hen you pray, you will be given whatever you ask for.”(Matthew 21:22)In order to recognize myself and thereby affirm my presence in the world and in my moral sphere, I must know what to look for and where to find it. In other words, I must have an idea of what the self is in my modern world. But the task of recognizing the self has been made difficult by the problems of modernity. "We have been created in the image of God", my essence or innermost self is aware of this connection. Balance, harmony, and compassion are the natural state of my innermost self. Since spirituality is an experience, the degree to which I reflect the qualities of balance, harmony and compassion in my everyday moment-to-moment experience will support my connection to God. These problems are made visible in the two opposite notions of the loss of the self, or alternatively, the absorption with the self, both of which impoverish our sense of self. I will argue against the notion of the self as one that is constantly changing to meet the demands of the competing voices surrounding it. Rather, I will not argue that I must find a vantage point from which to view the world and create a sense of self that persists through time. I cannot be, “populated with the character of others.” Being a “self” must mean more than being an image, wearing a mask, or playing a role. ...
