Life Principles in the News
The following appeared in the Billings Gazette on February 23, 2008
Inside glance: Live your life with faith on highest level
By Mike Day
You live forever.
If you haven't contemplated that notion lately, you may want to give it a try.
A consistent, interior understanding of that eternal gift will change your life. The human soul, created at conception, will never die. The soul is unique, unrepeatable, irreplaceable and has no end.
As remarkable as that sounds, it is even a bit more difficult to fully comprehend it and live it, thereby reflecting that knowledge to those around us. Our minds are generally attuned to the moment, the near future, the here and now.
Quite naturally, our concerns revolve around our immediate needs that involve work, family, health, etc. But perhaps an explanation of how we might live by that understanding of eternal life is given by a very wise and learned priest in Spokane, Wash.
The Rev. Robert Spitzer, president of Gonzaga University, speaks of the four levels of happiness as described in his "Life Principles" curriculum. It has been said that this curriculum provides the philosophical antidote to the corrosive values of a culture that elevates physical pleasure, materialism and ego gratification as the highest values in life.
The first level, he calls immediate gratification. This most basic element of happiness is a sensorial pleasure that might include eating, quenching thirst, buying something that we really want, etc.
While these are good things, they are not sustaining, are short-term and only provide for instant satisfaction. While they are necessary, they do not supply our ultimate happiness.
The second level, he calls ego gratification. For example, the "rush" we might receive from winning at a game, competing and prevailing over the competition, reaching our sales goals, etc.
While those are good things in and of themselves, again, they are not sustaining and long-lasting. While they may give us a more lasting and intense happiness than level one, they do not maintain.
The third level involves, in a nutshell, service to others. It is oriented toward love, contribution and the common good.
This move from one's self to others is an important step. While levels one and two are important, real and necessary, this third level takes us to a whole new understanding of our existence.
It seems we are "hard-wired" for this level, if we can break out of levels one and two.
This is a great challenge in today's American society, driven by all the pressures that the abuse of those first two levels can have if not kept in their proper context - such as the bombardment of consumerism, materialism, stressful goal achievement, winning at all costs, just to name a few.
I would venture to say that most of us have a somewhat difficult time in making that leap from level two to level three. However, if we do, the joy that comes from self-giving, self-sacrifice and assistance to others will truly set us free to experience purpose and very deep meaning in our lives.
There is a reason we feel this joy through service - it is built in us. It is a glimpse of our creator's love for us.
While this level is good, sustaining and provides for a lasting happiness, it, again, does not fully give us the "end-all."
Spitzer goes on to say that eternal and everlasting joy comes from our direct relationship with God, or faith. This is level-four happiness.
This level we might see as quite rare. But I am sure some of us know of a few people who truly seem to live out the fact that their love for God is paramount.
I can think of a few people in my life who emulate this radiance of pure joy. Perhaps, even the late Mother Teresa comes to mind.
Her love for God was beautifully intense. She exhibited total detachment from "things." Her only mission was to love God and to serve the people.
There is little doubt in anyone's mind that the good nun from Calcutta lived at level four. Her profound understanding of her destiny to be with God, forever, gave her faith and courage to become a saint of our times.
She sought ultimate and perfect truth, justice, love and goodness. I suspect all of those things are now actualized for her.
Life itself is a gift barely grasped by most of us.
But to live our lives with a deeper knowledge and understanding of eternity, that we will never die, will give us lasting peace and joy on our journey to the next level of happiness - to be loved by God into all eternity!
Think about that, smile and live it!
For more information about the "Life Principles" curriculum and Spitzer's book, "Healing the Culture," visit the Web site at www.healingtheculture.com.
Mike Day is chairman emeritus of Care Net of Billings. He and his wife Lisa and their five children live in Billings.