Future in Focus: Progress and Divine Union

How our present can shape the past and how the future can shape the present

In a past post, I spoke about the myth of progress, and relying on the course of history. What I was referring to was external factors that, if we allow it to, seem to determine our lives. These factors could be the economy, political movements, and other events that occur. I can chart my life, like anyone else, as a series of ups and downs, peaks and valleys. However, one part of progressive growth that is in my control is how I view myself and what I do in my relationships. This is an internal growth that is made possible through not only my own work and reflection, but what I can now say is a growing confidence — dare I say, belief – that progress can still be made at any time?

Photo by Viktor Forgacs on Unsplash

There have been several ideas that I’ve been working on to correctly articulate, and it’s one of Christianity’s future hope and a movement toward the divine image, called theosis. This, coupled with the notion that humans are all created in the image of God, with attributes of the Divine, give us a progressive goal and perspective upon which to see our present self. There have been few studies in the realm of psychology called “future-self” that brings this together, and if we fit all these components together, it would make of not only a very intriguing work, but a practical view of human growth. In other words, unlike the passive and difficult view of growing in divine union, as seen in much of Eastern Orthodoxy, progressive human development is still possible if we engage in active steps toward looking at who we are, our goals, and what is truly possible for us.

Last year, I wrote a letter from my future self — someone who was perhaps 60 — to myself back then. As I wrote it, I was moved with tears because it was full of compassion, determination, and hope that I probably did not have at that time. A year later, I have grown much and learned much since then. There have been many goals achieved, many still left incomplete, and a few failures. However, even the failures were not real failures because I figured out much more from getting things wrong than from getting things right. It is this progressive growth that has given me confidence to move toward the next goal, and the next, providing me the confidence to do the many things I set out to do.

Photo by Calum MacAulay on Unsplash

Part of the work was in what is called the “reframing of the past.” In the work of Irenaeus of Lyons, there is a type of view of history called recapitulation. I hint at it in Jesus of the East, and I teach it to both my college and high school students, but I’ve not figured out the key components to it until lately. The word comes from the Latin to mean a summing up. “Caput” is where we get our word chapter from, and recapitulation was a rhetorical device to sum up a speech (or give chapter summaries) at the end. Irenaeus said the Jesus did this work, to summarize the history of human progress and failure in a way that if Adam, who represented all humanity, could not achieve, he could achieve. In other words, because humans failed at resisting temptation for power, not committing acts of sin, and growing to love God and others, Jesus was the “new Adam” or “new human” who could do this. In this, he shows that it is possible to grow to have divine union with God and be transformed. Again, this theology was tucked into Eastern Orthodoxy, and mostly made difficult for other parts of Christianity to truly embrace. The Reformed tradition had sanctification. The Catholic Church had the sacraments. Methodists had spiritual discipline. However, nothing really achieved the 1) progressive growth of the individual into the “new person” that was promised, 2) healing for the wounded, 3) liberation for people seeking more empowered lives. Christianity was more of the same because it was built on the past and not the future (I’ll explore that more in my other writing).

If I were to take the word “recapitulation” and just translate it “reframing” it will keep all the aspects of the Latin word (to make the academics happy) and it will help us everyday people see what is possible. So, I have a past full of trauma, tragedy, failures, and successes, more or less like the 8 billion people on this planet, but how I “reframe” my past and look at my growth makes a considerable difference regarding how I live. Let me take the last twenty-four hours as an example. There were specific things that I did not do correctly because I was impatient or tired. I did not communicate clearly to a client. I got frustrated when cooking dinner. Not only that, but I thought about my people in ways I should not have because of views about myself. However, instead of harping on these past mistakes, I turned them into ways in which I could learn, grow, and move on further. This does not mean that I denied the reality of what happened or covered it up. Rather, I “re-framed” my past based on the future that I wanted and envisioned for myself. Because I want to be the kind of person who clearly communicates what they want, who is patient, who gives people the benefit of the doubt, who is mindful about the things that they do, I see my mistakes simply as learning opportunities to become that future version of myself, my new self.

For most people, what gets them stuck is the past, the wounds from their past, and how they live from those wounds, not seeing them as opportunities now to reframe their lives and grow. Christianity, or the movement called "the Way," was built upon the teachings of a poor, itinerant preacher who had a vision of a future of kinship and abundance for all humanity. It was not the same old religion. However, when Christianity was conquered, the same old system of power infected this progressive movement and made it the traditional machine of power and conquest. Because our brains, through the course of human evolution, have a dual function, to remember the past and to look forward to the future, many empires and governments want to draw us back to the framework of scarcity to keep control. We can see this tension uniquely in the U.S.A. Even though there have been theological outliers, those willing to buck the system, who have painted us a new view of the future, we live in systems stuck in repeating the past. In addition, the system, that was designed to protect the system, was determined to eliminate the threat. The result was Jesus’ death and the death of all visionaries willing to move beyond scarcity. However, we can still make progress to a better future by continuing to reframe and learn from the past, and at the same time looking toward a future of hope.

Additionally, reframing is not denial or covering up or forgetting. It is the opposite. It is taking responsibility and action for our growth and development. The past can be a very useful instrument. There is nothing wrong with the past, tradition, and what has happened to us. However, if those things keep us stuck and not moving forward, we will continue to live in regret, frustration, and stagnation. This is not where I want to be, and this is not where many of us would like to be either. However, most of us, because of culture, environment, and education, have not been given the opportunity otherwise. The future is full of possibilities for a new self, one in divine union, which means whole and healed.

A Practical Step

This evening, before bed, take out a journal or piece of paper and track your growth from your last year, what all you have learned, your accomplishments, how did you grow and see yourself? I want to you then set an end of the year marker on three key things you want to see for yourself from now to the end of 2025. As you make progress, don’t dwell on the mistakes, what ifs, regrets, bitterness, resentments, but continue to move forward by asking again, what did I gain. This will dwell on abundance and not scarcity. At the end of the year, I’ll do a post in which you can revisit your former self and ask about your future self for 2025.

Bonus

I just finished an interview with my good friend Quique Autrey about his book, Green Flags: How to be the Kind of Person you Need in Your Life. It’s on pre-sales now and the sooner you order, the sooner he can get a boost from the Amazon algorithms to advance his book.

Thank you!

As always, thank you for your support. If you are a paid subscriber and have not booked a Zoom call with me, feel free to DM me. Paid subscribers get a one-hour Zoom call with me each year to discuss anything they want. I have been doing coaching on publishing and helping people realize their big ideas, and if you need to share anything from personal development to business ventures, I’m here for you. And if you are not a paid subscriber, it’s only $8 a month. That’s like buying me a cup or two of coffee every time you read an article.

Final Thoughts

Lastly, if you have anxiety about the elections, just keep from the news and social media. We voted on Saturday. We did our part and can’t control anything except ourselves moving forward. Regardless of who is in the White House, maintaining our peace of mind is the most important thing we can do.

Love and peace!

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