizations, we experience reality in relative isolation. The modern psyche sees in stark, cold relief a vision of “me” standing apart from “everything else.” "Me" reacts to everything else with no regard to anything but his own intuition. He comes into contact with other people and their perspectives but will never be able to inhabit them. His understanding of reality may overlap with other people's, but this is only a byproduct of existence in the same place at the same time. The very phrase “their beliefs” is nonsensical – “his beliefs” happen to coincide with “her beliefs”. Their convictions do not pour forth from a common spring. Metaphorically, they have been plopped into the same room and forced to interact with each other, but there is no connection deeper than that.
This is a stark contrast to how people of days gone by saw things. They understood truth much more collectively. Again, it is hard for us to grasp, but they experienced reality more communally. When understanding what the world presented to them, they drew not only on their own experiences and perspectives but on a common reference point. This often took the shape of mythology. A myth was, by nature, a communal explanation of reality and how it came to be. Modern America, in having no mythology to speak of, finds its people scattered in their search for truth, each individual left to his own devices. “Me” finds himself wandering hopelessly alone, unwilling to step off of his cold throne into the welcoming arms of a communal understanding of reality. In clinging so tightly to the belief that he can find truth sufficiently on his own, he chokes the life out of any help he might have gotten in understanding it better.
This shift toward a defiantly individualistic interaction with truth is reflected in the linguistic history of the word itself. In a fascinating book called "To Know As We Are Known", author and educator Parker Palmer reveals that “truth” is rooted in the same Old English word as our modern English “troth.” This root meant something much closer to “fidelity” than our modern usage gives credit for. Truth was not only communal, but involved a pledge (think “by my troth”) which inherently defers to something outside oneself. This understanding requires a certain humility, but it lets us experience the world with others. Reality can be a very lonely place if one tries to approach it in solitude. Alternatively, it can be the exciting and beautiful place it was meant to be when fellow human beings take it on, side by side.
As I said before, this is not a manifesto. I do not by any means have it figured out. But I know one thing, and that is that the individual has been elevated to a godlike status that he does not deserve. “Me” has become America’s idol. The deception runs so deep that it affects the very way we approach truth itself. The only way forward is to cast down the idol of the individual. Shatter it into a thousand pieces. That is the only way to make room for a comprehensive understanding of truth, as well as to leave space for mystery. There is so much more to live for than yourself. You will not understand all of it, but it is still worth experiencing. Life is beautiful. Do not let it be obscured by the looming shadow of “me.” Live and love boldly and selflessly. There could never be a grander adventure.
