The Way of Love

[Brenden]

I've been reading a book called The Way of Love by Anthony De Mello, it's interesting, but I'm a bit confused by what he means by "attachment", and he seems to be suggesting pantheism in the chapters I just finished.

Has anyone else read this?

[Vlad!]

I haven't read anything by him (though I would like to), but he seems extremely influenced by Buddhism. Buddhism has some great but simple truths in its doctrine but it is in the end a flawed religion in that it is based on the reason and teachings of man rather than God. The man was a Jesuit priest, though many of his works were not appreciated by the Catholic church.  

[Brenden]

I'd heard about the Buddhism influences, and I can kind of see it.

I'm just wondering if by not having attachements he means "don't depend on others for your happiness" or "don't care about anything or anyone". Or maybe he means something else, there are times I want to yell at him because he's a little too vague for me to clearly get what he's saying.

[Brenden]

Ok, I finally got what he was saying about it.

What he means is not to expect people to make you happy. It's ok to be sad if someone is gone, but don't think that you could never be happy without someone or something.

He also makes an excellent point when he says we can't love people if we expect them to act a certain way. Like if I loved someone because they were kind, I don't love THEM, because I've stopped seeing them as they truely are. I can't base my love of people on how they act, but it should be based on that they are human and therefore have value.

[Vlad!]

Those are some good points. After your discussion on the book earlier I looked for it in the library, but surprisingly it wasn't there. I may have to see if I can find it elsewhere.

[Brenden]

It's worth it, while I might not agree with everything, he gives a lot to think about.