Some say the most profound scientific discipline is theoretical physics which vastly expanded our understanding of the structure of the physical universe, using the language of mathematics, but I think, now, this needs to be transcended by an even more fundamental spiritual/theological discipline which furthers a deeper understanding of God and human beings through the expansion of consciousness of love, truth, justice, and beauty as expressed through arts and literature. Materialistic evolution, i.e., science and technology, has taken us about as far as humanity’s ever going to get, spiritually, but the prospects for our species will turn out to be pretty grim if that’s the full extent of what we, as humans, are ever going to achieve.

Isn’t it time for humans to make a conscious, species-wide, choice about which of these evolutionary paths we should take: materialistic evolution (including artificial intelligence) or the next step in our human spiritual evolution.

Greater spirituality, however, won’t necessarily increase our intelligence or ability to manipulate the material world, but might, eventually, evolve us into an entirely different type of humanity –  the kind earlier pointed us towards by Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, and Laozi.

            When a person enters the world, as a baby, they’re totally open to God – arriving as pure energy in human form. Because babies come straight from God, they’re completely natural upon arrival. After that surprise landing in the world, however, they need to figure out how to survive in a particular time and place. Eventually they do, but the cost can be high. They’re faced with the necessity of becoming the kind of person other people readily recognize and like, as well as this child’s surrounding culture use. Since, usually, they’re raised by their parents – people who’ve already made the requisite compromises and adjustments – this baby, ultimately, learns how to “fit in.”

The baby, though, who started life as a tiny energy “sun,” eventually begins to “dim” because so much of their original natural energy can be perceived as “alien” by her family’s world. Eventually, however, the baby matures and becomes a “person” by developing its ego –ultimately joining society. One day, however, this very baby – after attaining adulthood – might begin wondering where all her previous God-like energy has gone – and whether it can ever be regained.

In traditional societies, a person’s roles remain largely the same throughout their life and also determines how their own children turn out.

In more modern societies, however, by early adulthood, a person usually can gain various abilities and opportunities that allow them to change “who” they are – through their “individual” choices – which can lead them away from their predestined family roles and enable them to become, partly, a family-destined person and partly a self-determined one – as a “composite” role. Nevertheless, whatever this mixed role ends up turning out to be, it’s still, ultimately, a role.

All roles, whether traditional, composite, or fully modern, are included in one’s “life story.” As Shakespeare wrote in As You Like It: “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” So, the problem with developing an “ego,” along with an  accompanying “life story,” is the temptation to “make up” the story as one goes along – like living inside a self-made dramatic film – even though this is usually carried out, mainly, unconsciously.

Another problem with “roles” is their need for consistency and continuity, so the self, seemingly, remains the “same.”

This is why much “higher” values are necessary to effect real change in these quotidian roles and ongoing stories. Traditionally, humanity’s highest values are attributable to a “Holy Spirit” (usually identified as “God”) – as well as to other divine attributes such as love, truth, justice, and beauty.

Roles and their accompanying stories compel us to live as unfree. Since we believe these roles and stories (reinforced by the surrounding society) constitute our “identity,” we sometimes believe we need to “die” as the price for achieving real freedom. Frequently, if a person is threatened with losing their identity, they think they might as well be dead. That’s how important roles and personal stories are for normal human beings. In fact, there’s a general consensus in the humanities, as well as in psychotherapy, that the ego, as a person’s chief fictional character, is one’s essential self.

So, how do we free ourselves from such embedded roles and stories making up our “ego,” which obstructs our “natural” human self-understanding and also closes down our spontaneous thoughts and gain the freedom necessary to become our “true selves”?

The answer is we have to be “born again” – at any age! That is, we need to reverse direction, spiritually, and become a “child” all over again in order to become as free as God.

Jesus himself said this, did this, and then voluntarily died – to show us how.

To be “born again” is scary – and very few of us are able to do it all at once. Most people need time to shed their artificial roles to become free enough to make a long and daring leap to their “true selves.” Starting at an older age, however, it’s actually easier to move towards a higher spirituality by breaking up and discarding pieces of one’s earlier “false selves,” gaining the greater naturalness and openness that’s spiritually necessary to achieve one’s “true self” –  even though, at the same time, by necessity, we’re also inevitably becoming physically frailer and weaker.