Comparative Philosophy Blog #3

 

    THE SEARCH OF TRANSCENDENCE

    (photo from: https://imgflip.com/memetemplate/200626627/IGHT-IMMA-TRANSCEND)

                “Are we capable of transcending?”

            This was one of the many questions pondered in the discussion on the article “Beyond Ricci and Longobardi: Exploring a Dialogue Between East-West Transcendence.” As we surveyed the Western and Eastern perspectives on the search of transcendence, we are first confronted with the question on our capability to transcend. Well, the answer of course is we can. We are capable of such feat. This is evident by the fact that man is able to think of things or even entertain ideas that are beyond him. If we are not able to do so, how, then, could the greatest theories and discoveries especially about the outer space been put forth? Also, how would religions in the world flourish if man is not able to think about divine stuff?

            Since we are capable of transcending, it is safe to assume that there is a Transcendent to which man transcends. The Transcendent has been given many names – substance, reality, Absolute, God, etc. Thinkers of antiquity have long purported their various ideas on where this transcendent is found. Some even have thought it to be very distant to man that it is considered to be unmoved, uncaused, and non-material. Among the many perspectives, I found the pantheists’ position quite interesting, though I do not advocate nor subscribe to their teaching; I am not a heretic.

            Pantheism holds that everything is God. Followers of such position believe that the Divine is found in all things. Everything has in them a manifestation of the Divine, of the transcendent. I find it quite interesting because it takes the notion of “God’s presence” seriously, or even to the extreme. As a Catholic, I believe that God is present everywhere (as He is omnipresent). He is also present in everyone because man is created in His image and likeness. However, there are times that I fail to recognize such presence in my life and in others. This happens most especially in moments of sin, and in moments when I fail to respect the dignity of every human person. Maybe if I was a pantheist, I would avoid doing it. Or maybe not. Since I am not a pantheist, I better try my best to always ordain my whole being to the search for the Transcendent so I may recognize His workings in me, in others, and in nature.