Anthony de Mello (1931 – 1987) was a Jesuit, but in fact he was free of any tradition after he discovered freedom. Miraculously, he was not send out of the Church, but there were Catholic voices seeking to ban his writings, and there is also the suspicion that he was put to death by the Church fearing freedom. He delivered his insights vibrantly, and had a wonderful starting point:
Β¨I am an ass, you are an ass; letΒ΄s get over it!Β¨
In todayΒ΄s polarized world, this strikes me as a fantastic principle for opposing camps to engage in conversation again. Dogmatic thinking is not thinking, but sticking a punch card with predictable output in your organ, as a commandment to the other, not as an invitation to genuine dialogue.
The starting point should not be to convince each other. Let’s begin by listening to one another, which can then lead to hearing. In listening we can find understanding for the other person’s point of view. As soon as a view obstructs, or wants to obstruct, the freedom of another, there is no opening, then someone chooses to remain an ass, unhinged and isolated. A hopeless situation of course.
I have introduced Anthony before for those who don’t know him, and I am happy to do so again, as his insights require no faith on the part of the listener; he is intelligible to all. He draws from a variety of traditions in his discourses; however, he is not attached to any of them. He plucks the cleanest fruits from the traditions of humanity, but does not allow himself to be limited or determined by any tradition. He offers his insights and says firmly: do not simply accept what I say, research what I tell you, test what I transmit yourself, do not accept anything until you yourself have discovered what is true and reality. What a wonderful invitation!
Anthony is not a preacher in that sense, rather a lecturer who does not want to force anything on anyone, but certainly wants to give everyone the opportunity to take note of his discovery and make freedom his or her own. A sincere man wants nothing from the other. His happiness lay not in being recognized and confirmed, but in being able to serve out of the freedom that spoke through him, and, when I listen to him now, still speaks. Love is not a beggar, love gives.
I, and with me many, we say today, anno 2022, that the world is nuts. Anthony said the same thing during his lifetime. He was perfectly explicit about the madness of blind docility that I’m still surprised the church didn’t eliminate him. Or did that happen anyway? Read this. Ratzinger‘s name comes up all too often when it comes to crimes of the Catholic Church. But forget the Church; the murderer is to be mourned, not the murdered.
In conclusion, I could choose the lecture at length in which Anthony explains how to pray. But prayer is already related to a certain tradition, so once again I choose A Rediscovery of Life, in which wisdom and humor blend beautifully. Enjoy it at a time of rest, will do you good!
You mat also want to visit: https://anthonydemelloawareness.wordpress.com/
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