From: John Constantine
> ....there is a much deeper meaning
> in the use of the "I-Thou" relationship. In much dialogue over the
> years with clergy and lay persons, the [relationship] would appear to us to
> be the recognition of God within the other person, a reflection of
> one's self in another being.
> ....
> As we see our "Selves" in others, we can better act to help others
> and ourselves learn, grow, sympathize and empathize, have compassion
> for those around us, both in business and personal dealings.
> ....
> When fully comprehended, this "flips the switch", as in applied
> systems theory, and a person is not the same anymore.
John,
(Forgive me for not responding sooner. I misplaced your post, and only
recently relocated it.)
While I tend towards an agnostic stance, I very heartily agree with your
idea that the "I-Thou" relationship entails a recognition of the "divine"
within each one of us. I would liken this to the shift from the Ptolemaic
view of the universe to the Copernican view - it moves "the center"
outside ourselves. The resulting humility is a positive change, as long
as it does not stop there. If we only feel the shift away from ourselves
as the center we tend to feel alienated from meaning and efficacy. We
also need the sense of connection to other selves, and to the larger
system as a whole.
Balancing focus on the self vs. on others is important, but not easy to
do.
I like Covey's books for his ideas on maintaining this balance.
I just had a thought - perhaps one could translate Covey's ideas into "The
Seven Habits of Highly Effective Organizations".
- Jeff
--Jeff Brooks <BrooksJeff@AOL.com>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>