Shadow side - August 6

Today’s Readings: AM Psalm 88; PM Psalm 91, 92, 2 Samuel 12:1-14; Acts 19:21-41; Mark 9:14-29

We can patiently accept not being good. What we cannot bear is not being considered good, not appearing good. —  St. Francis of Assisi

Carl Jung was a Swiss psychoanalyst and psychiatrist who researched aspects of the human psyche in the first half of the 20th century. If you took a psychology course in college, it is likely that you were exposed to the work of Jung. He separated the parts of our personality into ‘that which we are conscious of’ and elements ‘that which we are unconscious of’. Our conscious mind holds the parts of our personality and identity that we are aware of. According to Jung, people express ‘personas’ that comes from a desire to please or be accepted by others. (If you have “put on” a social mask in specific situations, with friends, family or at work, then you will be able to relate to this.)

Jung pointed out an issue with personas, in that they can lead to aspects of one’s personality being unexplored, underdeveloped, and suppressed. Through a desire to live up to others’ expectations, we can focus on our qualities that we perceive to be acceptable by others, thereby hiding the parts of ourselves which we believe to be negative. Jung referred to this suppressed side of the personality as the ‘shadow self’ – the parts of ourselves that we think society will disapprove of, which are pushed away into our unconscious.

For Jung, the goal is a reconciliation of self – an accounting within oneself of the whole breadth of personas, hats, masks, roles. Integration is a term that comes to mind for me, accepting all aspects of one’s personhood, even when we wince in the mirror a little bit.

In chapters 11 and 12 of 2 Samuel, the shadow side of King David is revealed. It was painful to read the story of David and Bathsheba and Uriah the Hittite yesterday during Morning Prayer. I winced as I retold that story of David’s deceitfulness. And today, we read of Nathan, the prophet and advisor, confronting the king with the truth. Nathan holds up a mirror to David through telling him a parable. Beautiful, beloved David feels moved to anger by the injustice levied upon the underdog in the story…and then is crushed to realize that his own actions align more closely with that of the bad guy – the rich man – the one so stingy that he stole the only prized possession from the poor man, rather than draw from his own holdings.

Nathan spells out to David how he is like the rich man. He has so much, because of the Lord’s anointing and appointing him as king over Israel. He leveraged his power and seduced a married woman – Bathsheba – while her husband was away in battle. He then struck down her husband, Uriah the Hittite, and took Bathsheba to be his own wife, creating destruction in the way that the evil Ammonites wreak havoc.

After hearing Nathan’s retelling of the tale, David says, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’ Nathan responds, ‘Now the Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child that is born to you shall die.’ 

This is hard stuff. And sad. When we see the shadow side of ourselves, it is painful. And so, David’s lesson to us today is this – repent of wrongdoing as soon as you realize it is wrong. Make amends as you can. Pray to God for healing, and learn from the consequences. And, keep a trusted and honest friend nearby who will tell you what you need to hear, not just what you want to hear.

Katherine+

Questions for Reflection

What is it like to tell someone a hard truth? How do you receive a hard truth imparted to you?

What is something you have resisted acknowledging, even when someone pointed it out to you?

Daily Challenge

Take time to study more about getting in touch with your shadow self, whether that be through reading, journaling, or prayer. Remember that David had Nathan as a guide through this process, and talk with a friend about “shadows”, too.