Sabbath Devotional :: Eyes and Hearts Wide Open

It’s no secret that life is full of ambiguity. Here at MWEG, in particular, we’ve all learned that, while some issues can be reduced to simple blacks and whites, more often than not, the “ethical” solution is nuanced and not immediately clear. We rely on the Spirit and the clarifying power of love as we seek answers. How, though, can we repeatedly and successfully grapple with the distance we know exists between the real and the ideal?

Listen to these words from Bruce C. Hafen:

“The English writer G. K. Chesterton once distinguished among ‘optimists,’ ‘pessimists,’ and ‘improvers.’ The most productive response to ambiguity . . . is at level three, where we not only view things with our eyes wide open but with our hearts wide open as well. Both the optimists and the pessimists look too much at only one side of things; neither of them can be of much help in improving the human condition, because people cannot solve problems unless they are willing both to acknowledge that a problem exists and yet retain enough genuine loyalty to do something about it. ‘Love is not blind; that is the last thing it is. Love is bound; and the more it is bound, the less it is blind.'”

I am so grateful to affiliate with MWEG — a group of women who are determined to turn love into action and become Brother Hafen’s level three “Improvers.”

He explains in greater detail:

“Before entering college, most of us think of things for the most part in terms of black and white — there is very little gray in either the intellectual or the spiritual dimension of our perspective . . . . As time goes on, however, new experiences may introduce a new dimension. In general, I would characterize this new dimension as a growing awareness that there is a kind of gap between the real and the ideal — between what is and what ought to be.

Experiences such as these can produce confusion and uncertainty — in a word, ambiguity — and one may yearn with nostalgia for simpler, easier times when things seemed not only more clear but more under our control. Such experiences may bring about the beginnings of skepticism, of criticism, of unwillingness to respond to authority or to invitations to reach for ideals that now truly seem beyond one’s grasp.

I believe that there are three different levels of dealing with ambiguity. At level one there are two typical attitudes, one of which is that we simply do not — perhaps cannot — see the problems that exist. Some seem almost consciously to filter out any perception of a gap between the real and the ideal. A second group at level one has quite a different problem with the gap between what is and what ought to be. Those in this category eliminate the frustration created as they sense a distance between the real and the ideal in their world by, in effect, erasing the inner circle of reality.

I invite you, then, to step up to level two, where you see things for what they are; for only then can you deal with them in a meaningful and constructive way. If we are not willing to grapple with the frustration that comes from honestly and bravely facing the uncertainties we encounter, we may never develop the kind of spiritual maturity that is necessary for our ultimate preparations. Despite the value of this level two kind of awareness about which I have been talking, some serious hazards still remain. One’s acceptance of the clouds of uncertainty may be so complete that the iron rod fades into the receding mist and skepticism becomes a guiding philosophy.

It seems to me that the most productive response to ambiguity, then, is at level three, where we not only view things with our eyes wide open but with our hearts wide open as well. When we do that, there will be many times when we are called upon to take some action when we think we need more evidence before knowing just what to do. Based on my experience, I believe that it is always better to give the Lord and his Church the benefit of any doubts we may have when some such case seems too close to call. I stress that the willingness to be believing and accepting in these cases is a very different matter from blind obedience. It is, rather, a loving and knowing kind of obedience.

The English writer G. K. Chesterton once addressed questions similar to those I have raised today. He distinguished among “optimists,” “pessimists,” and “improvers,” as he called them, which roughly correspond to my three levels of dealing with ambiguity. He concluded that both the optimists and the pessimists looked too much at only one side of things, and observed that neither of them can be of much help in improving the human condition, because people cannot solve problems unless they are willing both to acknowledge that a problem exists and yet retain enough genuine loyalty to do something about it.

All I ask, is that we may be honest enough and courageous enough to face whatever uncertainties we may encounter, and that we try to understand them and do something about them. Perhaps then we will not be living on borrowed light. We love the Church; we love our faith. We may not understand everything in the universe, but that does not diminish our love. ‘Love is not blind; that is the last thing it is. Love is bound; and the more it is bound, the less it is blind.'” (Bruce C. Hafen, “Love is Not Blind”)