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Guilt, fear and shame
There are three conditions I believe have held humanity back for so long and prevented us from reaching our full potential. One of the three, perhaps the most widespread, is guilt; the other two are shame and fear. These three elements have become a prison for many people and their enduring effects on many lives lead me to ask a lot of questions about them. I often wondered: where did guilt start? How does anything qualify as shameful? Why are many people held hostage by fear? Why can’t humanity get past guilt, shame and fear? Why have we accepted them as normal in many cases? Why are we so helpless against them? The why, how, where and when of guilt, shame and fear, kept me thinking and searching for answers.
Just in case you are wondering what is the point of these inquisitions and how relevant it is, let me give you a little back story of how I ended up here. I will make it as brief as possible.
A broken ideal world
I like to think myself as an idealist who basically sees good everywhere. However, over the years, I realized the world is far from what I think it to be and the realities are very jarring. As a matter of fact, I know there are many who prefer the world in its current state of confusion and disarray. It allows for certain benefits which includes making a lot of money. On the other side, there are those who want to see the world healed and even further, an end to the pain, war and suffering which are so rife today. I like to think myself as a member of the latter group.
Facing those questions about guilt, shame and fear, I strongly believed that the answers to these mind-boggling inquisitions will give me (and many others who want out) the needed impetus to step out of this vicious cycle of guilt, shame and fear which has led to the continuous poverty, abuse, greed and oppression we see all around.
Guilt, the destroyer
Yes! the many troubles of our world can be centered on guilt. Guilt is requisite for shame and fear is a significant added bonus. When any of these three overwhelms an individual, the consequences can spread like wildfire: catching and destroying anything that is good and wholesome and leaving behind destruction and pain. Destruction in itself means loss and loss causes desperation which can branch out in several tributaries leading to more pain and suffering. So, yes! guilt is dangerous; but not as dangerous as unbelief. Let’s dive in a little deeper.
Unbelief is an absence of faith. In other words, loss of trust. When trust is broken, guilt sets in and you know the rest. Though faith can be easy to come by, the cost of losing it can be very devastating. How do I know this? Well, look at humanity and the current state of the world.
Ask Adam
Before we get to the beginning of all things, let’s consider what is common—broken trust. When we lose trust (faith or confidence) in someone’s ability or character, what happens to our relationship with that person? Will you invite a plumber to fix your plumbing if you do not trust or have faith in his ability?
Likewise, when positions are switched and you do something that makes another lose confidence in you, how do you feel? Let’s say the person is really important to you. Do you feel guilty and ashamed and try to take steps to regain that trust? Say the person you let down is a very powerful person. Do you begin to fear that person may retaliate? In that frame of mind, how do you respond? Do matters get even worse when you respond in fear, guilt or shame? Well, it was no different with Adam, the man from the earth!
When the first man doubted the character of his creator, God, the first ever recorded instances of guilt, shame and fear followed right after that. Not to blame Adam too much because he tried to fix what he broke; but as stated earlier, matters only get worse when solutions are conceived in a mindset of guilt, shame and fear!
A case of entropy
Adam’s actions led to chaos which has kept multiplying across many millennia. When man lost confidence in the Creator’s character, there was the immediate realization that something had changed at a fundamental level. What ensued afterwards proved it. For the first time, the human race was introduced to fear, guilt and shame almost instantaneously. All of this because of a seemingly simple act of unbelief. What’s that popular saying again? Trust once broken is not easily repaired?
Since that incident with unbelief (broken trust, loss of faith), humanity has been in a constant uphill battle—literally fighting against entropy. We have been trying so hard to return the world to the state it was intended to be (one without the chaos we see today); yet for all our efforts, the problems keep getting compounded and our circumstances worsen. Is there anything else to indicate how miserably we are failing? Do we continue on this path of accelerating chaos and destruction or simply stretch out our hands and ask for help?