"Anyone who engages in the practice of psychotherapy
confronts every day the devastation wrought by the teachings of religion."
"In any culture, subculture, or family in which belief
is valued above thought, and self-surrender is valued above
self-expression, and conformity is valued above integrity, those who
preserve their self-esteem are likely to be heroic exceptions."
"Whether one believes in a God, and whether one believes
we are God's children, is irrelevant to the issue of what self-esteem
requires. Let us imagine that there is a God and that we are
his/her/its children. In this respect, then, we are all equal.
Does it follow that everyone is or should be equal in self-esteem,
regardless of whether anyone lives consciously or unconsciously,
responsibly or irresponsibly, honestly or dishonestly? Earlier in
this book we saw that this is impossible. There is no way for our
mind to avoid registering the choices we make in the way we operate and no
way for our sense of self to remain unaffected. If we are children
of God, the question remains: What are we going to do about it? What
are we going to make of it? Will we honor our gifts or betray them?
If we betray ourselves and our
powers, if we live mindlessly, purposelessly, and without integrity, can
we buy our way out, can we acquire self-esteem, by claiming to be God's
relatives? Do we imagine we can thus relieve ourselves of personal
responsibility?
"If, in any culture, children are taught, ´We are all
equally unworthy in the sight of God´ -
"If, in any culture, children are taught, ´You are born in sin and are
sinful by nature´ -
"If children are given a message that amounts to ´Don't think, don't
question, *believe*´ -
"If children are given a message that amounts to ´Who are you to place
your mind above that of the priest, the minister, the rabbi?´ -
"If children are told, ´If you have value it is not because of anything
you have done or could ever do, it is only because God loves you´ -
"If children are told, ´Submission to what you cannot understand is the
beginning of morality´ -
"If children are instructed, ´Do not be "willful",
self-assertiveness is the sin of pride´ -
"If children are instructed, ´Never think that you belong to yourself´ -
"If children are informed, ´In any clash between your judgement and that
of your religious authorities, it is your authorities you must believe´, -
"If children are informed, ´Self-sacrifice is the foremost virtue and the
noblest duty´ -
"- then *consider what will be the likely consequences for the
practice of living consciously, or the practice of self-assertiveness,
or any of the other pillars of healthy self-esteem*."
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